United States v. Bosk, Civ. No. 9479-M.
| Decision Date | 01 February 1960 |
| Docket Number | Civ. No. 9479-M. |
| Citation | 180 F. Supp. 869 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff, v. Israel M. BOSK, Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, Josephine Bosk, Richard M. Karp, Daniel Golden, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Florida |
E. Coleman Madsen, U. S. Atty., Miami, Fla., George Elias, Jr., Tax Division, Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., for plaintiff.
Edward F. Mitchell, Scott, McCarthry, Preston, Steel & Gilleland, Dixon, De-Jarnette, Bradford, George E. Patterson, Jr., Williams, McKay & Kimbrell, James A. Dixon, Miami, Fla., for defendants.
WYCHE, District Judge. (Sitting by Designation)
This case came on for hearing before the Court without a jury on January 18, 1960. Plaintiff, United States, was represented by E. Coleman Madsen, Esq., United States Attorney, and George Elias, Jr., Esq., Tax Division, Department of Justice. The defendants were represented by Edward F. Mitchell, Esq., George E. Patterson, Jr., Esq., and James A. Dixon, Esq., all of Miami, Florida.
The Court having considered the pleadings, evidence and testimony of the parties, and being fully advised in the premises, now finds the facts and states its conclusions of law as follows:
Findings of Fact
1. This action was properly authorized by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and was brought under the direction of the Attorney General of the United States.
2. The defendant, Israel M. Bosk, (hereinafter referred to as Bosk), at the time of this suit, was a resident of Miami Beach, Florida. Each of the defendants, Lincoln National Life Insurance Company (hereinafter referred to as Lincoln) and Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York (hereinafter referred to as Mutual), is authorized to do business within the state of Florida.
3. Bosk owed income taxes, penalties and interest for the years 1944 and 1945 in the amounts of $5,264.50 and $5,184.33, respectively, which were properly and timely assessed on September 17, 1947, and upon which proper notice and demand for payment thereof were made by the Collector of Internal Revenue.
4. Commencing with the month of April, 1948, to and including the month of May, 1951, Bosk made monthly installment payments on his 1944 tax liability in the total amount of $1,758.78. Notwithstanding the proper notice and demand for payment, no part of the balance of $3,505.72 for 1944 and no part of the liability of 1945 in the amount of $5,184.33, or a total amount of $8,690.05 had been paid.
5. Within six years from the date of assessments, Bosk filed on June 9, 1952, Treasury Form 900, Tax Collection Waiver, with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, extending the period during which collection of the balance of the 1944 income tax, penalty and interest assessment could be made, either by a proceeding in Court or by distraint to and including December 31, 1957 and for the year 1945 to and including December 31, 1958.
6. On August 15, 1952, Bosk filed Treasury Form 656, Offer in Compromise, whereby he offered to settle his entire outstanding liability for the years 1944 and 1945 for $1,000, which amount was subsequently raised to $2,000.
7. According to the terms of said offer of August 14, 1952, the taxpayer, in making the offer, as a part consideration thereof expressly waives:
"The benefit of any statute of limitations applicable to the assessment and/or collection of the liability sought to be compromised, and agrees to the suspension of the running of the statutory period of limitations on assessment and/or collection for the period during which this offer is pending and for one year thereafter."
8. On October 7, 1954, Bosk was notified by the Commissioner that following careful consideration of the offer to compromise the unpaid taxes, penalties and interest liabilities for the years 1944 and 1945, the offer was rejected.
9. Thereafter, Bosk filed Treasury Form 656-C, Offer in Compromise, dated January 15, 1957, and received by the Commissioner on February 26, 1957, whereby he again offered to compromise his liability for the years 1944 and 1945 for the amount of $2,000 to be paid in monthly installments.
10. According to the terms of this second offer, the taxpayer, in partial consideration for making the offer, expressly waived:
"The benefit of any statute of limitations applicable to the assessment and/or collection of the liability sought to be compromised, and agrees to the suspension of the running of the statutory period of limitations on assessments and/or collection for the period during which this offer is pending, or the period during which any installment remains unpaid, and for one year thereafter."
11. On July 18, 1957, Bosk withdrew the offer filed February 26, 1957, which had been submitted to compromise the liability for the years 1944 and 1945.
12. The defendants, Lincoln and Mutual, are the insurers of certain policies of insurance issued to and upon the life of Bosk, and upon which policies Bosk had retained the right at all times to change the beneficiaries thereof.
13. The policies, cash surrender values, and net value thereof are as follows:
Cash
Policies Date Surrender Value Indebtedness Net Value
Lincoln
J1067601 9/17/59 $ 971.60 $553.25 $418.35
J1067602 9/17/59 971.60 553.25 418.35
J1110444* 3/28/59 1,568.90 933.80 635.10
Mutual
763 80 30-S 1/18/60 $1,414.44 $698.19 $ 716.25
763 80 31-S 1/18/60 1,414.44 322.23 1,092.21
776 17 50 1/18/60 1,288.10 391.63 896.47
14. Notice of tax liens were served by the United States upon Lincoln on February 24, 1958, and upon Mutual on February 10, 1958.
15. Prior to February 24, 1958, Lincoln received a letter from Bosk requesting a change of beneficiaries upon all policies to Jo Golden Bosk as primary beneficiary and Richard M. Karp as contingent beneficiary. Lincoln forwarded to Bosk its standard forms for effectuating a change of beneficiaries but such forms have never been returned to Lincoln. Subsequent to September 2, 1958 a similar letter of request was received by Lincoln, but no standard forms for change of beneficiary were received.
16. This action was filed on September 28, 1959.
This suit was instituted by the plaintiff to obtain a judgment for unpaid income taxes, penalties and interest against defendant Israel M. Bosk for the years 1944 and 1945, and to enforce its tax liens against the cash surrender value of six insurance policies on the life of defendant, Israel M. Bosk, in partial satisfaction of his outstanding tax liabilities for said years. The facts stated in detail in the Findings of Fact need not be repeated here. Those necessary to any understanding of the case are as follows:
Defendant—taxpayer Bosk owed income taxes, penalties and interest for the years 1944 and 1945, which were properly and timely assessed on September 17, 1947. During the period of April, 1948, through May, 1951, Bosk paid monthly installments in partial satisfaction of his 1944 liability. The balance of the 1944 liability and the entire liability for 1945, in the total amount of $8,690.05, remained unpaid notwithstanding proper notices and demands therefor made by the Collector of Internal Revenue upon Bosk.
On June 9, 1952, Bosk filed Treasury Form 900, Tax Collection Waiver, with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, extending the period during which collection of the balance of the 1944 liability could be made, either by distraint or a proceeding in court, to December 31, 1957, and for the year 1945 to December 31, 1958. Because of Bosk's asserted inability to pay, on August 14, 1952, he filed an offer to compromise his entire outstanding liability for the years 1944 and 1945. By the terms of the offer, he waived the benefit of the statute of limitations applicable to collections, and agreed to the suspension of the running of the statutory period of limitations on collection for the period during which the offer was pending and for one year thereafter. This offer was rejected on October 7, 1954. Thereafter, Bosk, on February 26, 1957, again offered to compromise his liability for the years 1944 and 1945 for a specified amount to be paid in monthly installments. By the terms of the offer, he again agreed to a waiver and extension of the limitations period on collection for the period the offer was outstanding and for one year thereafter. Prior to final action on this offer, Bosk, on July 18, 1957, withdrew his offer of February 26, 1957.
Defendant Bosk holds life insurance policies in the defendants, Lincoln National Life Insurance Company (hereinafter referred to as Lincoln) and the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York (hereinafter referred to as Mutual), which policies are in his possession. Notices of tax liens were served by plaintiff upon Lincoln on February 24, 1958, and upon Mutual on February 10, 1958. These policies had substantial cash surrender values at the time of the institution of this action. All the policies were payable at Bosk's death to his wife as beneficiary but each policy reserved to him the right to change the beneficiary at any time. Prior and subsequent to February 24, 1958, Lincoln received letters from Bosk requesting that the beneficiaries on all policies be his wife as primary beneficiary, and Richard M. Karp, rather than Daniel Golden, as contingent beneficiary. Pursuant thereto, Lincoln forwarded to Bosk its standard forms for effectuating a change of beneficiaries, but no such completed forms were returned to Lincoln.
This action was instituted on September 28, 1959, to obtain a judgment for the unpaid tax liabilities owed by Bosk for the years 1944 and 1945, and to enforce the liens of the unpaid federal taxes against Bosk's interest in the six insurance policies; and Bosk's wife...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Senger v. United States
...at 753; Myrick v. United States, supra, 296 F.2d at 314; United States v. Sunbrock, supra, 192 F.Supp. at 459; United States v. Bosk, 180 F.Supp. 869, 873-874 (S.D.Fla.1960). Therefore, contrary to the defendant's contention, there is an agreement under 1939 IRC § 276(b) and 1954 IRC § 6501......
-
United States v. Birrell
...Mut. Life Ins. Co., 127 F.2d 880 (1st Cir. 1942); United States v. Mitchell, 210 F.Supp. 810 (S.D.Ala.1962); United States v. Bosk, 180 F.Supp. 869 (S.D.Fla.1960). The correct procedure is under Section 7403, the procedure adopted in the case at bar, United States v. Metropolitan Life Ins. ......
-
United States v. Sunbrock, Civ. A. No. 629 and 962.
...Only Fifth Circuit cases will be cited. Parker Co. v. Commissioner, 49 F.2d 254; Shambaugh v. Scofield, 132 F.2d 345; United States v. Bosk, D.C.S.D.Fla., 180 F.Supp. 869. Defendant claims that all admission taxes assessed for the years 1938 to 1947 inclusive are likewise barred by the stat......
-
United States v. Morgan
...L.Ed. 484. This holding receives some support from United States v. Havner, 8th Cir., 101 F.2d 161, though is contrary to United States v. Bosk, D.C., 180 F.Supp. 869 and United States v. Wilson, D.C., 182 F.Supp. Judgment will go for the United States for the amounts due under items 2 and ......