Coleman v. Commissioner
United States Tax Court
Docket No. 44-86-86 (1991)
- Written by Kate Luck, JD
Facts
Geraldine and Philip Coleman (plaintiffs) had their tax returns audited by the Internal Revenue Service (defendant). Philip hired Richard Kates to represent the Colemans in the audit. Kates also represented the Colemans and Philip’s business in other litigation. In the course of his representation, Kates accessed and reviewed many of the Colemans’ personal and business records. After failed settlement attempts, Philip hired new attorneys to litigate the tax matter. After the petition was filed, Philip and Geraldine divorced, but they continued to be jointly represented in the tax matter. Philip negotiated a settlement and reached out to Geraldine with the details. Geraldine then revoked her consent to be represented jointly and hired Kates to represent her and argue for her entitlement to innocent-spouse relief. Philip objected to the representation, asserting that it would present a conflict of interest. After Kates refused to withdraw, Philip filed a motion to disqualify Kates.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning ()
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
