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filed with this Court a stand-alone petition contesting
respondent’s determination.2
Discussion
Generally, married taxpayers may elect to file a joint
Federal income tax return. Sec. 6013(a). Each spouse filing a
joint return is jointly and severally liable for the accuracy of
the return and the entire tax due for that year. Sec.
6013(d)(3). A spouse who has filed a joint return may, however,
seek relief from joint and several liability by following
procedures established in section 6015. Sec. 6015(a).
Under section 6015(a), a requesting spouse may seek relief
from liability under section 6015(b) or, if eligible, may
allocate liability according to the provisions under section
6015(c). If relief is not available under section 6015(b) or
(c), then an individual may seek equitable relief under section
6015(f). Section 6015(f) permits relief from joint and several
liability where “it is inequitable to hold the individual liable
for any unpaid tax or any deficiency (or any portion of either)”.
Except as otherwise provided in section 6015, petitioner bears
2 Sec. 6015(e) vests the Court with jurisdiction to review
an election for relief from joint and several liability arising
from a stand-alone petition. Cases brought under sec. 6015(e)
have become known as “stand alone” cases because only the right
to spousal relief is in issue, independent of any deficiency
proceeding. See Corson v. Commissioner, 114 T.C. 354, 363
(2000); Fernandez v. Commissioner, 114 T.C. 324, 329 (2000).
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Last modified: November 10, 2007