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hip, and he regularly met with Seltzer concerning business
matters. Gershon also filed the trust’s return at approximately
the same time that the estate tax return was due. The estate tax
return was filed more than 9 months late, or in other words more
than 1 year after Gershon fractured his hip. We decline to find
on the basis of the record at hand that Gershon’s accident was
sufficiently disabling to constitute reasonable cause for failing
to file the estate tax return timely.
Nor do we agree with petitioner that Seltzer’s actions in
this matter constitute reasonable cause. As a fiduciary of the
estate, Seltzer was responsible for ascertaining the dates when
the return and the tax payment were due and making sure that
those dates were met. See Estate of DiRezza v. Commissioner,
78 T.C. 19, 33-34 (1982). Yet, Seltzer never ascertained the due
date of the estate tax return let alone made sure that the due
date was met. These responsibilities were nondelegable duties
assumed by Seltzer when he accepted the job as coadministrator of
the estate, see United States v. Boyle, supra at 249, and
Seltzer’s claim that he tried to delegate this responsibility to
Gershon does not amount to reasonable cause.
Petitioner reads Cal. Prob. Code sec. 16012 to conclude that
Seltzer was allowed to delegate the timely filing of the estate
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