- 3 -
negligence or disregard of rules or regulations and for a
substantial understatement of income tax.
During the year 2002, petitioner was a student at Loyola
University New Orleans College of Law. Petitioner graduated from
the College of Law in 2003. With respect to the determination in
the notice of deficiency, he alleged in his petition:
In 2002, while attending Loyola Law School, I acquired a
severe eye infection in both eyes which required
hospitalization and consults from physicians in Texas and
Louisiana. Because I was unable to see/read, I submitted
all of my tax documents to Thomas Vicknair, who prepared my
return in 2002 and the previous 4 or 5 years. In 2003, Mr.
Vicknair had a sudden stroke/heart attack and died in 2003.
Because he was a sole proprietor, I have had difficulty
retrieving many of my tax documents from his widow. I
reasonably relied on the professional tax advice provided by
Mr. Vicknair and because of his untimely and sudden death, I
am unable to explain why he neglected to claim certain
income despite being provided with proof of same. Because
of my own health problems, particularly my impaired vision,
I was unable to verify the contents of my return in 2002
despite reasonable efforts.
With respect to the sole issue before the Court, section
6662(a) imposes an accuracy-related penalty in the amount of 20
percent of any portion of an underpayment of tax that is
attributable to causes set forth in subsection (b). However,
under section 6664(c)(1), no penalty shall be imposed under
section 6662(a) with respect to any portion of an underpayment if
it is shown that there was reasonable cause for the underpayment
and that the taxpayer acted in good faith with respect to the
underpayment. The Commissioner has the burden of production with
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011