Estate of William Blake Burris - Page 12




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          which a policy on the life of one spouse is deemed the separate             
          property of the other spouse when the noninsured spouse is named            
          as owner and beneficiary of the policy.  See Estate of Marks v.             
          Commissioner, 94 T.C. 720 (1990); Bergman v. Commissioner, 66               
          T.C. 887 (1976); Estate of Saia v. Commissioner, 61 T.C. 515                
          (1974).  Similarly, respondent maintains that here, too, Catalano           
          v. United States, supra, settles the issue in this case in a                
          manner consistent with respondent’s position and is binding on              
          this Court pursuant to the rule of Golsen v. Commissioner, 54               
          T.C. 742 (1970), affd. 445 F.2d 985 (10th Cir. 1971).                       
               In Golsen v. Commissioner, supra at 757, this Court                    
          established the rule that we shall “follow a Court of Appeals               
          decision which is squarely in point where appeal from our                   
          decision lies to that Court of Appeals” (the Golsen rule).  We              
          subsequently have further clarified the doctrine’s reach,                   
          emphasizing that it is “a narrow exception” and should be applied           
          only when the following rationale prompting its development rings           
          true:  “where a reversal would appear inevitable, due to the                
          clearly established position of the Court of Appeals to which an            
          appeal would lie, our obligation as a national court does not               
          require a futile and wasteful insistence on our view.”  Lardas v.           
          Commissioner, 99 T.C. 490, 494-495 (1992).                                  
               Specifically, we have made clear that the Golsen rule does             
          not apply where the precedent from the Court of Appeals contains            






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