182
Thomas, J., concurring in judgment
Ante, at 175. But the focal point test, as I interpret it, is not always determinative: Where it provides no single principal place of business, the "totality of the circumstances" approach is invoked. Second, the Court rejects the focal point test because its name has a "metaphorical quality that can be misleading." Ibid. But rechristening it the "place of sale or service test"—or whatever label the Court would find less confusing—is surely a simple matter.
The Commissioner's quarrel with the focal point test is that "it ignores management functions." Tr. of Oral Arg. 24.2 To illustrate this point, the Commissioner at oral argument presented the example of a sole proprietor who runs a rental car company with many licensees around the country, and who manages the licensees from his home, advising them on how to operate the businesses. Yet the Commissioner's unease is unfounded, since the focal point inquiry easily resolves this example. The taxpayer derives his income from managing his licensees, and he performs those services at his home office. Thus, his home office would be his "principal place of business" under § 280A(c)(1)(A). On the other hand, if the taxpayer owned several car dealerships and used his home office to do the dealership's bookkeeping, he would not be entitled to deduct the expenses of his home office even if he spent the majority of his time there. This is because the focal points of that business would be the dealerships where the cars are sold—i. e., where the taxpayer sells the goods for which he is paid.
2 The Commissioner's position is not entirely consistent. At one point in his brief he seems to advocate adopting the focal point test: "Since a 'business' under the Code must be an activity designed to produce income, the principal place of a 'business' should ordinarily refer to the principal place where income is earned. The 'focal point' test previously applied by the Tax Court properly encapsulates that principle." Brief for Petitioner 26, n. 17. At other points in his brief, however, the Commissioner appears to advocate the very test adopted by the Court. See id., at 18, 23-24.
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