David and Monika Zisskind - Page 12




                                       - 12 -                                         
          B.   Abatement of Interest Under Section 6404(e)                            
               Section 6404(e)(1) provides that the Secretary may abate the           
          assessment of interest that accrued as the result of any                    
          unreasonable error or delay by an officer or employee of the                
          Internal Revenue Service in performing a ministerial or                     
          managerial act.  However, section 6404(e)(1) also provides that             
          “an error or delay shall be taken into account only if no                   
          significant aspect of such error or delay can be attributed to              
          the taxpayer involved, and after the Internal Revenue Service has           
          contacted the taxpayer in writing with respect to such deficiency           
          or payment.”                                                                
               The Court may order abatement if the Secretary abuses his              
          discretion by failing to abate interest.  Sec. 6404(h)(1).  In              
          order to prevail, a taxpayer must prove the Commissioner                    
          exercised his discretion arbitrarily, capriciously, or without              
          sound basis in fact or law.  Woodral v. Commissioner, 112 T.C.              
          19, 23 (1999); Nelson v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2004-34.                  
               Petitioners argue that respondent abused his discretion by             
          failing to abate interest that accrued “due to the Respondent’s             
          unnecessary delay in resolving the present matter”.  Petitioners            
          assert respondent delayed in returning to them the offer-in-                
          compromise forms submitted on November 27, 2002, and failed to              
          meet with petitioners despite several requests to do so.                    








Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  Next 

Last modified: November 10, 2007