Expanded innocent spouse relief.IRC (Internet Relay Chat) Computer conferencing on the Internet. There are hundreds of IRC channels on numerous subjects that are hosted on IRC servers around the world. After joining a channel, your messages are broadcast to everyone listening to that channel. section 6015 allows certain taxpayers to claim relief from joint tax liability if they qualify as an innocent spouse. There are strict qualification rules. Recently the Tax Court allowed a taxpayer to raise the issue even though she failed to meet all the qualifications. Dorothy Clark was married to Edward Wenner. He died in 1988. Following his death, the IRS An abbreviation for the Internal Revenue Service, a federal agency charged with the responsibility of administering and enforcing internal revenue laws. audited the couple's joint returns for 1982 to 1984, assessing $11,500 in additional tax and $24,000 in interest. Clark paid the tax but not the interest. In 1997 she asked the IRS to abate abate v. to do away with a problem, such as a public or private nuisance or some structure built contrary to public policy. This can include dikes which illegally direct water onto a neighbors property, high volume noise from a rock band or a factory, an improvement the interest. It denied the request in 1999. She filed suit in the Tax Court claiming the IRS had abused its discretion under IRC section 6404 in not approving her abatement request and asking for relief of liability as an innocent spouse under section 6015. The IRS objected to the court considering her innocent spouse petition on the grounds it was not filed properly. Result. For the taxpayer--in a case of first impression. Normally, to obtain innocent spouse relief, a taxpayer must comply with the requirements of section 6015, which include filing a timely election, receiving a denial of the request and then filing a timely petition with the Tax Court. Based solely on section 6015, Clark was not entitled to innocent spouse relief because she had failed to meet the requirements, including filing a timely innocent spouse petition with the Tax Court. However, in this instance, Clark had filed a timely petition to have the interest abated Abated, an ancient technical term applied in masonry and metal work to those portions which are sunk beneath the surface, as in inscriptions where the ground is sunk round the letters so as to leave the letters or ornament in relief. From 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica . Once a taxpayer is properly before the Tax Court, it may consider all affirmative defenses A new fact or set of facts that operates to defeat a claim even if the facts supporting that claim are true. A plaintiff sets forth a claim in a civil action by making statements in the document called the complaint. . Therefore Clark had the right to have the court decide if she was entitled to innocent spouse relief. The fact that she had not met the normal requirements was irrelevant. This decision may open the door for certain taxpayers to have a second chance at claiming innocent spouse relief. If they legally can bring a suit before the Tax Court on the years at issue, they should consider raising this affirmative defense in addition to any other issues. This will aid taxpayers who failed to meet the time requirements in section 6015 but who are now in the process of disputing the tax or interest liability for the years in question. * Estate of Edward Wenner v. Commissioner, 116 TC no. 22. Prepared by Edward J. Schnee, CPA (Computer Press Association, Landing, NJ) An earlier membership organization founded in 1983 that promoted excellence in computer journalism. Its annual awards honored outstanding examples in print, broadcast and electronic media. The CPA disbanded in 2000. , PhD, Joe Lane Professor of Accounting and director, MTA (1) (Message Transfer Agent or Mail Transfer Agent) The store and forward part of a messaging system. See messaging system. (2) See M Technology Association. 1. (messaging) MTA - Message Transfer Agent. program, Culverhouse School of Accountancy, University of Alabama The University of Alabama (also known as Alabama, UA or colloquially as 'Bama) is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA. Founded in 1831, UA is the flagship campus of the University of Alabama System. , Tuscaloosa. |
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