Steven T. Waltner, et ux. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue

Under the longstanding “common-law mailbox rule,” a properly-addressed and stamped letter is presumed to have been delivered within 1-3 days after it was placed in the mailbox. Under IRC §7502, a document mailed to the IRS or the Tax Court, postmarked on or before the deadline, is considered timely filed. If it is sent by certified or registered mail, a written receipt is prima facie evidence of delivery. Since 1954, there has been a split among the circuits as to whether §7502 completely replaced the common-law mailbox rule or merely supplemented it. Adopting the minority view, in 2011 the Treasury Department amended the regulation for §7502 to add an evidentiary rule that, absent a postmark, the proof of purchase of certified or registered mail is the only evidence that can create a presumption of timely delivery. Reg. §301.7502-1(e)(2) (the “Regulation”). Petitioners mailed their notice of appeal to the Tax Court five days before their deadline, but the clerk did not docket it. The Court of Appeals dismissed, holding that §7502 and the Regulation prevented that court from considering Petitioners’ evidence of early mailing of their notice of appeal because the common-law rule, and that court’s own precedent that §7502 shows no Congressional intent to replace that rule, are no longer good law. The first question presented for review is: 1. Whether the Ninth Circuit incorrectly held, in conflict with precedents in the Third, Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits, that under 26 CFR §301.7502- 1(e) the common-law mailbox rule no longer is available to establish timely filing of tax documents.