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Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic

U.S. Tax Court

The U. S. Tax Court is a Federal Court of limited jurisdiction. Congress established the court under Article I of the U.S. Constitution to hear tax disputes concerning notices of deficiency, notices of transferee liability, certain types of declaratory judgment, readjustment and adjustment of partnership items, review of the failure to abate interest, administrative costs, worker classification, relief from joint and several liability on a joint return, and review of certain collection actions. The Tax Court is located in Washington D.C.; however, the judges travel around the country to hear cases. The Tax Court usually conducts trials in Atlanta a few times each calendar year. It is not unusual to have a regular trial calendar or an S-Calendar each called twice a year in Atlanta.

Typically, a taxpayer begins a case with the Tax Court by filing of a petition. In deficiency cases, the petition must be timely filed within 90 days (150 days if the notice of deficiency is mailed to a taxpayer outside the United States) after the date of the mailing of the statutory notice of deficiency. With respect to appeals of Collections Due Process determinations (§§6320 and 6330), the petition to the Tax Court must be fled within 30 days of the determination. No extension of time may be granted statutory notices. Unlike the other tax dispute forums (U.S. District Courts and U. S. Federal Claims Court), the Tax Court does not require the taxpayer to first pay the disputed amount. This is why the Tax Court may be a first choice for many taxpayers. In fact, the Tax Court does not have jurisdiction in deficiency cases if the tax is paid.

The Tax Court does not offer jury trials. All cases are decided by judges, and all of the judges have extensive expertise in the federal tax laws. The regular trial judges serve for 15-year terms and are appointed by the President. The court has its own rules and procedures that supplement the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Tax Court rules are more directed at facilitating a cooperative settlement of disputes. The court is bound by the precedent of the Federal Court of Appeals in the geographic jurisdiction in which the taxpayer is located (the Eleventh Circuit for the Clinic's taxpayers).

In certain tax disputes involving $50,000 or less, taxpayers may elect to have their case conducted under the Court's simplified small tax case procedure. IRC §7463. These cases are usually heard by special trial judges. Trials under the small tax case procedure generally are less formal and result in a speedier disposition. However, decisions entered under the small tax case procedures are final and are not appealable. Most all petitions filed by the Clinic will be under the small case procedure.

U.S. Tax Court
400 Second Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20217
202-606-8754

Rule 23: Form and Style of Papers

All papers filed with the Court must have a caption, date and signature
1. Caption - The sample petition in the Clinic forms conforms to the rules
2. Date - Date of signature must be included on all papers filed with the Court
3. Signature - Original signature of party or party's representative. Individual's name rather than firm name must be used. The name, mailing address and telephone number of the party or counsel, as well as the counsel's Tax Court bar number must be typed underneath the signature.
Four copies along with the signed original, unless provided otherwise by the Rules, must be included for all papers filed with the Court.
Papers must be clear and legible.
Papers must be prepared on opaque, unglazed paper, 8 1/2 inches wide by 11 inches long. Margins are to be no less than 1 inch wide on the sides and no less than 0.75 inches on the top and bottom. Text and footnotes are to be in consistent type no smaller than 12 characters per inch produced by a typewriting element or 12-point type produced by a nonproportional print font. The lines are to be double-spaced for text and single-spaced for indented quotations and footnotes.
All papers are to be bound together on the upper left-hand side only and shall have no backs or covers.
All citations of case names shall be underlined when typewritten and in italics when printed.
The Court may return without filing any paper that does not conform to the requirements of this rule.