Nicholas M. Romer - Page 9




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         sufficient evidence to establish a rational basis for making the             
         estimate.  See Cohan v. Commissioner, 39 F.2d 540, 543-544 (2d               
         Cir. 1930); see also Vanicek v. Commissioner, 85 T.C. 731, 742-              
         743 (1985).                                                                  
              Section 274(d) supersedes the general rule of Cohan v.                  
         Commissioner, supra, and precludes us from estimating the                    
         taxpayer’s expenses with regard to certain items.  See Sanford v.            
         Commissioner, 50 T.C. 823, 827 (1968), affd. per curiam 412 F.2d             
         201 (2d Cir. 1969).  Section 274(d) imposes strict substantiation            
         requirements for expenses relating to, among other things,                   
         travel, entertainment, and “listed property”, including                      
         automobiles and other property used as a means of transportation.            
         Sec. 1.274-5T(a), Temporary Income Tax Regs., 50 Fed. Reg. 46014             
         (Nov. 6, 1985).  To obtain a deduction for such items, the                   
         taxpayer must substantiate “by [either] adequate records or                  
         sufficient evidence corroborating * * * [his] own statement” the             
         amount of the expense, the time and place of travel or                       
         entertainment, the business purpose of the expense, and the                  
         business relationship to the taxpayer of the person entertained.             
         Sec. 274(d); Beale v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2000-158; sec.                
         1.274-5(b)(1), Income Tax Regs.  To meet the “adequate records               
         test”, a taxpayer must maintain an account book, diary, statement            
         of expense, or similar record prepared contemporaneously with the            
         expenditure and documentary evidence of certain expenditures,                







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