Capitol Historic Trust - Tax Court Cases

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Tax Court Cases: Overview
Simmons v. Commissioner
Whitehouse v. Commissioner
Schiedelman v. Commissioner
Bruzewicz v. United States (District Court)
Kaufman v. Commissioner
Hilborn v. Commissioner
Nicoladis v. Commissioner
Griffin v. Commissioner
Losch v. Commissioner
Dorsey v. Commissioner

Tax Court Cases: Overview

The United States Tax Court has decided a series of cases regarding the valuation of historic preservation easements. The decisions of those ten US Tax Court cases, plus one US District Court case, are listed below, and the full text of the decisions is also available below as PDF documents. Also see the "News & Issues" section for a review of other recent developments regarding the tax incentive for historic preservation easements, including interpretations of the recent Tax Court case decisions.

In September 2009 and October 2008, two Tax Court cases involving historic preservation easement valuation were decided on their merits. In both cases, the Tax Court ruled in favor of the taxpayer, upholding value for the easements. In the case of Simmons, the Tax Court also addressed, and upheld, the validity of the easements themselves:

Simmons v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2009-208 (2009)
Whitehouse v. Commissioner, 131 T.C. 10 (2008)

In March 2009, two summary judgments (ruling not on the merits) were handed down. In Schiedelman, the Tax Court rejected the IRS motion, which was based on the IRS challenge of the appraisal. The case proceeded to trial on the merits and awaits ruling. The other summary judgment case, Bruzewicz, was in US District Court (not in Tax Court). There, the District Court ruled for the IRS on the same technical "qualified appraisal" challenge. Finally, in Kaufman, the Tax Court held in May 2010 that the easement donation of a Boston couple was not perpetual because the lender retained first priority to condemnation and insurance proceeds. The taxpayers have requested reconsideration of the ruling, and a number of amicus briefs have been submitted in support of that motion, including one by the Trust. The case proceeded to trial on other issues and awaits ruling on the motion for reconsideration as well as the issues raised at trial. These cases are:

Schiedelman v. Commissioner, Docket No. 15171-08 (March 30, 2009)
Bruzewicz v. United States, Docket No. 07 C 4074 (March 25, 2009)
Kaufman v. Commissioner, 134 T.C. 9, Docket No. 15997-09 (April 26, 2010)

Between 1985 and 1990, five cases were heard in Tax Court regarding historic preservation easement valuations. The taxpayer prevailed in each case, with the Tax Court upholding valuations of between 10% and 33% for the easements at issue: