Tax Court of the United States

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TAX COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

When the Internal Revenue Service determines a deficiency, a taxpayer who disagrees can either pay the additional tax and sue for a refund in a federal district court or withhold payment and petition the Tax Court to set aside the deficiency. Tax Court decisions are reviewed in the united states courts of appeals.

The Tax Court, until 1942 called the Board of Tax Appeals, was declared by Congress in 1970 to be a "court." It is not, however, a constitutional court created under Article III, but a legislative court. Its members do not have life tenure but serve for fifteen-year terms.

Kenneth L. Karst
(1986)