Premature Assessments and Tax Court Cases
A premature assessment occurs when the IRS assesses (or makes record in its system) tax, and penalties and interest, without authority to do so. When the IRS proposes adjustments to a taxpayer’s tax return (and tax is a type subject to deficiency procedures, like income tax), the IRS is required to issue the taxpayer a Statutory Notice of Deficiency, giving the taxpayer an opportunity to dispute the proposed adjustments in the United States Tax Court. Assuming a taxpayer timely and …