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OPINION
I. Violation of Automatic Bankruptcy Stay
This Court has limited jurisdiction, and we may exercise
jurisdiction only to the extent authorized by Congress. Naftel
v. Commissioner, 85 T.C. 527, 529 (1985). Our jurisdiction to
redetermine a deficiency depends upon the issuance of a valid
notice of deficiency and a timely filed petition. Rule 13(a),
(c); Monge v. Commissioner, 93 T.C. 22, 27 (1989); Normac, Inc.
v. Commissioner, 90 T.C. 142, 147 (1988).
Section 6212(a) expressly authorizes the Commissioner, after
determining a deficiency, to send a notice of deficiency to the
taxpayer by certified or registered mail. The taxpayer, in turn,
generally has 90 days from the date the notice of deficiency is
mailed to file a petition in this Court for a redetermination of
the deficiency. Sec. 6213(a).
An exception to the normal 90-day filing period arises where
the taxpayer has filed a petition for relief under the Bankruptcy
Code. Sec. 6213(f). The filing of a bankruptcy petition
operates as an automatic stay which precludes the commencement or
continuation of proceedings in this Court. 11 U.S.C. sec.
362(a)(8); Kieu v. Commissioner, 105 T.C. 387, 391 (1995);
Allison v. Commissioner, 97 T.C. 544, 545 (1991).
Petitioner contends that respondent violated the automatic
stay in his chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding under section 362 of
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