Charles R. and Dru L. Haggart - Page 9

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          joint and several liability as to each spouse under section                 
          6013(a).  See Travers v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1982-88.                  
          Section 6015, however, may relieve the requesting spouse of a               
          liability for tax attributable to an understatement of tax.6                
          Sec. 6015(b).  Here, the understatements are attributable each              
          year to the disallowed Schedule C deductions and cost of goods              
          sold.  Those disallowed amounts increased petitioners’ income tax           
          liabilities, of which the self-employment tax liabilities are               
          only a part.  With this in mind, we turn to the provisions of               
          section 6015.                                                               
               A requesting spouse may elect relief from joint and several            
          liability under section 6015.7  There are three types of relief             
          available:  (1) Section 6015(b)(1) provides full relief from                
          joint and several liability; (2) section 6015(c) provides                   
          separate tax liability available to divorced or separated                   
          taxpayers;8 and (3) section 6015(f) provides equitable relief               

          6  An understatement is the “excess of the amount of tax required           
          to be shown on the return for the taxable year, over the amount             
          of tax imposed which is shown on the return”.  Secs. 6015(b)(3),            
          6662(d)(2)(A).                                                              
          7  Sec. 6015 applies to any liability for tax arising before July           
          22, 1998, but remaining unpaid as of that date.  H. Conf. Rept.             
          105-599, at 255 (1998), 1998-3 C.B. 747, 1009.  Mrs. Haggart’s              
          tax liabilities arose in 1996 and 1997, and remain unpaid.                  
          8  Relief under sec. 6015(c) is available if the requesting                 
          spouse is no longer married to, is legally separated from, or is            
          not living in the same household with the nonrequesting spouse at           
          the time the election is filed.  Sec. 6015(c)(3)(A)(i).  Mrs.               
                                                             (continued...)           





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