Bradley D. Becnel - Page 4

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          negligence or disregard of rules or regulations and for a                   
          substantial understatement of income tax.                                   
               During the year 2002, petitioner was a student at Loyola               
          University New Orleans College of Law.  Petitioner graduated from           
          the College of Law in 2003.  With respect to the determination in           
          the notice of deficiency, he alleged in his petition:                       

               In 2002, while attending Loyola Law School, I acquired a               
               severe eye infection in both eyes which required                       
               hospitalization and consults from physicians in Texas and              
               Louisiana.  Because I was unable to see/read, I submitted              
               all of my tax documents to Thomas Vicknair, who prepared my            
               return in 2002 and the previous 4 or 5 years.  In 2003, Mr.            
               Vicknair had a sudden stroke/heart attack and died in 2003.            
               Because he was a sole proprietor, I have had difficulty                
               retrieving many of my tax documents from his widow.  I                 
               reasonably relied on the professional tax advice provided by           
               Mr. Vicknair and because of his untimely and sudden death, I           
               am unable to explain why he neglected to claim certain                 
               income despite being provided with proof of same.  Because             
               of my own health problems, particularly my impaired vision,            
               I was unable to verify the contents of my return in 2002               
               despite reasonable efforts.                                            

               With respect to the sole issue before the Court, section               
          6662(a) imposes an accuracy-related penalty in the amount of 20             
          percent of any portion of an underpayment of tax that is                    
          attributable to causes set forth in subsection (b).  However,               
          under section 6664(c)(1), no penalty shall be imposed under                 
          section 6662(a) with respect to any portion of an underpayment if           
          it is shown that there was reasonable cause for the underpayment            
          and that the taxpayer acted in good faith with respect to the               
          underpayment.  The Commissioner has the burden of production with           





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