Opinion ID: 1679379
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Income Tax Violations.

Text: The Committee charged that respondent's tax convictions violated DR 1-102(A)(3) and (4) of the Code of Professional Responsibility (lawyer shall not engage in illegal conduct involving moral turpitude or other conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation). The respondent was convicted in a jury trial in federal court of four counts of willful tax evasion under 26 U.S.C. § 7201 (felonies) and one count of willfully filing a false tax return in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7207 (a Class A misdemeanor). This conviction was affirmed by the Eighth Circuit. See United States v. Humphreys, 982 F.2d 254 (8th Cir. 1992). The three elements of federal income tax evasion are: (1) willfulness, (2) the existence of a tax deficiency, and (3) an affirmative act constituting an evasion or attempted evasion of the tax owed. Sansone v. United States, 380 U.S. 343, 351, 85 S.Ct. 1004, 1010, 13 L.Ed.2d 882, 888 (1965). The elements of the crime of willfully filing a false tax return are: (1) willfulness, and (2) filing a return known to be false or fraudulent. Id. at 352, 85 S.Ct. at 1010, 13 L.Ed.2d at 889. Humphreys continues to insist that he was not guilty of the income tax charges. However, we deem his conviction and its affirmance on appeal as conclusive evidence of guilt. Under Iowa Code section 602.10122, [t]he following are sufficient causes for revocation or suspension [of an attorney's license]: 1. When the attorney has been convicted of a felony. The record of conviction is conclusive evidence. (Emphasis added.) The Texas Supreme Court has recently discussed (in its disciplinary proceedings against Humphreys) the conclusive effect of a conviction, as well as Humphreys' claim that income tax violations do not involve moral turpitude. After a lengthy discussion of other states' disciplinary cases, the Texas court concluded that (1) income tax evasion does involve moral turpitude, and (2) conviction of the offense is conclusive evidence of guilt. In re Lloyd E. Humphreys, 880 S.W.2d 402, 408 (Tex.1994) (conclusiveness based on disciplinary rule, similar to Iowa Code section 602.10122, and principles of full faith and credit). Our cases have agreed; income tax violations involve moral turpitude. See Committee on Professional Ethics & Conduct v. Baudino, 452 N.W.2d 455, 458-59 (Iowa 1990); Committee on Professional Ethics & Conduct v. McMillen, 449 N.W.2d 339, 340 (Iowa 1989); Committee on Professional Ethics & Conduct v. Crawford, 351 N.W.2d 530, 532 (Iowa 1984). We continue to hold that view. We conclude that the Committee has proved by the requisite standard that the respondent was guilty of the income tax violations and the applicable disciplinary rules.