Louis S. and Laura L. Schnitzler - Page 8




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          Appeals Office hearing only if the person did not receive a                 
          notice of deficiency for the taxes in question or did not                   
          otherwise have an earlier opportunity to dispute the tax                    
          liability.  See Sego v. Commissioner, 114 T.C. 604, 609 (2000);             
          Goza v. Commissioner, supra.  Section 6330(d) provides for                  
          judicial review of the administrative determination in the Tax              
          Court or a Federal District Court, as may be appropriate.                   
               Petitioners challenge the assessments entered against them             
          on the ground that the notices of deficiency for 1996 and 1997              
          are invalid.  However, the record shows that petitioners received           
          the notices of deficiency and disregarded the opportunity to file           
          a petition for redetermination with the Court.  It follows that             
          section 6330(c)(2)(B) bars petitioners from challenging the                 
          existence or amount of their underlying tax liabilities for 1996            
          and 1997 in this collection review proceeding.                              
               Even if petitioners were permitted to challenge the validity           
          of the notices of deficiency, petitioners’ argument that the                
          notices are invalid because respondent’s Service Center director            
          is not properly authorized to issue notices of deficiency is                
          frivolous and groundless.  See Nestor v. Commissioner, 118 T.C.             
          162 (2002); Smeton v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2002-140; Coleman            
          v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2002-132.  As the Court of Appeals              
          for the Fifth Circuit has remarked:  “We perceive no need to                
          refute these arguments with somber reasoning and copious citation           






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