Connie J. Meadows - Page 9

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        that petitioner reasonably believed that Mr. Meadows would pay the            
        tax liability reported on the 1999 joint return.                              
             It appears from the record that petitioner filed tax returns             
        for at least the preceding 3 years as a married taxpayer filing               
        separately.  Petitioner testified that Mr. Meadows prepared those             
        returns for her and that she merely signed them.  On one occasion,            
        Mr. Meadows signed her name to the return.  Petitioner testified              
        that Mr. Meadows convinced her that it would be advantageous to               
        them to file a joint return for 1999, even though at the time the             
        return was due they were contemplating divorce.  Petitioner                   
        asserts that at Mr. Meadows’s request, she signed the joint 1999              
        return while it was blank; i.e., before any figures appeared on               
        it.  Petitioner testified that in doing this, she “should have                
        known better than to trust” Mr. Meadows.  According to petitioner,            
        Mr. Meadows then filed the return, which showed the tax liability             
        and the balance still owed.  The address on the tax return was a              
        mailbox to which Mr. Meadows had access but petitioner did not.               
        Consequently, petitioner testified that she was unaware of any                
        further developments or correspondence from respondent pertaining             
        to the 1999 tax year and did not obtain a copy of the joint return            
        until respondent began collection efforts.                                    
             Petitioner could not reasonably have believed that Mr.                   
        Meadows would pay the reported tax liability because petitioner               
        was unaware they had any tax liability, having signed a blank                 






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Last modified: May 25, 2011