Summary
The Second Circuit held that the 90-day filing deadline in Internal Revenue Code § 6213(a) for petitions to the Tax Court is a nonjurisdictional claim-processing rule rather than a jurisdictional limitation. The court further held that the deadline is presumptively subject to equitable tolling, reversed the Tax Court’s dismissal, and remanded for consideration of whether the petitioners were entitled to equitable tolling.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the ninety-day filing deadline in I.R.C. § 6213(a) is jurisdictional or instead a nonjurisdictional claim-processing rule.
- Whether the filing deadline in I.R.C. § 6213(a) is subject to equitable tolling.
Holdings
- The filing deadline in I.R.C. § 6213(a) is a nonjurisdictional claim-processing rule rather than a limitation on the Tax Court's adjudicatory jurisdiction.
- The filing deadline in I.R.C. § 6213(a) is subject to equitable tolling.
Key quotations
“Because Congress has not clearly imbued the filing deadline in section 6213(a) with jurisdictional consequences, we hold that it is a nonjurisdictional, claim-processing rule.” (6)
“For all these reasons, we hold that the filing deadline in section 6213(a) is – quite clearly – a nonjurisdictional, claim-processing rule.” (10)
“Accordingly, we hold that section 6213(a)’s filing deadline is subject to equitable tolling.” (13)
Factual background
The IRS sent Mark Buller and Sarah Beatty a notice of deficiency concerning their 2018 income-tax returns on August 22, 2022. Their counsel missed the ninety-day deadline in I.R.C. § 6213(a), and the petition was filed nine days late. The Tax Court found that the notice was properly mailed and dismissed the petition for lack of jurisdiction.
Procedural history
The IRS mailed Petitioners a notice of deficiency concerning their 2018 income-tax returns on August 22, 2022. Petitioners filed their Tax Court petition nine days after the ninety-day statutory deadline. The Tax Court dismissed the petition for lack of jurisdiction, and Petitioners timely appealed. The Second Circuit reversed and remanded for the Tax Court to consider equitable tolling.
Remand instructions
The Tax Court must consider in the first instance whether Petitioners are entitled to equitable tolling of the I.R.C. § 6213(a) filing deadline.