Candidates for admission to the United States Tax Court Bar via the biennial non-attorney examination should carefully study the limits of Tax Court jurisdiction, as this will doubtless appear to slaughter the innocents.

Ronald W. Boone, Docket No. 18319-23S, filed 2/13/25, is fighting with IRS about the application of a tax refund. After agreeing about a lot, but not everything, each side submitted their own motion for entry of decision.

CSTJ Lewis (“Cool Name”) Carluzzo will neither.

“As was explained to petitioner during the above-referenced proceedings, the Court has no jurisdiction to review respondent’s application of the portion of his 2020 income tax refund to his apparent 2017 federal tax liability. See I.R.C. §6512(b)(4). We doubt that he is satisfied with our explanation.” Order, at p. 1.

But CSTJ Lew does find “the case is most certainly settled with respect to matters that are within our jurisdiction.” Order, at p. 1.

So he enters decision that Ron owes neither tax nor chops for the year at issue, and was entitled to (and was paid) that part of the refund that IRS allowed.

Ron has filed a claim with IRS for refund of the disallowed portion of the refund, but the Section 6511(b)(2) limit for IRS to allow or deny hadn’t run when the SND Ron petitioned was mailed. Hence no jurisdiction.