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After the just-described petition was filed, two Courts of
Appeals, those for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits, ruled that the
Tax Court lacked jurisdiction to consider denials of relief under
section 6015(f) in proceedings where no deficiency had been
asserted. See Bartman v. Commissioner, 446 F.3d 785 (8th Cir.
2006), affg. in part and vacating in part T.C. Memo. 2004-93;
Commissioner v. Ewing, 439 F.3d 1009 (9th Cir. 2006), revg. 118
T.C. 494 (2002), vacating 122 T.C. 32 (2004). This Court
subsequently reached the same conclusion in Billings v.
Commissioner, 127 T.C. 7 (2006).
Given these developments, respondent on September 12, 2006,
filed the above-referenced motion to dismiss for lack of
jurisdiction. Respondent noted specifically that no deficiency
for 2002 had been asserted against petitioner or Mr. McCausland.
The Court issued an order directing petitioner to file any
response to respondent’s motion on or before October 11, 2006.
To date, no such response has been received from petitioner.
Discussion
The Tax Court is a court of limited jurisdiction and may
exercise only the power conferred by statute. E.g., Raymond v.
Commissioner, 119 T.C. 191, 193 (2002); Naftel v. Commissioner,
85 T.C. 527, 529 (1985); see also sec. 7442. It likewise is well
recognized, as a corollary to the foregoing principle, that the
Court generally lacks equitable powers to expand its statutorily
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Last modified: May 25, 2011