After the 16th amendment added the income tax to the U.S. Constitution in 1913, it soon became apparent that there would be disputes between taxpayers and the IRS. The Revenue Act of 1924 created the Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) as the forum where these disputes could be heard prior to payment of the tax in controversy. At that time non attorney practitioners were admitted to represent taxpayers before the BTA on equal footing with attorneys.
In 1942, the BTA’s name was changed to the Tax Court of the United States, but it remained an executive agency. Automatic admission to practice before the court was restricted to attorneys. With this change, 7,101 non attorney practitioners, mostly Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), were grandfathered into practice before the Tax Court.
Under Code Sec. 7452, “No qualified person shall be denied admission to practice before the Tax Court because of his failure to be a member of any profession or calling.” In keeping with this mandate, the Tax Court established a written admission examination that non attorney practitioners must pass before being admitted to practice. This examination is now given biennially only in Washington, D.C. at the Tax Court building.
As part of the Tax Reform Act of 1969, Code Sec. 7441 granted the Tax Court the status of a court under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, and changed the name to United States Tax Court. On January1, 1969, the small tax case status, designed to assist the taxpayer with smaller amounts in controversy, became effective with a $1,000 limitation on tax. Today the deficiency on small tax cases (known as S cases since the letter “S” follows the docket number), including additions to tax, penalties and additional amounts, must not exceed $50,000.2
The Tax Court is the preferred forum for handling tax controversies, even though most cases are settled before trial. Filing a petition may offer another opportunity to meet with an IRS Appeal Officer; unless the case was previously fully considered by Appeals and the deficiency notice issued by that office, most docketed cases are sent to Appeals first for resolution.
Remember, all individuals enrolled under Circular 230 can represent taxpayers before the IRS Appeals Division, even once the case is docketed with the Tax Court. Only a practitioner admitted to practice before the Court is permitted to file a Tax Court petition or to enter any appearance on the taxpayer’s behalf.
