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to serving with Thomas as a trustee of the HFT, Stethem was legal
counsel for the Hubert family and their companies and presumably
made a good living in that capacity. Thomas was HEI’s longtime
president and in that capacity received more than $800,000 in
compensation in just HEI’s 1997 and 1998 taxable years alone.
We also note that Thomas as of the time of trial continued to
work for the Hubert enterprise as its chief executive officer and
that his $200,000 contribution to ALSL’s capital was
contemporaneous with his receipt from HEI of an amount of officer
compensation that appears to have been inflated to enable him to
make that contribution.
This factor weighs toward a finding that the transfers did
not create bona fide debt.
2. Fixed Maturity Date and Schedule of Payments
The absence of a fixed maturity date and a fixed obligation
to repay weighs against a finding of bona fide debt. See Bayer
Corp. v. Mascotech, Inc. (In re Autostyle Plastics, Inc.), 269
F.3d at 750; Roth Steel Tube Co. v. Commissioner, supra at 631.
The ALSL note had no fixed maturity date. While petitioners
assert that the ALSL note was a demand note for which payment
could have been requested at any time, the fact of the matter is
that HEI never made any such demand and, more importantly, ALSL
never had the ability to honor such a request had one been made.
ALSL made its first (and only) payment on the ALSL note
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