- 44 - reliance on the advice of a professional such as an accountant. See id. Further, an honest misunderstanding of fact or law that is reasonable in light of the experience, knowledge, and education of the taxpayer may indicate reasonable cause and good faith. See Remy v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1997-72. At the time the return was prepared, Mr. Hertz was an enrolled agent. Petitioners had engaged Mr. Hertz to prepare their income tax returns for 1 or 2 years before 1999. a. Deductions Relating to Mr. Davis’s Photography Activities Petitioners honestly misunderstood Mr. Davis’s photography expenditures to be deductible business expenses. Although petitioners are both highly educated in fields that do not relate to taxation, we find that their misunderstanding was reasonable. We therefore conclude that petitioners had reasonable cause and acted in good faith as to the underpayments resulting from deductions of photography-related expenditures. b. Gross Receipts and Deductions of Dr. Rinker’s Medical Practice Petitioners credibly testified that they provided Mr. Hertz with all of the necessary records and information with which to determine the gross receipts and allowable deductions for Dr. Rinker’s medical practice, and that they relied on Mr. Hertz to determine the proper figures on their return. We conclude that for 1999 petitioners had reasonable cause and acted in good faithPage: Previous 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Next
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