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transferees expired on April 7, 1993. Sec. 6901(c)(1). Since
the notices of donee/transferee liability were not issued to
petitioners until September 17, 1993, petitioners contend that
the notices were untimely.
Respondent argues, and we have held above, that the decision
of the Tax Court does not become final until the appeal period in
sections 7481(a) and 7483 has expired, even when the decision is
a stipulated one. Petitioners respond that the "final
determination of tax" language does not depend on the finality of
the Tax Court decision. Form 872 is designed to ensure
assessment of tax. Once the Commissioner made the assessment,
they argue, regardless of the status of the case under sections
7481(a) and 7483, there was no longer any need to extend the time
to assess, and therefore the limitations period in the agreement
would logically end upon assessment.
Although petitioners' position appears superficially to be
sound, a closer examination of the problem leads to the opposite
conclusion. A nearly identical argument was presented and
rejected in a carefully reasoned opinion in Lansburgh v. United
States, 699 F. Supp. 279 (S.D. Fla. 1988). There, the taxpayers
had entered into a consent agreement with the IRS, Form 872-A,
Special Consent to Extend the Time to Assess Tax. Id. at 281.
The parties reached a settlement, and a stipulated decision was
entered by this Court. Id. The Court held that section 6503(a)
made the assessment timely because section 6503(a) applied to all
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