Boots and Saddles, Inc. v. United States, Civ. A. No. 25572.

CourtUnited States District Courts. 6th Circuit. United States District Court (Western District Michigan)
Citation269 F. Supp. 274
Docket NumberCiv. A. No. 25572.
PartiesBOOTS AND SADDLES, INC., Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, Defendant.
Decision Date30 June 1967

269 F. Supp. 274

BOOTS AND SADDLES, INC., Plaintiff,
v.
UNITED STATES of America, Defendant.

Civ. A. No. 25572.

United States District Court E. D. Michigan, S. D.

June 30, 1967.


W. Ralph Musgrove and David P. Ruwart, of Raymond, Chirco, Fletcher, Donaldson & Ruwart, Detroit, Mich., for plaintiff.

Lawrence Gubow, U. S. Dist. Atty., and Milton Trumbauer, Jr., Asst. U. S. Dist. Atty., Detroit, Mich., and Steven Cochran, David A. Wilson, Jr., and A. C. Murphy, of U. S. Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., for defendant.

FINDINGS OF FACTS AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

MACHROWICZ, District Judge.

This is a suit brought by Boots and Saddles, Inc., a Michigan non-profit corporation, on behalf of its members

269 F. Supp. 275
for the recovery of federal excise taxes assessed on monthly board payments for its members' horses lodged in stables maintained by plaintiff, for the period from January 1, 1958 through December 31, 1960

The issues raised by the pleadings and proofs are:

1. Whether "monthly board" charges paid in advance by members to a club, which entitle them to use the club's privileges and facilities for a period in excess of six (6) days, are subject to the excise tax on dues imposed by Sec. 4241 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, and
2. Whether twenty-five percent (25%) of the monthly payments should be excluded from the tax base because allegedly expended by the club for food for the horses being boarded.

It was the position of the plaintiff that these payments were for horse feed and exclusive use of a stall, paid in addition to an annual assessment; that they were computed and billed monthly on the basis of a charge for the occasion of actual use only, and are not subject to the excise tax imposed by Sec. 4241 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.

The case was tried before the Court without a jury. The Court finds from the evidence the facts to be as follows:

The plaintiff was a club within the meaning of Sec. 4241(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954. Its physical property consists of a rented stable, containing thirty-six (36) horse stalls, a riding ring, tack-room and kitchen-dining room. The rental lease with Ford Motor Company, owners of the property, also gave the club members the privilege of riding over farm-roads of the farm on which the barn is located.

The tack-room contained tables, chairs and a library consisting of magazines devoted to horses. It was used occasionally for "horse movies" and occasional parties and social events were arranged for members, including horse shows and "breakfast rides".

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6 cases
  • Ox Ridge Hunt Club, Inc. v. Tax Com'r
    • United States
    • Supreme Court of Connecticut
    • 2 Mayo 1978
    ...Gearhart v. United States, 269 F.Supp. 309 (E.D.Va.1967) (monthly charge for boarding horses); Boots & Saddles, Inc. v. United States, 269 F.Supp. 274 (E.D.Mich.1967) [175 Conn. 95] (monthly charge for horseboard); Cohan v. United States, 198 F.Supp. 591 (E.D.Mich.1961) (yearly payments for......
  • Hoke v. United States, 2539.
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 4th Circuit. Southern District of West Virginia
    • 12 Septiembre 1967
    ...United States, 179 F.Supp. 377 (D.N.J. 1959). This case has been followed in two recent cases. Boots and Saddles, Inc. v. United States, 269 F.Supp. 274 (E.D. Mich.1967), and Gearhart v. United States, 269 F.Supp. 309 (E.D.Va.1967). In the latter case Judge Hoffman distinguished the case of......
  • Alpine Country Club v. United States, No. 73-1250.
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (10th Circuit)
    • 7 Enero 1974
    ...619; Freeport Country Club v. United States, 7 Cir., 430 F.2d 986, 990-991, and Boots and Saddles, Inc. v. United States, E.D.Mich., 269 F.Supp. 274, 276. The reliance on the well-recognized, substance-over-form rule, see Weiss v. Stearn, 265 U.S. 242, 254, 44 S.Ct. 490, 68 L.Ed. 1001, is i......
  • Fontainebleau Hotel Corp. v. United States
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 11th Circuit. United States District Courts. 11th Circuit. Southern District of Florida
    • 23 Enero 1968
    ...States, 381 F.2d 383 (Ct.Cl.1967); Boyden v. United States, 218 F.Supp. 220 (D.Mass.1963); Boots and Saddles, Inc. v. United States, 269 F.Supp. 274 (E.D. 6. The $24,000 annual payments by plaintiff to Westview are taxable under Section 4241(a) (1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, whic......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

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