Morton and Anne Kwestel - Page 9




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          section 7430 (sec. 301.7430-3(c), Proced. & Admin. Regs.) and               
          under the interpretation placed thereon by the referenced court             
          cases, taxpayers (such as petitioners herein) who do a good job             
          at the administrative level of resolving issues and getting                 
          respondent to realize the error of his ways are precluded from              
          recovering administrative costs incurred in achieving those                 
          favorable results.  To the contrary, taxpayers who do not do as             
          good a job at the administrative level and who receive adverse              
          Appeals Office notices of decision or notices of deficiency, but            
          who later convince respondent to concede issues or who                      
          substantially prevail in litigation on the issues, are able to              
          seek a recovery of administrative costs.  In effect, taxpayers              
          who do a better job at the administrative level of resolving                
          issues raised by respondent on audit are prejudiced in their                
          ability to recover administrative costs under section 7430.                 
               Although we sympathize with petitioners’ situation, the                
          statute, as enacted, is controlling, and our authority is                   
          limited.  As we stated in Metzger Trust v. Commissioner,                    
          76 T.C. 42, 59 (1981), affd. 693 F.2d 459 (5th Cir. 1982):                  

               Courts do not have the power to repeal or amend the                    
               enactments of the legislature even though they may                     
               disagree with the result * * *                                         











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