I want to thank Mr. Patrick Temple-West of Thomson-Reuters for an interesting discussion of the politics surrounding Tax Court. As this is a strictly non-political blog, I’ll eschew any “summarization”, to use STJ Lew Carluzzo’s neologism (see my blogpost “Incomprehensible?”, 6/4/13), or commentary.

Our conversation was enlightening. The professors who have written on the subject (including but without in any way limiting the generality of the foregoing, as the high-priced lawyers say) Prof. Cords of Albany Law School, seem to think that all, or at least many, Tax Court cases are decided otherwise than on the law.

I think at best the conclusion is the old Scots’ verdict, “not proven.” But our telephone talk was a good excuse to delay going to the gym on a Sunday afternoon.