Emmanuel & Cecilia Abloso - Page 5

                                        - 4 -                                         
          consultation, unlimited audit protection, and free tax return               
          preparation.                                                                
               Typically, individuals purchased the TRS materials and PTA             
          services for a $300 downpayment and monthly payments of $100.               
          Through TRS, a participant could receive a “bonus” from                     
          Renaissance for sponsoring participants who joined TRS and/or               
          purchased TRS materials, although the manner in which the bonus             
          is computed is less than clear from the Renaissance materials.              
          The Renaissance program also provided a participant with a                  
          “bonus” on the “downline” sponsorships of other individuals who             
          joined TRS.                                                                 
               Petitioner completed an application and became a participant           
          in TRS “towards the end of 1999.”  Prior to that time, petitioner           
          had not been engaged in any home-based business activity.                   
          Despite the fact that some of the materials provided by                     
          Renaissance were, according to petitioner, “difficult for the               
          ordinary man to understand”, petitioners did not seek independent           
          tax or legal advice relating to participating in the program.               
          As required by his TRS membership, petitioner made monthly                  
          payments of $100 to Renaissance throughout the 2000.  Petitioner            
          also purchased various products from Renaissance, including                 
          audiotapes, record-keeping materials, and catalogs.                         









Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011