Schoppe v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- Summarized by Eric Madden , Reid Collins & Tsai LLP
- 11 years 9 months ago
- Citation:
- Schoppe v. Comm'r of Internal Revenue, No. 12-9010, slip op. (10th Cir. Mar. 28, 2013)
- Tag(s):
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- Ruling:
- The Tenth Circuit ruled that the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362(a)(1) does not apply to a proceeding commenced by the debtor-taxpayer’s petition filed in Tax Court, including any appeal from rulings in the underlying proceeding. Adopting the reasoning of the First, Third, Fifth, and Eleventh Circuits, and rejecting the reasoning of the Ninth Circuit, the Court concluded that a petition filed in Tax Court is an independent judicial proceeding initiated by the debtor, not the continuation of an administrative proceeding against the debtor. Thus, the automatic stay does not apply.
- Procedural context:
- The debtor filed a petition for review with the Tenth Circuit regarding a Tax Court decision finding him liable for tax deficiencies.
- Facts:
- After receiving notices of deficiency from the IRS, Mr. Schoppe filed a petition in Tax Court, challenging the IRS's determinations. The Tax Court sustained the IRS's determinations. Mr. Schoppe then filed a petition for review of a Tax Court decision with the Tenth Circuit. While the appeal was pending, Mr. Schoppe filed a voluntary bankruptcy petition, which prompted the Tenth Circuit to request supplemental briefing on whether the automatic stay would apply to the appeal.
- Judge(s):
- The panel consisted of Judges O'Brien, McKay, and Baldock. Judge McKay authored the opinion for the Court.
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