Kissling v. Commissioner
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About This Legal Opinion
The landowner donated historic preservation facade easements claiming a large deduction which the IRS challenged on valuation. Following Kaufman and Scheidelman, the Tax Court ruled that a generalized diminution in value approach was not an appropriate method of valuing a facade easement.
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Rothman v. Commissioner of IRS
Tax Court held that the appraisal was not a qualified appraisal because it did not contain a method and specific basis for valuation, essentially following Scheidelman
Chandler v. Commissioner
Tax Court cited Kaufman IV holding that the facade easements had zero value because they were largely duplicative of existing historic preservation ordinances but held that taxpayers had reasonable cause for their gross misvaluation in two of three returns.
15 West 17th St. LLC v. Commissioner
The IRS challenged a façade easement deduction both on 170(f)(8) grounds and on valuation. The donee submitted an amended Form 990 return for the year in which the donation was made. The tax court held that a traditional contemporaneous written acknowledgment was necessary and denied the deduction.
Memorandum on the Kiva Dunes Tax Court Case
This is a summary of a US Tax Court in which the IRS challenged a conservation easement on 141 acres of Alabama coastal land, part of which included a golf course. After trial and briefing, the IRS dropped its challenge of the easement’s conservation values and focused on valuation.
Chief Counsel Advice, Number: 2010-02038, Internal Revenue
This is an IRS presentation on the elements of a qualified facade easement for federal tax purposes.
Kaufman v. Commissioner (Kaufman II)
In Kaufman II, the Tax Court denied Kaufman’s motion for reconsideration, affirming the earlier summary judgment decision in favor of the IRS. In particular, the Court found that the proceeds language in Reg. § 1.170A-14(g)(6)(ii) was an unconditional and absolute requirement
IRS Brief in the Kaufman Tax Court Case
The IRS opening brief in the Tax Court case Kaufman is required reading to understand all the IRS issues with technical substantiation details.
Charles Foster v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
As in Scheidelman and Rothman, the 11% reduction was based not on any particularized analysis of this easement on this property, but rather on an IRS article noting that façade easements typically resulted in a 10-12% reduction in value so the Tax Court sustained the disallowance.
Land Trust and Taxpayer Win in IRS Easement Challenge
The US Tax Court recently decided a case in which the IRS challenged a North American Land Trust conservation easement on 141 acres of Alabama coastal land, part of which included a golf course.
Kaufman v. Commissioner I
Kaufman.pdf Tax Court held that because of the proceeds priority to the bank in the mortgage subordination, NAT's right to its proportionate share of future proceeds was not guaranteed so the easement was not protected in perpetuity and was not a qualified conservation contribution under I.R.C.170(h).