Source: https://procedurallytaxing.com/false-return-conviction-provides-basis-for-collateral-estoppel-to-prevent-discharge/
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 08:56:40+00:00

Document:
For a brief period the Tax Court treated a conviction for filing a false return, IRC 7206(1) as the basis for sustaining the civil fraud penalty using collateral estoppel. The period ran from the decision in Considine v. Commissioner, 68 T.C. 52 (1977) to its reversal in Wright v. Commissioner, 84 T.C. 636 (1985) (reviewed). In the recent unpublished bankruptcy appellate panel (BAP) case of Terrell v. IRS, BAP No. WO-16-007 (Bankr. 10th Feb 17,2017), the 10th Circuit BAP sustained the decision of the bankruptcy court and held that a guilty plea for filing a false return provides the basis for collaterally estopping the debtor from challenging the discharge of his taxes for the year of the plea. Though unpublished, the opinion, without much analysis, pushes the scope of collateral estoppel on the issue of criminal conviction and civil fraud toward a more favorable position for the IRS. Reasons exist for drawing a distinction between collateral estoppel in the bankruptcy discharge context and civil fraud penalty. Had the court articulated those reasons, I would have come away from the opinion with a more comfortable feeling.
The Tax Court opinions, cited above, determining first that collateral estoppel applies to civil fraud and then subsequently determining it does not provide lengthy analysis concerning the scope of a false return plea. From the perspective of punishment both tax evasion, IRC 7201, and filing a false return will get the taxpayer to the same prison sentence almost every time. Because the elements of the two crimes differ slightly and because proving the filing of a false return is slightly easier, prosecutors lean towards a false return conviction at times. Chief Counsel attorneys used to complain bitterly when Assistant United States Attorneys would accept a plea to a false return count rather than evasion because it meant a lot more work in the subsequent civil case; however, the change to 6201(a)(4) to allow assessment of the restitution amount may have taken some of the sting off of the situation.
The difference in the elements of the two crimes plays a role in deciding whether collateral estoppel applies. The Tax Court examined this difference closely in its opinions applying the elements of the crimes to the civil fraud penalty while the BAP does not do spend as much time applying the elements of the crime to the elements of the applicable discharge statute.
(a) that it had previously held that a conviction for willfully attempting to avoid tax (I.R.C. § 7201) established fraudulent intent justifying a civil fraud penalty, see Amos v. Commissioner, 43 T.C. 50, aff’d, 360 F.2d 358 (4th Cir. 1965); (b) that the Supreme Court had held that “willfully” has the same meaning in section 7206(1) (false return) as in section 7201 (attempt to evade tax), see United States v. Bishop, 412 U.S. 346, 93 S.Ct. 2008, 36 L.Ed.2d 941 (1973); and (c) therefore that a conviction for filing a false return, without more, establishes fraud justifying the civil penalty.
At issue in Terrell is whether the his guilty plea for a false return places him squarely within the elements of 523(a)(1)(C). Section 523 of the bankruptcy code sets out the actions with respect to individual debtors that prevent, or except, the discharge of a debt. Congress has added to the list over the years since the adoption of the bankruptcy code in 1978. The list of excepted debts in 523 numbers 19 and several of those 19 subparagraphs of section 523(a) have more than one basis for excepting the debt from discharge.
The question before the BAP concerns the language of the discharge exception for making a fraudulent return and the language of IRC 7206(1) for filing a false return. Section 7206(1) holds a taxpayer liable for a felony tax offense if he “willfully makes and subscribes any return, statement, or other document, which contains or is verified by a written declaration that it is made under the penalties of perjury, and which he does not believe to be true and correct as to every material matter.” Does this statute, which does not require any understatement of tax but merely a false statement, match the elements of bankruptcy code section 523(a)(1)(C) such that the conviction under IRC 7206(1) requires a finding of collateral estoppel regarding the discharge of the underlying taxes.
The language in 523(a)(1)(C) “made a fraudulent return” may sufficiently line up with the language of IRC 7206(1) to allow collateral estoppel to work here but I would like the court to work a little harder to make that connection for me. The Tax Court eased into a similar conclusion with respect to the fraud penalty and an IRC 7206(1) conviction and then had to walk it back after the 9th Circuit brought its attention to the elements of that crime. The standard of proof for the IRS in a 523(a)(1)(C) case is preponderance of evidence unlike the clear and convincing standard needed for sustaining the civil fraud penalty. There are certainly differences between the Considine situation and the Terrell case but enough similarities to deserve more analysis. I am not yet convinced.
Surely not. To prove a violation under IRC 7206(1), prosecutors have to prove WILLINGNESS. As you observed, this is the same as for IRC 7201.
altering the jurat in a manner that negates its validity invalidates the return.’ I was penalized for writing honest jurats.[*] The IRS coerces filers to commit perjury when filers know that attached forms are incorrect, for example a falsified Form W-2 from a US employer or similar form from other employer, or an estimated Form 1116 written by the filer unable to obtain information to calculate the correct amount of Canadian income tax, etc. For a falsified W-2 the IRS told me a general rule is to attach a note to the return while the filer still has to commit perjury in the jurat; but the IRS prohibited me from even attaching such a note.
Without willingness, the false return gets no prison sentence. As far as I can see, an unwillingly false return only brings civil penalties, except when the IRS wants to conceal the reason for the falsity.

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