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because respondent would not agree to the $60 of litigation
costs. Ultimately, petitioner and respondent signed the
stipulation of settled issues.
In deciding the merits of a motion for litigation costs, the
Court generally considers the reasonableness of the
Commissioner’s position from the date the answer was filed.
Huffman v. Commissioner, 978 F.2d 1139, 1148 (9th Cir. 1992),
affg. in part, revg. in part, and remanding T.C. Memo 1991-144.
No answer was required in this case which was tried under the
small tax case procedures. Rule 175(b). Accordingly,
respondent's position for the purpose of the motion is the
position maintained by respondent during the pendency of this
case. There is nothing in the record that suggests that
respondent's position changed from that taken in the notice of
deficiency, so these positions are, in effect, the same. In the
notice of deficiency, respondent took the position that the
$4,889 reported by petitioner's employer was taxable wages to
petitioner in 1996.
Whether the Commissioner’s position was substantially
justified turns on a finding of reasonableness, based upon all
the facts and circumstances, as well as the legal precedents
relating to the case. Pierce v. Underwood, 487 U.S. 552, 565
(1988); Swanson v. Commissioner, 106 T.C. 76, 86 (1996). A
position is substantially justified if the position is "justified
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