Warren Parchan v. United States

MEMORANDUM

Warren and Barbara Parchan appeal the dismissal of their claims against the United States for a partial tax refund for the 2001 and 2002 tax years. With regard to the 2001 tax year, the district court properly found that the Parchans had failed to satisfy the statutes of limitation applicable to their refund claim and eventual lawsuit. Because refund lawsuits against the government must fall within the narrow statutory waiver of sovereign immunity, the statute of limitations applicable to these suits, 26 U.S.C. § 6582 (a), is jurisdictional. Yuen v. United States, 825 F.2d 244, 245 (9th Cir.1987). Thus, the district court properly dismissed the Parchans’ 2001 claims for lack of jurisdiction.

Nor are the Parchans entitled to take advantage of the mitigation provisions in the Internal Revenue Code to circumvent the statute of limitations. As the district court explained, the Parchans did not suffer a “double disallowance” within the meaning of 26 U.S.C. § 1812 (4), because they did claim a deduction for the legal fees at issue in a return that was accepted by the IRS. The fact that the IRS rejected as untimely a later return, which claimed the deduction under a…