Jeffrey Olson v. Minnesota Commissioner of Revenue

Under Minnesota tax procedure, the central procedural event is the issuance of a Commissioner’s Order, by which the Minnesota Commissioner of Revenue determines and assesses tax. If the taxpayer fails to file a timely appeal in response to the Commissioner’s Order, the tax assessment in most circumstances becomes final. The Commissioner’s Order in this case was sent by ‘ordinary’ non-certified mail to Petitioner Jeffrey Olson. Olson never received it and therefore did not file a timely appeal. Olson is now legally precluded from ever disputing the merits of the tax assessment. The question presented is whether issuance of the Commissioner’s order by ordinary mail meets constitutional requirements of procedural due process.