Southeast Bank v. United States

2 Cl. Ct. 530, 52 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5329, 1983 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1739
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedMay 20, 1983
DocketNo. 281-80T
StatusPublished

This text of 2 Cl. Ct. 530 (Southeast Bank v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Southeast Bank v. United States, 2 Cl. Ct. 530, 52 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5329, 1983 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1739 (cc 1983).

Opinion

ORDER

NETTESHEIM, Judge.

Defendant has cross-moved for computation of the amount of judgment to be entered for plaintiffs Southeast Bank of Orlando, et al. (“plaintiffs”), successor trustees to Sun First National Bank of Orlando. In opposing defendant’s computation, plaintiffs urge that the amount of judgment should not be reduced as defendant requests.

FACTS

In 1979 the Court of Claims issued its decision in Sun First National Bank v. United States, 221 Ct.Cl. 469, 607 F.2d 1347 (1979), holding that the amount of gain on the sale of stock paid to a trust following the death of an income beneficiary was received by the trust as income with respect to a decedent and that, as such, the trust was entitled to a deduction against such income for the estate taxes attributable to the gain. The tax years in question were 1969-72.

Prior to the decision in Sun First National Bank, plaintiffs’ predecessor trustees also filed the same refund claim for the 1973 tax year. After defendant answered, the later-filed claim came before the Court of Claims on defendant’s assertion that the statute of limitations barred the suit. Rejecting defendant’s argument in Southeast Bank v. United States, 230 Ct.Cl.-, 676 F.2d 660 (1982), the court granted plaintiffs’ cross-motion for summary judgment and ruled on the merits that the Sun First National Bank decision “is fully controlling” and that “[pjlaintiffs must prevail.” 230 Ct.Cl. at -, 676 F.2d at 665. The court remanded the case to the Trial Division of the former Court of Claims to determine the amount of recovery.

A dispute surfaced with respect to computation when the Internal Revenue Service proposed to reduce plaintiffs’ recovery of assessed taxes and interest, $52,865.94, by $5,249.39 based on liability for the minimum tax on items of tax preference, pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, 26 U.S.C. §§ 56, 57 (1970 & Supp. III 1973) (“IRC”).1 The asserted liability is based on [531]*531plaintiffs’ adjustment to income in 1972 resulting from the Court of Claims’ decision in Sun First National Bank, which had the effect of negating a tax carryover and thereby decreasing the amount that could be subtracted from the taxpayer’s item of tax preference (a capital gains deduction) for the 1973 tax year.

The parties proceeded with cross-motions based on stipulated facts. Defendant opened with its contention that the asserted liability for minimum tax only arose on recomputation and should be allowed as a computational adjustment. Alternatively, defendant argues that the amount had been offset properly, because plaintiffs cannot show prejudice and defendant raised the offset at the earliest practicable moment.

Plaintiff responded that, since October 17, 1979, the date Sun First National Bank issued granting plaintiffs’ refund, defendant had been on notice that the tax carryovers from 1972 were no longer available and that, therefore, defendant cannot at this late date assert an offset for a minimum tax liability for 1973. Plaintiffs also challenge defendant’s characterization of the assessment as resulting from a computational adjustment and argue that it is, in fact, a new issue which cannot be raised at the computation stage.

Briefing was completed on April 18,1983, upon defendant’s submission of an additional authority, and the matter is decided on submission without oral argument.

DISCUSSION

The court’s inquiry begins and ends with the Supreme Court’s decision in Lewis v. Reynolds, 284 U.S. 281, 52 S.Ct. 145, 76 L.Ed. 293 (1932), wherein petitioners sued for refund after the Commissioner disallowed certain deductions, including one for state inheritance taxes, and assessed a deficiency. Upon petitioners’ request for refund before suit, the Commissioner took the position that another deduction for attorney’s fees had been allowed improperly and set forth a revised computation deducting the state inheritance taxes, thereby producing a liability greater than the previous payments. The Commissioner noted that the additional tax produced by the correct computation was time-barred, but nonetheless rejected the refund claim. The issue before the Court was whether the Commissioner had authority to redetermine and reassess a tax after the expiration of the then-applicable statute of limitations. In affirming the Tenth Circuit decision upholding the Commissioner, the Supreme Court stated:

While the statutes authorizing refunds do not specifically empower the Commissioner to reaudit a return whenever repayment is claimed, authority therefor is necessarily implied. An overpayment must appear before a refund is authorized. Although the statute of limitations may have barred the assessment and collection of any additional sum, it does not obliterate the right of the United States to retain payments already received when they do not exceed the amount which might have been properly assessed and demanded.

284 U.S. at 283, 52 S.Ct. at 146; accord, Allstate Insurance Co. v. United States, 213 Ct.Cl. 96, 107 n. 6, 550 F.2d 629, 634 n. 6 (1977) (“The rationale of Lewis v. Reynolds [532]*532is that a taxpayer should not be entitled to a refund unless he is entitled to one as a wholesee Dynamics Corp. of America v. United States, 183 Ct.Cl. 101, 114, 392 F.2d 241, 249 (1968) (“It is clear that, although the statute of limitations may act to effectively bar the Commissioner from assessing a deficiency for a past year, it does not prohibit him from correctly recomputing tax liability for that year and using his corrected figures to offset a timely refund claim.... ” (citations omitted)).

Defendant cites leading progeny of Lewis v. Reynolds in this court, Dysart v. United States, 169 Ct.Cl. 276, 340 F.2d 624 (1965), and Missouri Pacific Railroad Co. v. United States, 168 Ct.Cl. 86, 338 F.2d 668 (1964), which extended the Supreme Court’s decision to deny laches as a bar to an offset for the same taxpayer, the same tax, and the same taxable year. In both Dysart and Missouri Pacific, however, defendant had answered raising an offset. Defendant also offered as a supplemental authority the Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Disabled American Veterans v. United States, 704 F.2d 1570 (Fed.Cir.1983), also involving a remand for calculation of quantum. Plaintiff in that case challenged recalculation of deductions because defendant had waived the defense of allocation of direct expenses, which was absent in its answer. While the court held “that there is simply no ‘new defense’ before us....

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Related

Lewis v. Reynolds
284 U.S. 281 (Supreme Court, 1932)
Missouri Pacific Railroad Company v. The United States
338 F.2d 668 (Court of Claims, 1964)
William H. May and Betsy S. May v. United States
644 F.2d 578 (Sixth Circuit, 1981)
Disabled American Veterans v. The United States
704 F.2d 1570 (Federal Circuit, 1983)
Allstate Insurance v. United States
550 F.2d 629 (Court of Claims, 1977)
Sun First National Bank of Orlando v. United States
607 F.2d 1347 (Court of Claims, 1979)
Southeast Bank of Orlando v. United States
676 F.2d 660 (Court of Claims, 1982)

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2 Cl. Ct. 530, 52 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5329, 1983 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1739, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/southeast-bank-v-united-states-cc-1983.