- 9 - It is well settled that the taxpayer has the burden of proving the Court’s jurisdiction by establishing affirmatively all facts giving rise to our jurisdiction. See Patz Trust v. Commissioner, 69 T.C. 497, 503 (1977); Fehrs v. Commissioner, 65 T.C. 346, 348 (1975); Wheeler's Peachtree Pharmacy, Inc. v. Commissioner, 35 T.C. 177, 180 (1960); Natl. Comm. To Secure Justice v. Commissioner, 27 T.C. 837, 838-839 (1957). Moreover, unless the petition is filed by the taxpayer, or by someone lawfully authorized to act on the taxpayer's behalf, we are without jurisdiction. See Fehrs v. Commissioner, supra at 348. Rule 60(a) requires that a case be brought "by and in the name of the person against whom the Commissioner determined the deficiency * * * or by and with the full descriptive name of the fiduciary entitled to institute a case on behalf of such person." Rule 60(c) states that the capacity of a fiduciary or other representative to litigate in the Court shall be determined in accordance with the law of the jurisdiction from which such person's authority is derived. As previously mentioned, the parties agree that Virginia law is controlling in this case. Based on our review of Virginia law, we conclude that a trustee generally is a necessary party in an action brought on behalf of a trust. 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); cf. Walt Robbins, Inc. v. DamonPage: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Next
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