- 4 - August 15, 1998.2 He claimed a filing status of “married filing joint return”. Petitioner signed the 1997 return on behalf of himself and Ms. Spuler. Ms. Spuler indicated in a notarized statement of October 10, 2002, that she “did not authorize * * * [petitioner] to file a joint return for taxable year 1997.” The 1997 return reported total income of $169,685. Of this amount, $37,098 was attributable to wages Ms. Spuler had reported in her separate return.3 The 1997 return also reported (1) a self-employed health insurance deduction of $4,866, (2) a deduction for Keogh and self-employed SEP and SIMPLE plans of $30,000, and (3) itemized deductions of $100,113. With respect to the 1997 return, petitioner received a refund check made payable to him and Ms. Spuler in the amount of $5,187. Petitioner endorsed the refund check with Ms. Spuler’s name and deposited the proceeds. The record does not contain credible evidence that Ms. Spuler shared the proceeds of the refund. 2 Petitioner testified that he had requested an additional extension of time to file the 1997 return beyond Aug. 15, 1998. Respondent has no record of receipt of petitioner’s request for an additional extension of time to file, nor did petitioner produce a copy of such a request. 3 Ms. Spuler’s Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, indicated wages of “$37,098.24” for the 1997 taxable year. As indicated, Ms. Spuler reported wages of $37,098 in her separate return. In contrast, the notice of deficiency included a downward adjustment to petitioner’s income of “$37,099”.Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011