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recyclers.7 Bambara and Taggert were promoters of the Plastics
Recycling leasing programs. Reliance on representations by
insiders or promoters has been held to be an inadequate defense
to negligence. See Goldman v. Commissioner, 39 F.3d 402 (2d Cir.
1994), affg. T.C. Memo. 1993-480; LaVerne v. Commissioner, 94
T.C. 637, 652-653 (1990), affd. without published opinion 956
F.2d 274 (9th Cir. 1992), affd. in part without published opinion
sub nom. Cowles v. Commissioner, 949 F.2d 401 (10th Cir. 1991).
Further, in general a taxpayer cannot reasonably rely on the
advice of the promoter of a tax shelter with respect to the
substantive merits or the tax treatment of items in connection
with that program. See Patin v. Commissioner, 88 T.C. 1086, 1131
(1987), affd. without published opinion 865 F.2d 1264 (5th Cir.
1989), affd. sub nom. Gomberg v. Commissioner, 868 F.2d 865 (6th
Cir. 1989), affd. sub nom. Skeen v. Commissioner, 864 F.2d 93
(9th Cir. 1989), affd. per curiam without published opinion sub
nom. Hatheway v. Commissioner, 856 F.2d 186 (4th Cir. 1988);
Kleiger v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1992-734. Advice from such
individuals "is better classified as sales promotion". Vojticek
7 Petitioner also claims that he discussed his investment
with one of his colleagues, a professor knowledgeable in the
plastics industry, who opined to petitioner that the investment
appeared profitable. Petitioner relied principally on his own
testimony in an effort to establish this matter. However, we do
not find petitioners' self-serving testimony sufficient or
particularly reliable in this regard. See Tokarski v.
Commissioner, 87 T.C. 74, 77 (1986); Hawkins v. Commissioner,
T.C. Memo. 1993-517, affd. without published opinion 66 F.3d 325
(6th Cir. 1995).
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