Going for the record for the shortest full-dress T. C., Judge Goeke expends but five (count ’em, five) pages on John F. Carter, 163 T. C. 6, filed 10/3/24. John blew, got denied by the Ogden Sunseteers (“no dough, you go”), and then filed Chapter. IRS filed a claim for pre=Petition taxes in the bankruptcy proceeding, but John and IRS waited some fourteen (count ’em, fourteen) months to tell Tax Court.

John’s trusty attorney wants to invoke 11 USC §362(a)(8) to stay the review of the Section 7623 shootdown. While ordinarily one would ask what John’s back taxes had to do with his blowing, John blew on the counterparty to a deal he did, claiming the counterparty misreported the deal. So he claims IRS may have setoff of the ultimate reward against John’s taxes.

Judge Goeke says he don’t need no 11 USC 362(a)(8) stay, because 11 USC 362(a)(7) takes care of it.

The 2005 amendment to 11 USC 362(a)(8) expressly limits the automatic stay to matters “concerning the tax liability of a debtor who is an individual for a taxable period ending before the date of the order for relief.” 163 T. C. 6, at p. 3. That both John’s tax liability and his blowing claim arise out of the same deal doesn’t extend the stay, even if the record supported John’s assertions, which in this case it doesn’t. Anyway, pre-amendment Tax Court opinions said the same thing as the amendment.

Of course, Tax Court has no jurisdiction under Section 7623 to determine the blower’s own tax liability.

IRS also tried to stay the blow review pending the outcome of Lissack in DC Cir, but that was denied as moot.

Still and all, I’ll award a Taishoff “Good Try, Second Class” to John’s trusty attorney, Paul Michael Spizzirri, Esq.