Aprill v. Comm'r of Internal Revenue, Docket No. 20091.

• Decision Date: 08 November 1949
• Docket Number: Docket No. 20091.
• Citation: Aprill v. Comm'r of Internal Revenue, 13 T.C. 707 (T.C. 1949)
• Parties: LOUISE K. APRILL, PETITIONER, v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, RESPONDENT.
• Court: U.S. Tax Court

13 T.C. 707

LOUISE K. APRILL, PETITIONER,

v.COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, RESPONDENT.

Docket No. 20091.

Tax Court of the United States.

Promulgated November 8, 1949.

Payments made to petitioner by the corporation formerly directed by her deceased husband without obligation on the part of the corporation and intended by it, in reliance on I.T. 3329, as a gift to her individually, held not taxable as either compensation for personal services or distribution of profits.Ed. J. De verges, Esq., for the petitioner.

Donald P. Chehock, Esq., for the respondent.

By this proceeding petitioner contests respondent's determination of a deficiency of $1,313.81 in income tax for the year 1944.The only question is whether $4,000 received by petitioner is excludable from taxable income as a gift as petitioner contends, or is taxable as determined by respondent as either compensation for services or distribution of profits.Other adjustments are not contested.

FINDINGS OF FACT.

Petitioner filed a Federal income tax return for the year 1944 with the collector of internal revenue for the district of Louisiana.She is the widow of Anthony Aprill, who was an organizer of Frerichs Lumber Co., Ltd., in 1908 and became its president in 1925.The company was dissolved in 1936, and for a time its business was carried on by a partnership composed of Aprill and Edward G. Boh, operating as Frerichs Lumber Co.The partnership was dissolved in April 1940, when its assets were acquired by Frerichs Lumber Co., Inc. Frerichs, incorporated under the laws of Louisiana, had a capitalization of 1,100 shares of $100 par value common stock which were held as follows:

+-------------------------+
                ¦April         ¦824 shares¦
                +--------------+----------¦
                ¦Boh           ¦275 shares¦
                +--------------+----------¦
                ¦Bessie M. Fee ¦1 share   ¦
                +-------------------------+
                

The three stockholders constituted the board of directors, and each continued to perform the same type of services for the corporation as for the partnership and its predecessor.Bessie M. Fee was cashier, bookkeeper, secretary, and treasurer.Aprill was president, and devoted most of his time to office and factory management, personnel problems, and the financial requirements of the corporation, Boh, vice president, was an expert in ‘wood piling‘ and did much of his work in the woods, buying and selling, and supervising the expediting of jobs.

At the time of Frerichs' incorporation in 1940, the following yearly salaries were agreed upon:

+--------------+
                ¦April¦$16,000 ¦
                +-----+--------¦
                ¦Boh  ¦10,000  ¦
                +-----+--------¦
                ¦Fee  ¦2,100   ¦
                +--------------+
                

Mrs. Fee's salary was increased in 1942 to $2,400 per year.In addition to the above salaries, the company has carried out a bonus plan whereby it pays its employees yearly bonuses which are based solely upon the value of each employee's services in earning the corporate profits for that year.The amount of bonus is determined at annual board meetings held shortly before March 31, the close of the company's fiscal year.At these meetings the company's auditor presents a statement of profits for the year and a report of the activities of each employee, and participates in discussions with the directors concerning what bonus should be paid the employees.The amount of bonus is determined without regard to the question of tax savings by the corporation.

Boh's employment with the corporation began in about 1931.His compensation at that time, and while employed by the partnership, consisted of a regular salary plus a bonus dependent on the year's profits.For the fiscal years ended March 31, 1941, to March 31, 1947, the following amounts were paid to Boh as bonuses:

+------------+
                ¦1941¦$1,000 ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1942¦10,000 ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1943¦10,000 ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1944¦10,000 ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1945¦10,000 ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1946¦7,500  ¦
                +----+-------¦
                ¦1947¦10,000 ¦
                +------------+
                

Aprill died on January 6, 1942, and petitioner inherited his 824 shares of stock.On February 11, 1942, petitioner became a director and president of Frerichs.Subsequent to Aprill's death but prior to March 31, 1942, the company's auditor called Boh's attention to I.T. 3329, C.B. 1939-2, p. 153, which ruled in summary as follows:

Payments made in 1937 and 1938 by the M Company to the widow of an officer-stockholder who died in January, 1937, though not required to be made by any contractual obligation, are deductible by the corporation as business expenses.Such amounts are gifts to the widow, and, therefore, are not taxable income to her.

The auditor advised Boh that by complying with the above I.T. the company could over a limited period deduct payments to petitioner of amounts which would have been paid as salary to Aprill if he were alive, and that the payments would not be taxable to petitioner.Frerichs was not obligated under any agreement with Aprill to make payments after his death to petitioner.

At a meeting of the board of directors on March 30, 1942, attended by petitioner, Boh, and Mrs. Fee:

On motion of Mrs. B. M. Fee, seconded by E. G. Boh, and unanimously carried, it was resolved:

That, whereas, the salary of Mr. Anthony Aprill, our President, who died on January 6th, 1942 was fixed by minutes of April 15th, 1940 at $16,000.00 per year, that this Corporation continue to pay his widow, Mrs. Louise Klar Aprill $1,333.33 per month, for the months of January, February, and March 1942 and for each month during the ensuing fiscal year of this Corporation; commencing April 1st, 1942 and ending March 31st, 1943Mrs. Louise Klar Aprill be paid the sum of $1,333.33 per month in recognition of the services rendered by Mr. Aprill to this Corporation, making a total for the three months ending March 31st, 1942 of $4,000.00 and a total for the fiscal year ending March 31st, 1943 of $16,000.00, which would be the amount of salary Mr. Anthony Aprill would have been paid by this Corporation had he lived, and that the above amounts as paid, be charged as an expense of the business.

The resolution was ratified by the stockholders at a meeting on March 31, 1942.

Frerichs made the payments to petitioner pursuant to the above resolution, and at a board meeting on March 30, 1943, attended by the three directors, it was resolved:

* * * that this corporation continue to pay his widow, Mrs. Louise Klar Aprill, $16,000.00 per year, or $1,333.33 per month during the fiscal year ending March 31, 1944.

The resolution was ratified by the stockholders at a meeting on March 31, 1943, and pursuant thereto Frerichs paid petitioner about $16,000 in its fiscal year ended March 31, 1944.Of that amount, $4,000 paid during calendar 1944 is in issue in this proceeding.

On its books Frerichs treated the payments to petitioner as expenses and claimed them as deductions in its returns prepared on an accrual basis.The Commissioner did not disallow the deductions for the years ended March 31, 1942 and 1943, but disallowed the deduction of...