Deck 5: Judicial Interpretations

Question 1

An appeal from any of the Circuit Courts of Appeals is tothe:

A)U.S. District Court
B)U.S. Court of Federal Claims
C)Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
D)U.S. Supreme Court

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which statement is CORRECT regarding the United States Tax Court?

A)The Tax Court will hear any federal case.
B)The Tax Court is an appeals court.
C)The Tax Court must follow decisions of the District Court with jurisdiction over the taxpayer.
D)None of these are correct.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Decisions of which court(s)are published by West Publishing Company in its Federal Supplement (F.Supp.)Series?

A)District Courts
B)U.S. Court of Federal Claims
C)U.S. Courts of Appeal
D)all of these are correct

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which reporter is the official, government reporter for U.S. Supreme Court tax cases?

A)S.Ct.
B)U.S.
C)AFTR2d
D)The government does not print Supreme Court cases.

Question 5

A taxpayer wholoses in the Small Cases Division of the Tax Court may appeal directly tothe:

A)Appellate division of the IRS
B)District Court in the taxpayer's circuit
C)U.S. Court of Appeals in the taxpayer's circuit
D)Decisions in the Small Cases Division cannot be appealed

Question 6

A decision of which of the following court(s)CANNOT be found in RIA's American Federal Tax Reports (AFTR or AFTR2d)?

A)the District Courts
B)the Tax Court
C)the Supreme Court
D)the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
E)none of these are correct

Question 7

Under the Golsen rule, the Tax Court must:

A)compute the tax liability due the government
B)reach the same decision in each region of the county
C)follow the Court of Appeals that has direct jurisdiction over the taxpayer
D)none of these are correct

Question 8

The citation ABC  v. U.S ., 375 F.2d. 456 (1992)tells the tax researcher that this is a decision by which court?

A)a U.S. District Court
B)the Tax Court
C)a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
D)none of these are correct

Question 9

When a Tax Court decision is said tobe entered under Rule 155, it means:

A)the Court computed the refund due the taxpayer
B)the Court reaches a decision without calculating the tax
C)the Court must follow the Court of Appeals that has direct jurisdiction over the taxpayer
D)the case cannot be appealed

Question 10

A "writ of certiorari" is:

A)the process by which the Supreme Court agrees toreview a lower court decision
B)a judgment notwithstanding the verdict
C)the procedure for determining if the authorities can hold an individual in custody
D)a reversal of the prior decision of a court

Question 11

Tax Court Memorandum decisions can be located in which of the following reporters?

A)CCH
B)AFTR2d
C)the Tax Court of the United States Reports (T.C.)
D)none of these are correct

Question 12

If taxpayers choose NOT topay a tax deficiency, then they must petition which court?

A)the District Court
B)the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
C)the Tax Court
D)the U.S. Court of Appeal

Question 13

In Francis T. Foster, et ux. v. Commissioner , 138 T.C. ___ (2012), No. 4, "138" stands for the:

A)year of decision
B)page number
C)volume number
D)paragraph number

Question 14

Examples of instances where the burden of proof is on the government, rather than on the taxpayer, include:

A)when the IRS uses statistics torecreate income
B)when the taxpayer introduces credible evidence
C)when the liability is a penalty or addition totax
D)all of these are correct

Question 15

In which of the following courts does the taxpayer have topay first and then sue for a refund?

A)the Tax Court Small Cases Division
B)the District Courts and U.S. Court of Federal Claims
C)the U.S. Courts of Appeal
D)all of these are correct

Question 16

The United States Tax Cases reporter is published by:

A)RIA
B)CCH
C)West Publishing
D)the Government Printing Office (GPO)

Question 17

In which of the following courts would a taxpayer want toargue an "emotional issue" rather than a "technical" issue?

A)the Supreme Court
B)the District Courts
C)the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D)the U.S. Tax Court

Question 18

An appeal from the Tax Court is tothe:

A)U.S. Court of Appeals where the taxpayer is located
B)District Court where the taxpayer is located
C)U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D)Supreme Court

Question 19

Which of the following is a secondary court reporter?

A)AFTR
B)U.S.
C)F.Supp.
D)F.2d.
E)none of these are correct

Question 20

In a court case, "dictum" or "dicta" is:

A)a statement or remark that is not necessary tosupport the court's decision
B)the legal concept that bars relitigation on the same set of facts
C)a judgment that reverses the determination of a jury
D)none of these are correct

Question 21

En banc refers toa court case heard by the full court.

Question 22

The appellant is the party whoappeals a decision toa higher court.

Question 23

District Court judges hearing tax cases are tax specialists.

Question 24

Which of the following statements is INCORRECT regarding headnotes and case briefs?

A)Headnotes are usually inserted at the beginnig of a case by the court reporter editors.
B)Headnotes help researchers quickly determine if a case is relevant.
C)Case briefs are a summary of a case identifying the facts, issue, holding and analysis.
D)All of the above statements are correct.

Question 25

The common form of legal citation is as follows: case name, volume number, page number, reporter abbreviation.

Question 26

Each U.S. Court of Appeals is independent and need not follow other Circuit Courts in making its decisions.

Question 27

Tax Court Summary Opinions are published in a printed reporter by the Government Printing Office (GPO).

Question 28

The Small Cases Division of the Tax Court can hear only cases involving a disputed deficiency, including penalties, of $15,000 or less.

Question 29

Either the taxpayer or the IRS may initiate legal proceedings in the federal court system.

Question 30

The Tax Court was formerly known as the Board of Tax Appeals.

Question 31

There are 11 Circuit Courts of Appeals in the federal court system.

Question 32

Where are current U.S. Court of Federal Claims decisions published?

A)West's U.S. Court of Federal Claims reporter (Fed. Cl.)
B)West's Federal Reporter, Third Edition (F.3d.)
C)West's Federal Supplement series (F. Supp.)
D)none of these are correct

Question 33

A regular Tax Court decision generally involves a new or unusual point of law, as determined by the Chief Judge of the Court.

Question 34

The citation ABC  v. U.S, 967 U.S. 567 (2012)tells the tax researcher that this is a decision by which court?

A)District Court
B)Tax Court
C)Supreme Court
D)Court of Appeals

Question 35

Judicial decisions constitute a primary source of the tax law.

Question 36

In which of the following courts is a jury trial available?

A)U.S. District Courts
B)Tax Court
C)U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D)All of the above.

Question 37

In most tax cases, the Internal Revenue Code places the burden of proof on the taxpayer.

Question 38

The U.S. Court of Federal Claims is a trial-level court.

Question 39

Which of the following statements is CORRECT regarding the U.S. Court of Federal Claims?

A)It hears monetary claims against the federal government, including tax refund claims.
B)It is composed only of judges whoare specialists in technical tax law.
C)It must apply the law of the U.S. Court of Appeals in the taxpayer's circuit.
D)All of these are correct.
E)None of these are correct.

Question 40

The twolevels of appellate courts in the federal court system are the U.S. Courts of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Question 41

If the Supreme Court refuses toreview a lower case, it doesn't mean that the Supreme Court is upholding the lower court decision.

Question 42

Identify the publisher, citation abbreviation, and types of cases that can be found in twoof the three reporters given below.
U.S. Tax Cases
Federal Reporter
American Federal Tax Reports

Question 43

District Courts hear cases based on the entire U.S. Code, not just the Internal Revenue Code.

Question 44

The U.S. Tax Court may examine the entire return of a taxpayer whose case it is hearing.

Question 45

Briefly explain how the burden of proof concept is applied.

Question 46

Describe the federal court system and its jurisdiction over tax issues. Identify the appeals and trial-level courts. Then, describe the factors that would gointoa taxpayer's decision tobring his or her case in a particular federal court. Finally, explain the basic rules of precedence for tax cases in the federal court system.

Question 47

District Court decisions can vary significantly among the districts.

Question 48

Why would a taxpayer want tobring a case in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims?

Question 49

If the taxpayer's Circuit Court of Appeals has not yet ruled on an issue, a researcher should consider a decision on the same issue by a Court of Appeals outside of the taxpayer's circuit.