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C. Innocent Spouse
Section 6013(a) provides that spouses may elect to file a
joint Federal income tax return. If a husband and wife file a
joint return, the tax is computed on their aggregate income and
the liability with respect to such tax is joint and several.
Sec. 6013(d)(3); Gordon v. United States, 757 F.2d 1157, 1160
(11th Cir. 1985). Section 6013(e)(1), however, relieves a spouse
of this joint and several liability for tax if he or she can show
that (1) a joint Federal income tax return was filed by the
spouses; (2) there is a substantial understatement of tax
attributable to grossly erroneous items of the other spouse; (3)
in signing the return, the claimed "innocent spouse" did not
know, and had no reason to know, of the substantial
understatement; and (4) taking into account all the facts and
circumstances, it would be inequitable to hold this claimed
"innocent spouse" liable for the deficiency attributable to the
understatement. Sec. 6013(e)(1). A spouse seeking relief under
section 6013(e) has the burden of proving that each requirement
has been satisfied. Because the statute is phrased in the
conjunctive, petitioner's failure to satisfy any one of these
elements will preclude "innocent spouse" relief. Purificato v.
Commissioner, 9 F.3d 290, 293 (3d Cir. 1993), affg. T.C. Memo.
1992-580.
We have found that petitioner filed a joint return for each
of the years in issue, and respondent concedes that there was a
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