Zips v. Commissioner

38 T.C. 620, 1962 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 103
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedAugust 14, 1962
DocketDocket Nos. 84836, 90089
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 38 T.C. 620 (Zips 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
Zips v. Commissioner, 38 T.C. 620, 1962 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 103 (tax 1962).

Opinions

Pierce, Judge:

The respondent determined deficiencies in the income taxes of petitioners, for taxable calendar years and in amounts as follows:

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The cases were tried on a consolidated basis.

The issues for decision are:

(1) Whether cash and securities of the value of approximately $169,661, which petitioner Marie Zips received in 1955 from an elderly and eccentric man called George, and which she thereafter held and used as her individual properties under her complete dominion and control, are exct/udible from her gross income for said year under section 102(a) of the 1954 Code, as “property acquired by gift”; and, if not so excludible, whether the value of said properties is includible in Marie’s gross income for said year 1955.

(2) Whether Marie and her husband realized taxable income in the subsequent year 1956, where, after it had been judicially determined that George was not legally competent to make any valid gift of said properties at the time he transferred the same to Marie, and after the corporate fiduciary for the estate of said incompetent had obtained a judgment against Marie and her husband for the full value of said properties, they paid said fiduciary less than one-third of the amount of the judgment and obtained from it a release from any further claim.

(3) Whether assessment and collection of any deficiency against petitioners for the year 1955 are barred by the statute of limitations.

All other issues raised by the pleadings are dependent upon the outcome of the above-stated issues.

FINDINGS OF FACT.

Some of the facts, including portions of the record in a related United States District Court case hereinafter mentioned, have been stipulated. The stipulation of facts, and all the exhibits thereto attached, are incorporated herein by reference.

Petitioners David L. Zips and Marie McCally Zips are husband and wife, residing in Fort Worth, Texas. They filed a joint Federal income tax return on the cash basis for each of the taxable years here involved, with the district director of internal revenue at Dallas.

Petitioner Marie McCally Zips (hereinafter called Marie) was married to David on June 2, 1955. Prior thereto, she was an unmarried woman named Marie McCally, living in F ort Worth.

In February 1955, which was prior to Marie’s marriage, she went to Amarillo, Texas, for a short visit; and while there she became acquainted with .a man named George Westinghouse, Jr. (hereinafter called George). George was a widower of about Y3 years of age, who was a resident of British Columbia, Canada, and who had grown children living there. At the time he was traveling alone in Texas, going from place to place in a station wagon, and staying at various motels. Marie was not related to him by blood or marriage, and she had never known him before. About 2 days after making his acquaintance, Marie returned to her home in Fort Worth; but before her departure, George asked if he might go there to see her. She indicated that he might do so; and shortly thereafter, George drove to Fort Worth where he remained for about 2% months — living for short periods at a time in each of two motels and an apartment. During this period Marie visited him almost every day.

George was a very eccentric person. He was careless both in his personal appearance and in almost everything he did. He did not eat regularly or well; and he often would forget to eat his meals unless Marie reminded him. He drank large quantities of wine, andi used barbiturates excessively — with the result that at times he fell into> a deep sleep from which it was difficult to arouse him. On one such occasion, he went into a stupor while smoking and set his room afire. He drove his car recklessly, without observing traffic regulations; and in one instance spent all night and drove almost 40 miles into the country, in attempting to locate the motel where he was staying. During most of the period that he was in Fort Worth, he received medical treatment from a physician. Marie felt that he should have someone to look after him; and accordingly she frequently would assist him with his meals, drive him to the doctor’s office, accompany him to a moving-picture theater, or take him for a ride in her car. She suggested that he should communicate with his children in British Columbia and have one of them come to Fort Worth and take him home; but George would not agree.

About 2 weeks after George arrived in Fort Worth, he transferred to Marie about $50,000 worth of various corporate securities, which apparently were then being held for Mm in some out-of-town bank or brokerage account. In this connection, he took Marie to a broker’s office in Fort Worth; introduced her to the management; and said that he was transferring some stocks to her. Shortly thereafter Marie received, either through the mail or the local bank, the certificates for .these stocks which were all issued in her name alone; and she thereupon took the certificates to her bank and placed them in a safe-deposit box to which she alone had access. Thereafter, at 2- or 3-week intervals until May 10,1955, George made additional transfers to Marie of other shares of corporate stock of substantial value. As to these, Marie did not know she was getting them until the bank had called and advised her that it had received the certificates. She would then go to the bank; accept these certificates which, like the prior ones, were all issued in her name alone; and place these also in her safe-deposit box.

Also, from time to time during this same period, George transferred to Marie various sums of money totaling nearly $45,000. He made the first of such transfers by endorsing over to her certain checks which he had in his possession; and he paid her other portions of said amount in cash. In addition, he gave her a beaver jacket and miscellaneous items of jewelry — none of which is directly involved in this case. Marie deposited the cash, either in her individual checking account or in her individual savings account at a Fort Worth bank; and she thereafter used portions of the same to make mortgage payments on her car or her home, and for other personal purposes.

A summary of the total cash and various shares of stock which George thus transferred to Marie during the period from March 9 to May 10,1955, and the stipulated values of the same, is as follows:

Property Value
Cask_ $44, 971. 74
Stocks:
400 shares Interlake Steamship Co_ $14, 334.19
500 shares Norfolk & Western Co_ 32, 638. 94
300 shares General Refractories Co_ 12, 888. 00
500 shares Singer Mfg. Co_ 21, 371. 90
100 shares Pittsburgh & L. Erie Railroad_ 9, 826. 00
600 shares Plying Tiger Line Co_ 4, 900. 00
200 shares Belmont Iron Works_ 6, 545. 90
400 shares General Refractories Co_ 17,184.28

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Related

LeBaron v. Commissioner
1990 T.C. Memo. 592 (U.S. Tax Court, 1990)
Estate of Bettin v. Commissioner
1974 T.C. Memo. 102 (U.S. Tax Court, 1974)
Estate of Sullivan v. Commissioner
1974 T.C. Memo. 38 (U.S. Tax Court, 1974)
Altman v. Commissioner
1972 T.C. Memo. 26 (U.S. Tax Court, 1972)
Felise v. Comm'r
1967 T.C. Memo. 63 (U.S. Tax Court, 1967)
Sclafani v. Comm'r
1963 T.C. Memo. 298 (U.S. Tax Court, 1963)
Zips v. Commissioner
38 T.C. 620 (U.S. Tax Court, 1962)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
38 T.C. 620, 1962 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 103, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/zips-v-commissioner-tax-1962.