Tidemann v. Commissioner

1 T.C. 968, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 179
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedApril 20, 1943
DocketDocket Nos. 96699, 96700
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 1 T.C. 968 (Tidemann 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
Tidemann v. Commissioner, 1 T.C. 968, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 179 (tax 1943).

Opinion

OPINION.

Black, Judge:

In these proceedings, which have been consolidated, the respondent has determined a deficiency of $795.27 in gift tax for the year 19B6 against each petitioner.

On March 17, 1941, the Board entered a memorandum opinion in these proceedings disposing of the issues then raised by the pleadings. Subsequent thereto and before entering any decision on motion of the respondent filed April 1, 1941, “to vacate and set aside report, for rehearing, and for leave to file amended answers” claiming that each deficiency be increased to $1,924.28, the Board on June 11, 1941, granted respondent’s motion, “vacated and held for naught” the said memorandum opinion, and directed the respondent’s amended answers be filed and the proceedings restored to the Board’s circuit calendar for rehearing at Houston, Texas. With leave of the Board, petitioners also filed amended pleadings raising new issues. As the pleadings now stand, the questions at issue are as follows:

(1) Did the respondent err in finding and determining $41,267.40 (instead of $33,646.50 as shown in petitioners’ gift tax returns for 1936) to be the value on the date of transfer of a policy of insurance on the life of Pauline Wilkens Tidemann, transferred February 14, 1936, by petitioners as a gift in trust to and for the use and benefit of their five children?

(2) Are petitioners entitled to exclusions in excess of $1,000 in the determination of each of their gift tax liabilities for the taxable year 1936? This amount is the exclusion to which the Commissioner now concedes each petitioner is entitled.

(3) Did the respondent err in applying the specific exemption provisions of section 505 (a) (1) of the Revenue Act of 1932 as amended by section 301 (b) of the Revenue Act of 1935, so as to find and determine against each petitioner a tax for 1936 in respect of $10,000 value of net gifts made by each petitioner prior to January 1, 1936, and, throughout the year in which made, specifically exempted by the law then in force from the amount upon which gift tax was computed?

(4) Did the respondent err in computing net gifts for preceding years in the case of each petitioner by deducting from the gifts made in 1935 the amount of $25,000, representing five exclusions of $5,000 each?

(5) Did the respondent err in including in petitioners’ taxable gifts for 1936 any value whatsoever on account of the life insurance policy referred to under question (1) ?

(6) Did the respondent err in including in petitioners’ taxable gifts for 1936 the full amount of value (instead of the discounted present worth of the future interest therein) of the life insurance policy referred to under question (1) ?

(7) Did the respondent err in including in the computation of petitioners’ gift tax liabilities for 1936 any sum whatsoever on account of net gifts for 1935, in respect of the property described in the trust indentures dated July 12, 1935?

(8) Did the respondent err in the computation of petitioners’ gift tax liabilities for 1936 in including on account of net gifts for 1935 the full amount of value (instead of the discounted present worth of the future interest therein) of the property described in the trust indentures dated July 12,1935 ?

(9) Did the respondent err in the computation of petitioners’ gift tax liabilities for 1936 in failing to deduct from the amount of gifts in that year the specific exemption of $40,000 allowed under the provisions of section 505 (a) (1) of the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended by section 301 (b) of the Revenue Act of Í935?

At the original hearing, petitioners abandoned issue (3). Although that issue was in form insisted upon in petitioners’ amendment to petition lodged August 12, 1941, nothing has been said about it by petitioners in their brief, so we consider it as again abandoned.

The facts have been stipulated and we adopt the stipulations of facts as filed at the original hearing and subsequent hearings as our findings of fact. Such of those facts as seem necessary to an understanding of the issues to be decided are as follows:

During the year 1936 and for many years prior thereto, petitioners were husband and wife, domiciled in and residents of Galveston County in the State of Texas and, as such, were entitled to file Federal gift tax returns on the community property basis. Prior to February 8, 1936, they were possessed of a substantial community estate comprising and including, among other properties, community funds in excess of $50,000.

Petitioners had five children, as follows:

Constance Elizabeth Leeland, born Nov. 22, 1906
Karl Wilkens Tidemann, born Nov. 3, 1908
Pauline Tidemann Hanson, born Apr. 3, 1910
H. Fred E. Tidemann, born Nov. 24,1912
Richard Wilkens Tidemann, born Mar. 24, 1916

On February 8, 1936, the life of petitioner Pauline Wilkens Tide-mann was insured for $60,000 by a policy issued by the Prudential Life Insurance Co. for which there was paid a single premium of $41,267.40 out of petitioners’ community funds. The beneficiaries named were Mrs. Tidemann’s executors, administrators, or assigns.

By a trust indenture dated February 14, 1936, petitioners transferred and assigned said policy to the trustee named therein, to be held for the use and benefit of their five children named above under the terms and conditions set forth in the instrument. The policy and assignment were delivered to and accepted by the trustee. The cash surrender value of the policy at the date of transfer was $33,646.50.

In their respective gift tax returns for 1936 each of the petitioners included one-half of $33,646.50, the cash surrender value of the policy at date of gift. In the determination of the deficiencies the respondent increased the value of the policy to $41,267.40, the amount of the single permium paid out of community funds.

In addition to the trust transfer of the life insurance policy above mentioned, the petitioners during 1936 made cash gifts from their community funds to their five children as follows:

To Constance E. Leeland, through a trust created July 12, 1935, for her use and benefit_,-$1,000
To Richard Wilkens Tidemann, through a trust created July 12,1935, for his use and benefit_ 1,000
To H. Fred E. Tidemann, through a trust created July 12, 1935, for his use and benefit_ 1,000
To Pauline E. Tidemann Hansen_ 1,000
To Karl Wilkens Tidemann--- 1,000

Each of the petitioners reported one-half of the above cash gifts in his return for 1936. In their respective gift tax returns for 1936 petitioners each deducted the sum of $25,000 representing an exclusion of $5,000 for each of their five children.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Matthews v. Commissioner
1989 T.C. Memo. 3 (U.S. Tax Court, 1989)
Goldstein v. Commissioner
37 T.C. 897 (U.S. Tax Court, 1962)
Frank v. Commissioner
3 T.C.M. 1180 (U.S. Tax Court, 1944)
Allen v. Commissioner
3 T.C. 1224 (U.S. Tax Court, 1944)
Tidemann v. Commissioner
1 T.C. 968 (U.S. Tax Court, 1943)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1 T.C. 968, 1943 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 179, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tidemann-v-commissioner-tax-1943.