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We review the Commissioner’s determination to deny section
6015(f) equitable relief using an abuse of discretion standard
and defer to the Commissioner’s determination unless it is
arbitrary, capricious, or without sound basis in fact. Jonson v.
Commissioner, 118 T.C. 106, 125 (2002), affd. 353 F.3d 1181 (10th
Cir. 2003). For each year here relevant, petitioner bears the
burden of proving that respondent’s denial of her request for
section 6015(f) relief is an abuse of discretion. Washington v.
Commissioner, supra at 146; Jonson v. Commissioner, supra at 125.
As required by section 6015(f), the Commissioner has
prescribed procedures and factors Internal Revenue Service
employees use to determine whether a spouse qualifies for relief
under that subsection. At the time that petitioner requested
relief under section 6015(f), those procedures were set forth in
Rev. Proc. 2000-15, 2000-1 C.B. 447. (Subsequent modification of
these procedures by Rev. Proc. 2003-61, 2003-32 I.R.B. 296, does
not affect the resolution of this case.)
Certain threshold conditions must be satisfied before the
Commissioner will consider a request for relief under section
6015(f). See Rev. Proc. 2000-15, sec. 4.01, 2000-1 C.B. at 448.
Respondent agrees that petitioner satisfies these threshold
conditions for each year here under consideration, and we focus
our attention on other parts of the controlling revenue
procedure.
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Last modified: May 25, 2011