Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
C

Commissioner of Revenue v. J.C. Penney Company, Inc.

730 N.E.2d 266, 431 Mass. 684, (2000)

From our private database of 46,400+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Commissioner of Revenue v. J.C. Penney Company, Inc.

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
730 N.E.2d 266, 431 Mass. 684, (2000)

  • Written by Heather Whittemore, JD

Facts

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (plaintiff) was a Delaware corporation that was headquartered in Texas. In addition to a retail operation, J. C. Penney ran a direct-mail catalog business through which it sent three catalogs per year to customers around the United States to solicit mail orders. The catalogs were produced in Texas and printed and shipped in Indiana, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. J. C. Penney sent catalogs to customers in Massachusetts but did not pay taxes on the catalogs. The Massachusetts commissioner of revenue (the commissioner) (defendant) assessed a deficiency against J. C. Penney for unpaid use taxes on the value of the catalogs J. C. Penney mailed to customers in Massachusetts. J. C. Penney paid the deficiency and applied for a refund, arguing that the tax was improper because J. C. Penney did not make use of the catalogs in Massachusetts. The appellate tax board (the board) held for J. C. Penney, finding that the company did not make taxable use of the catalogs in Massachusetts because the catalogs were produced and mailed out of state. The commissioner appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Lynch, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,400 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.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,400 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

State and Local Taxation

Key Terms