I have written several times about discharging income tax debt in bankruptcy. My most recent post on this topic dealt with the question of whether a return filed after a substitute for return is a return for bankruptcy discharge purposes. I reported that the question hasn’t been addressed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. That is about to change.
In a society with a government class and a nongovernment class, the government class will naturally protect itself against the nongovernment class. I hope the Ninth Circuit will break from that mindset and do the right thing in the Martin Smith v. IRS case. Oral arguments are scheduled for May 12 at 9:00 a.m., and I intend to watch them at: http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/media/live_oral_arguments.php.
If you’re a debtor in the Central District of California who is considering using bankruptcy to deal with your debts, call an attorney who is a board-certified bankruptcy law specialist to represent you.