No, not my latest Italian-while-you-wait excursion; rather, it’s summing up Judge Courtney D (“CD”) Jones’ pinning of Section 6751b) Boss Hossery on Sunil S. Patel and Laurie McAnally Patel, et al., 2020 T. C. Memo. 133, filed 9/22/20.

IRS does miss one year of the four (count ’em, four) years at issue, but get the remaining three right. Sunil and Laurie were running one of the micro-captive insurance dodges, funneling cash into a no-lose insurance company. I’ve blogged these so often before I won’t lard this narrative with “copious citation of precedent.”

Having blown off Year One for want of timely Boss Hossery (Letter 5153 and RAR before CPAF, Section 6751(b)’s equivalent of leg before wicket), Sunil and Laurie want to argue the Boss Hoss just rubberstamped the CPAFs and, in the case of Year Two, the amended answer (IRS’ counsel having gotten the Area Counsel into the act).

No go.

“When asked to conduct inquiries into whether the Commissioner’s employees gave sufficient consideration to the penalties they proposed and approved, we have determined that such lines of questioning are ‘immaterial and wholly irrelevant to ascertaining whether respondent complied with the written supervisory approval requirement of section 6751(b)(1)’. Raifman v. Commissioner, T. C. Memo. 2018-101, at *61. In sum, the ‘written supervisory approval requirement of section 6751(b)(1) requires just that: written supervisory approval.’ Id.” 2020 T. C. Memo. 133, at pp.14-15.

For the story of Greg and Sue Raifman, see my blogpost “Too True to be Good,” 7/3/18. For the chronology of the Boss Hossery in the four years in Sunil’s and Laurie’s case, read Judge CD’s opinion.

Takeaway- For Section 6751(b) Boss Hossery, timing is everything. How closely the Boss Hoss looked is nothing to the point. Taishoff says “The return of the robosigner?” They sign, you lose.