Estate of Wayne-Chi Young, Deceased, Tsai-Hsiu Hsu Yang, Executrix - Page 37

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          education, apparent competency, and our longstanding and mutually           
          productive relationship."                                                   
               Petitioner contends that respondent did not present any                
          evidence to contradict that she reasonably relied upon her                  
          accountant's advice.  However, as we have noted, the burden of              
          proof is on petitioner to establish (1) that the failure did not            
          result from willful neglect and (2) that the failure was due to             
          reasonable cause.  In light of this burden, we note that                    
          petitioner did not call the accountant to testify to corroborate            
          Yang's testimony.  See Wichita Terminal Elevator Co. v.                     
          Commissioner, 6 T.C. 1158, 1165 (1946), affd. 162 F.2d 513 (10th            
          Cir. 1947).  In light of Yang's uncorroborated testimony, we                
          consider the following facts to evaluate whether petitioner has             
          met the burden of proving that Yang reasonably relied upon the              
          accountant's advice.                                                        
               The executrix Yang admitted that she knew that decedent's              
          assets totaled more than $1,200,000 at his death.  This clearly             
          meets the filing threshold as required by law.  Petitioner                  
          contends that the executrix relied upon the accountant's                    
          statement that "the Estate Tax Return would probably not be                 
          required."                                                                  
               To support its position, petitioner relies on United States            
          v. Boyle, supra at 250.  In Boyle, the executor argued that the             
          failure to file the return was due to reasonable cause, reliance            





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