Opinion
398-21L
07-31-2024
CHARLTON C. TOOKE, III, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Courtney D. Jones, Judge
On July 23, 2024, petitioner filed a Motion for Recusal of Judge (Doc. 26). The arguments advanced by petitioner's motion have been fully considered and rejected by this Court. See Battat v. Commissioner, 148 T.C. 32 (2017); see also Thompson v. Commissioner, 148 T.C. 59 (2017).
On the same day, petitioner filed a Motion to Declare 26 U.S.C. § 7443(f) Unconstitutional (Doc. 27). Petitioner contends therein that section 7443(f)impermissibly restricts the President's power to remove judges of this Court, in violation of separation of powers principles. We have previously held that section 7443(f) is constitutional. Battat v. Commissioner, 148 T.C. at 52 ("[R]egardless of the branch location of the Tax Court, provisions authorizing removal of Tax Court Judges are constitutional."). The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has twice reached the same conclusion, albeit on a rationale that differs from our own. See Crim v. Commissioner, 66 F.4th 999, 1000-01 (D.C. Cir. 2023), aff'g T.C. Memo. 2021-117; Kuretski v. Commissioner, 755 F.3d 929, 938-39 (D.C. Cir. 2014), aff'g T.C. Memo. 2012-262. Accordingly, it is
Unless otherwise indicated, statutory references are to the Internal Revenue Code, Title 26 U.S.C., in effect at all relevant times.
Because petitioner resided in Florida when he filed the Petition, appeal of this case would lie in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit unless the parties stipulate otherwise in writing. See § 7482(b)(1)(F). That court has not passed upon the constitutionality of section 7443(f). We thus "foster uniformity by giving effect to our own views," Golsen v. Commissioner, 54 T.C. 742, 757 (1970), aff'd, 445 F.2d 985 (10th Cir. 1971), i.e., those expressed in Battat.
ORDERED that petitioner's Motion for Recusal of Judge (Doc. 26) and Motion to Declare 26 U.S.C. § 7443(f) Unconstitutional (Doc. 27) are denied.