- 16 - result of the taxpayers’ failure to respond to requests for admissions or to comply with other Rules. The Court stated: We have not found this case to be particularly satisfying. The record before us is sketchy. The case appears to revolve around a family trust but we have been told very little about it. In addition, the various returns filed by petitioners are confusing because of the inconsistent treatment of the items reported therein. All of this is compounded by the seemingly contradictory positions taken by petitioners before this Court and by respondent’s failure to be more precise in his requests for admissions. Be this as it may, we have tried our best to reach a just result. See also Ripley v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1985-555. Izen’s tactics demean the process and those involved in it and accomplish nothing. In the language of section 6673(a)(2), it appears to the Court that Izen “has multiplied the proceedings in * * * [these cases] unreasonably and vexatiously”. He has persisted in these tactics despite warnings and sanctions imposed on his clients in similar cases. He has pursued claims that have been rejected so frequently that they are “entirely without colorable pretext or basis and are taken for reasons of harassment or delay or for other improper purposes.” The Nis Family Trust v. Commissioner, supra at 548; see Harper v. Commissioner, 99 T.C. 533, 546-549 (1992). An award under section 6673 is fully justified. Although the Court rejected Johnson’s Fifth Amendment claims, we exclude from the award the fees that are attributable to those and to the first round of discovery motions. OurPage: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011