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Harris and Ms. Zimmerman provided professional services to
petitioner including preparing the tax returns for the years in
issue, assisting in representing petitioner during the
examination of the returns by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
assisting counsel in preparation of the petition, and
representing petitioner before the IRS Appeals Office after the
case was docketed. Mr. Harris, who is a C.P.A., has also
represented many taxpayers before the IRS in the examination of
income tax returns as well as before the Appeals Office. The
accountant's fees are claimed for the period from July 1995
through December 1996.
Respondent objects to the motion for litigation costs on the
ground that the claimed fees are excessive.
A taxpayer has the burden of proving that he or she meets
each requirement before the Court may order an award of
litigation costs under section 7430. Rule 232(e); Minahan v.
Commissioner, 88 T.C. 492, 497 (1987).5 Accordingly, since the
4(...continued)
at $90 per hour 6.5 hours at a rate of $92 per hour.
5 In 1996, legislation was enacted which shifted to the
Commissioner the burden of proving whether the position of the
United States was substantially justified, sec. 7430(c)(4)(B), as
amended by the Taxpayer Bill of Rights 2 (TBOR 2), Pub. L. 104-
168, sec. 701, 110 Stat. 1452, 1463 (1996), and raised the hourly
rate for attorney's fees to $110, sec. 7430(c)(1)(B)(iii), as
amended by TBOR 2 sec. 702(a), 110 Stat. 1464. These changes
apply only to proceedings commenced after July 30, 1996. TBOR 2
secs. 701(d), 702(b), 110 Stat. 1464; see National Industrial
Investors, Inc. v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1996-423. Since
(continued...)
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