efiling Archives - TAX CONTROVERSY 360

US Tax Court Cancels Remainder of Spring Trial Sessions

After cancelling several trial sessions for March 2020 and April 2020, and closing its building until further notice, the US Tax Court (Tax Court) has announced that the remainder of its trial sessions through the end of June 2020 have been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19). The cancelled trial sessions will be rescheduled at a later date. Although the Tax Court’s building is closed, the court remains operational:

Tax Court personnel are working remotely. The eAccess and eFiling systems remain operational and the Court will continue to process items received electronically, serve orders and opinions, enter and serve decisions, work with litigants, and receive telephone calls.

Practice Point: Much like prior government shutdowns, the cancellation of a large number of trial sessions stemming from COVID-19 is a major disruption for the Tax Court, taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Those taxpayers whose cases have been delayed should continue to work with IRS Chief Counsel attorneys to try and resolve their cases without the need for trial.

US Tax Court Closed Until Further Notice

At 9:00 PM last night, the US Tax Court (Tax Court) issued a press release announcing that it was closing its building. As we previously discussed, the Tax Court previously closed the building to the public but still allowed the hand-delivery of petitions. Now, all taxpayers must mail petitions to the Tax Court (other documents may be electronically filed), which highlights the importance of abiding by the rules for timely mailing to ensure that jurisdictional requirements are met. The full press release from the Tax Court reads as follows:

Effective immediately and until further notice, the United States Tax Court building is closed. Mail will be held for delivery until the Court reopens. Taxpayers may comply with statutory deadlines for filing petitions or notices of appeal by timely mailing a petition or notice of appeal to the Court. Timeliness of mailing of the petition or notice of appeal is determined by the United States Postal Service’s postmark or the delivery certificate of a designated private delivery service.

The eAccess and eFiling systems remain operational. Petitions and other documents may not be hand delivered to the Court.

If you have any questions, please contact the Public Affairs Office at (202) 521-3355.