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cases is “de novo”. Used to describe a reviewing court’s scope
of review, the term “de novo” signifies that the court is not
limited to reviewing the administrative record; rather, the
parties are free to create a new evidentiary record upon which
the reviewing court will base its decision.2 As for the
appropriate standard of review in this case, the parties agree
that we should review respondent’s denial of section 6015(f)
relief for abuse of discretion. We discuss the disputed scope of
review in Part I, and we discuss the majority’s application of
the undisputed standard of review in Part II.
I. Our Scope of Review Should Be Limited to the Administrative
Record
A. Introduction
1. Identifying the Issue
The specific issue in this case is whether, in reviewing
respondent’s decision to deny section 6015(f) relief to
petitioner, we (1) are limited by the record rule to
consideration of the administrative record, as respondent
contends, or (2) may consider evidence adduced at trial, as
2 In the context of a court’s standard of review, the term
“de novo” signifies that the reviewing court need not give any
deference to the decision reached by the administrative agency;
that is, the reviewing court may substitute its judgment for that
of the agency (even if such court’s scope of review is the
administrative record). See 2 Childress & Davis, Federal
Standards of Review, sec. 15.02, at 15-3 – 15-4 (3d ed. 1999).
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