Clark v. Commissioner
United States Board of Tax Appeals
40 B.T.A. 333 (1939), acq. 1957-1 C.B. 4 (1939)
Facts
Clark (plaintiff) hired a tax counsel to file his and his wife’s 1932 federal income tax returns. The tax counsel made an error in calculating the Clarks’ deduction. One of the results of the error was that the tax counsel advised Clark and his wife to file a joint tax return. Clark did so, and based on that tax return paid the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (defendant) over $30,000 in income taxes for 1932. If Clark and his wife had filed separate tax returns, their total tax liability would have been $19,941.10 less. The tax counsel paid Clark $19,941.10 to cover the difference resulting from the error. The IRS included that $19,941.10 in the Clark’s 1934 income tax liability. Clark appealed to the board of tax appeals.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Leech, J.)
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