Stuart v. Commissioner

2 T.C. 1103, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 16
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedDecember 10, 1943
DocketDocket No. 97500
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 2 T.C. 1103 (Stuart v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stuart v. Commissioner, 2 T.C. 1103, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 16 (tax 1943).

Opinion

OPINION.

HaReon, Judge:

In the findings of fact new findings have been made in part because á further hearing was held in this proceeding after remand from the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. At the further hearing, a supplemental stipulation of facts was introduced in evidence, together with additional testimony. The findings of fact as now made incorporate substantially the facts as originally found, together with additional facts.

Originally, this case was heard with a companion case, R. Douglas Stuart, Docket No. 97501. We held in both proceedings that petitioners were taxable under section 166 (2) of the Revenue Act of 1934,1 on the entire net income of trusts which they had created for the benefit of their children because of our conclusion that under paragraph “Ninth” of the trusts, the trustees had the power to revest the title to the corpora of the trusts in the grantors. The proceeding of this petitioner, John Stuart, and the proceeding of his brother, R. Douglas Stuart, were reviewed together by the Supreme Court, Helvering v. Stuart, 317 U. S. 154. The Court there held that the income from the R. Douglas Stuart trusts was taxable to the grantor under sections 167 (a) (1) and (2) of the Revenue Act of 1934,2 since the beneficiaries of the trusts were the grantor’s minor children to whom he owed a parental obligation of support. Respondent has not raised that question in this proceeding, since the beneficiaries of the trusts created by petitioner were of age during the taxable years.

The Supreme Court sustained the conclusion of the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit that under Illinois law, which controlled tlie question, tlie trustees of tlie trusts created by petitioner, as well as tlie trustees of the trusts created by R. Douglas Stuart, could not revest the trust corpora in the grantor under section 166, nor could they accumulate tlie income for, or distribute it to, the grantor directly so as to come within the provisions of section 167. The Supreme Court pointed out, however, that the income of the trusts created by petitioner might be taxable to petitioner under section 22 (a) as that section affects section 167 if petitioner had obtained any economic gain for the taxable years through a control of the trusts so complete that it must be said that he was the owner of its income. In this connection, the Court cited Helvering v. Clifford, 309 U. S. 331. The Court further pointed out in its opinion that when we first considered this case it was not necessary for us to reach a conclusion under section 22 (a) or to consider the interplay of section 22 (a) on section 167, but that such should now be done. The Circuit Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit had previously held that petitioner was not taxable on the trust income under section 22 (a), but the Supreme Court was of the opinion that a proper determination of this question could not be reached in the absence of certain findings of fact. In the original proceeding in this Court and on review in the Circuit Court of Appeals and in the Supreme Court, there was no evidence on the question as to whether petitioner had retained economic benefits in the trusts or could realize economic gain through the possibility of controlling the Quaker Oats Co. through the control of the stock of that company in the trusts. This was particularly important since paragraph “Eighth” of the trust indenture permitted the grantor to recapture the Quaker Oats stock from the trusts upon substitution of securities having an equal value. The Supreme Court, therefore, remanded the proceeding to the Circuit Court for remand to this Court to reach a conclusion on the question of the possibility of such an “economic gain.” At the further hearing evidence was introduced on the question of stock ownership and control of the Quaker Oats Co., and additional findings of fact have been made. (Cf. Helvering v. Stuart, supra, p. 148, where the Court stated that “the triers of fact have made no findings upon this point.”)

In determining the broad question as to whether petitioner realized or could realize economic gain from a control'of the trusts, we have considered section 22 (a) as it affects section 167. Since, however, the Supreme Court has held that the income of the trusts created by petitioner is not taxable to him under the provisions of section 167, the question has been narrowed to the applicability of section 22 (a) as that section has been construed by the Clifford case, supra. Respondent’s brief is devoted entirely to this question. He contends that petitioner retained or could realize rights and benefits from the assets of the trusts so as to make him in reality the owner of the property in each trust within the doctrine of the Clifford case.

Respondent’s argument that petitioner retained rights and benefits sufficient to constitute him the owner of the corpora of the trusts and so to charge him with the taxable income from the trusts, is predicated upon paragraphs “Eighth” and “Ninth” of the trust indentures. Under paragraph “Eighth” petitioner specifically reserved to himself the right to sell the whole or any part of the trust corpus and to direct the reinvestment of the proceeds, and to withdraw and take over to himself the whole or any part of the trust corpus upon substitution of other securities of a like value which would be satisfactory to the trustees. Paragraph “Ninth” gives petitioner’s wife and brother, as cotrustees, the right to alter or amend the indentures, change beneficiaries or trustees, and other broad powers over the corpus and income of the trusts. Respondent argues that under the circumstances petitioner’s wife and brother would be subservient to his wishes so that, in effect, petitioner would exercise the rights and powers given to the trustees under paragraph “Ninth” of the trust indentures.

Upon examination of the trust indentures in their entirety and the circumstances attendant upon their creation, we can not say that petitioner retained such complete control of the trusts as to make him the owner of the property or the income, or that he obtained any economic gain from the trusts.

The provisions of paragraph “Eighth” of the indentures were inserted by petitioner to enable him to diversify the securities held by the trusts. He believed that as president of the Quaker Oats Co., and being fully cognizant of its affairs, he would be in the best position to determine whether to sell those securities or to retain them. His primary consideration in reserving this power was to insure the financial security of his children. Under the circumstances, this provision is not unnatural and does not indicate such a retention of control by petitioner over the trusts as to make him taxable on the income therefrom. George H. Whiteley, 2 T. C. 618; Lura H. Morgan, 2 T. C 510; Carleton H. Palmer, 40 B. T. A. 1002; affd., 115 Fed. (2d) 368; Commissioner v. Betts, 123 Fed. (2d) 534.

The Supreme Court in Helvering v. Stuart, supra, in the absence of a specific finding suggested that “Control of the stocks of the company of which the grantors were executives may have determined the manner of creating the trusts.” We assume from this that the Court had in mind the possibility that the stock in the trusts might be essential to the maintenance of a stock control of the Quaker Oats Co.

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Stuart v. Commissioner
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2 T.C. 1103, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 16, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stuart-v-commissioner-tax-1943.