AL Trust - Page 5




                                        - 5 -                                         

          Commissioner, 114 T.C. 268 (2000); Renaissance Enters. Trust v.             
          Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2000-226.                                          
               Whether petitioner has the capacity to litigate in this                
          Court is determined by applicable State law, which, in this case,           
          appears to be the law of Virginia.4  See Rule 60(c).  On the                
          basis of our review of that law and of the trust instrument, we             
          are unable to conclude that Mr. Jablonski, the only signatory on            
          the petition, had the requisite capacity to petition this Court             
          on petitioner’s behalf.  Accord Mendenhall v. Douglas L. Cooper,            
          Inc., 387 S.E.2d 468 (Va. 1990); Raney v. Four Thirty Seven Land            
          Co., 357 S.E.2d 733, 736 (Va. 1987); Fisher v. Dickenson, 4 S.E.            
          737 (Va. 1888); cf. Walt Robbins, Inc. v. Damon Corp., 348 S.E.2d           
          223, 226 (Va. 1986) (the trustee of an antecedent deed of trust             
          is a necessary party in a suit to enforce a mechanic's lien).               
          Petitioner is purportedly an irrevocable trust, and Mr. Jablonski           
          is not petitioner’s trustee;5 Mr. Jablonski is listed on the                
          petition, but not in the trust instrument, as petitioner’s so-              
          called managing director.  The trust instrument does not define             


          4 In addition to the fact that petitioner’s mailing address                 
          is in Alexandria, Virginia, the trust instrument was executed in            
          that city.                                                                  
          5 The record does contain a letter dated Mar. 24, 2000, from                
          Mr. Jablonski to respondent’s counsel, that Mr. Jablonski signed            
          as “Trusttee” (sic).  However, the trust instrument does not name           
          Mr. Jablonski as trustee.  The record as a whole does not support           
          a finding that Mr. Jablonski is petitioner’s trustee.                       





Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011