Estate of Donald H. Ray, Deceased, Patricia G. Ray, Independent Executrix, and Patricia G. Ray - Page 17

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          before it the taxpayer's letter purporting to accept the                    
          Commissioner's settlement offer and the Internal Revenue                    
          Service's letter purporting to confirm that the taxpayer had                
          "accepted the original settlement offer".  Id. at 209, 211.                 
          Nothing reveals that the taxpayers in Treaty Pines had before               
          them a document such as the Form 870-L(AD) that indicated no                
          settlement would be reached until the 870-L(AD) was accepted by             
          the Commissioner.  The court held that the exchange of letters              
          was sufficient to constitute a settlement agreement.  Id. at 211.           
               Petitioners, on the other hand, were required to return the            
          executed Form 870-L(AD) to respondent.  Petitioners complied with           
          this requirement.  The language set forth in the Form 870-L(AD)             
          did not coincide with petitioners' interpretation of the Balboni            
          letter.  The document that petitioners argue constitutes an                 
          acceptance, the Form 870-L(AD), is replete with statements that             
          RDB was submitting an offer to respondent that did not become               
          binding until accepted by respondent.  After petitioners returned           
          the executed Form 870-L(AD) to respondent, petitioners never                
          received any confirmation analogous to the confirmation received            
          by the taxpayers in Treaty Pines.                                           
               The terms of the Form 870-L(AD) and the circumstances under            
          which the Palka and Balboni letters were created and exchanged              
          belie petitioners' interpretation of those documents.  There is             
          no doubt that Balboni was not precise in his use of the terms               
          "offer" and "acceptance".  However, after reviewing the entire              




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