United States v. Pettyjohn

84 F. Supp. 423, 37 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1588, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2671
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedMarch 11, 1949
DocketNo. 5576
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 84 F. Supp. 423 (United States v. Pettyjohn) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Pettyjohn, 84 F. Supp. 423, 37 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1588, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2671 (W.D. Mo. 1949).

Opinion

REEVES, Chief Judge.

Plaintiff seeks a receivership in the above causes pursuant to the provisions of the several paragraphs of Section 3678, Title 26 U.S.C.A. relating to Internal Revenue, said section being a part of the Internal Revenue Code. The language of paragraph (d) of said section is as follows:

“In any .such proceeding, at' the instance of the United States, .the court may appoint a receiver to enforce the lien, * * *. (Emphasis mine). ■
The lien mentioned is that provided for by Section 3670 of said Title 26 U.S.C.A. This section gives to the government a lien “upon all property and right's to property, whether real or personal, belonging to” * * * any person who may be liable to pay a tax and who has neglected or refused to pay the same after demand. And then, by Section 3671, the period of the lien is fixed as follows:
“ * * * the lien shall arise at the time the assessment list was received by the collector and shall continue until the liability for such amount is satisfied or becomes unenforceable by reason of lapse of time.”

This action is brought under said Section 3678, and that section is entitled, “Civil action to enforce lien on property.”

The complaints contain appropriate recitals that assessments were made, even that a jeopardy assessment was made under Section 273 of said Title 26 U.S.C.A., and that notice was duly given to the defendants. Such assessments' and notices were made in the early part of October, 1948.

It is on these facts that plaintiff insists upon its right to the appointment of a receiver as provided by said Section 3678. By paragraph (d) of said section it is provided specifically that the court “may appoint a receiver with all the powers of a receiver in equity.” (Emphasis mine.)

It is to be noted that in the fore part of this paragraph the court may appoint a receiver to enforce thé lien, and, if a receiver is appointed, such receiver may be clothed with all the powers of a receiver in eqiiity. Naturally twb questions arise here: First, whether a receiver should be appointed, and, second, whether, if appointed, he should be clothed with all the powers of a receiver in equity, as is well understood in equity jurisprudence.

It is the contention of the defendants, or some of them, that this court is without jurisdiction over the subject matter, for the two-fold reason that a part of the tax is in process of adjudication in the Probate Court of Jackson County, Missouri, and another part is in process of adjudication before the Board of Tax Appeals, commonly known as the Tax Court of the United States. After the assessments were made, and after notice given, one of the parties on the one branch of the claim of plaintiff filed a petition for review before the Board of Tax Appeals. This petition was filed after the middle of February, 1949.

Provision is made for appeals from deficiency assessments, as in these cases, by Section 272, Title 26 U.S.C.A., but such appeals shall be made “within ninety days after such notice is mailed.” Within such period the taxpayer may file a petition with the Board of Tax Appeals for a redetermination of the deficiency. The averments of the complaint, together with the evidence at the hearing, show conclusively that the petition was not filed until more than ninety days after the notice of the assessment was mailed. Moreover, the fact that they were actually jeopardy assessments, and made under the provisions of Section 273 of said Title 26 would not have warranted the defendants in resorting to the Board of Tax Appeals for a redetermination without complying with paragraph (f) of said Section 273. This paragraph requires that a bond be given within ten days after notice and demand, and only then would the taxpayer be entitled to have the Board of Tax Appeals pass on the [425]*425validity of the assessment and secure a re-determination of the amount. This was not done.

It is further contended by the defendants that a claim for a portion of the tax was filed in the Probate Court of Jackson County in the case of a deceased taxpayer, and, that, by submitting to the Probate Court the plaintiff is powerless to proceed in the manner followed in this case. All of these will be noticed.

1. As a postulate for a further consideration of the case it should be kept in mind that the sections authorizing this proceeding relate to the collection of the government’s revenue. This action is a civil action brought under said Section 3678 to enforce a lien on property owned by the defendants, whether real or personal, and to subject any such property and right of property owned by the delinquent, or in which he has any right, title, or interest, to the payment of such tax.

It is a statutory proceeding. It is not a,n action brought in equity and founded upon equitable principles, but it is a statutory action to enforce a statutory lien and in the proceeding to enforce such lien a receiver may be clothed “with all the powers of a receiver in equity.” Upon this statute it would make no difference whether there was insolvency or acts of bankruptcy, or, as opposed to these, the greatest prosperity of the delinquent taxpayers. Whatever the facts in this regard, under the statute a statutory receiver could be appointed to enforce the government’s lien upon the property.

2. In respect of a claim filed in the probate court, for a part of the tax claim, the plaintiff would not be precluded from enforcing its lien. It is not sought in this court to ascertain the amount of tax liability, but the object is to enforce a lien.

In the case of United States v. Ettelson, 159 F.2d, 193, 194, a claim was presented to the Cook County Probate Court in the State of Wisconsin, and was allowed by the Probate Court on February 9, 1939. A suit, precisely as in this case, was subsequently commenced, to wit, on April 3, 1944, “to enforce a lien for unpaid income taxes.” 159 F.2d local citation 196 the court said regarding a similar obj ection:

“Furthermore, we agree with the District Court that the filing of the claim in the Probate Court against the estate of the deceased taxpayer was a demand of payment made at the only place that it could be made. That being so, the amount demanded was a lien upon all of the property of the taxpayer pursuant to Section 3670 of the Internal Revenue Code, * ¡1=

That is the precise situation in this case. One of the taxpayers having deceased, the only notice that could be lawfully given would be to file a claim in the probate court against the estate. Such action did not preclude this proceeding to enforce the lien of the government. Moreover there is no conflict of jurisdiction between the Probate Court of Jackson County, Missouri, and the Federal Court. The twb courts are not attempting to afford a concurrent remedy.

In the case of United States v. Kensington Shipyard & Drydock Corp., 3 Cir., 169 F.2d 9, 10, there was an application for receivership, and the appeal was from an “order denying appellant’s motion to dismiss the government’s action under Section 3578 (supra) * * * to enforce the tax lien of the United States.” The court followed the case of Moran v. Sturges, 154 U.S. 256, 14 S.Ct. 1019, 38 L.Ed.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
84 F. Supp. 423, 37 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1588, 1949 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2671, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-pettyjohn-mowd-1949.