Appeals Court Grapples With Effects of Tax Deficiency Deadline

A federal appeals court panel wrestled Wednesday with whether missing the statutory 90-day filing deadline deprives the US Tax Court of jurisdiction to redetermine tax deficiencies.

During oral arguments, judges on the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit probed attorneys for both sides in a dispute over whether equitable tolling can apply to Nate and Jaya Maniktala’s untimely US Tax Court petition for redetermination of a tax deficiency.

The Eighth Circuit’s ultimate decision would add to an existing circuit split on the issue. The Sixth Circuit, for instance, held that the filing deadline isn’t jurisdictional and thus allows ...