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employment as a welder for Progress Rail Services; it was this
wage income attributable to Mr. Munsinger that was omitted from
the 2004 return.
Petitioners divorced in November 2005. Their divorce decree
is silent regarding the allocation of responsibility for any
outstanding Federal tax liabilities.
The notice of deficiency, sent jointly to petitioners on
August 21, 2006, determined a deficiency of $1,684. The
deficiency stemmed solely from the omitted items of wage income.
Although petitioners subsequently conceded the deficiency in
its entirety, they each seek relief from the joint and several
liability created by the filing of their 2004 return.
Only Ms. Lewallen appeared at trial.2
Discussion
A. Relief From Joint and Several Liability
Generally, married taxpayers may elect to file a joint
Federal income tax return. Sec. 6013(a). After making the
election, each spouse is jointly and severally liable for the
entire tax due. Sec. 6013(d)(3). Section 6015 provides three
avenues for relief from that liability (sometimes referred to as
“innocent spouse relief”) to a taxpayer who has filed a joint
return: (1) Section 6015(b) allows relief for understatements of
2 Although respondent moved to dismiss Mr. Munsinger’s case
for lack of prosecution, we denied the motion as Mr. Munsinger
had signed a stipulation of facts in the case.
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