CPA Says Error, IRS Says Accounting Method

Ed Zollars' Tax Update Podcast

The question of whether a problem on a return was an error or a method of accounting is important, as we'll discuss this week looking at the Sixth Circuit's ruling in the case of Huffman v. Commissioner, where the appeals court sustained the 20006 ruling of the Tax Court (126 TC 322) that the CPA's consistent flawed attempt to calculate inventory as prescribed by the regulations for the dollar-value, link-chain LIFO method. The resolution of this matter in favor of the IRS allowed the IRS to get at what would otherwise have been out of reach errors in years closed for assessment by moving that income into years that were open under the provisions of §481.The materials for this podcast can be found at http://www.edzollars.com/2008-03-17_CPA_Says_Error.pdf .The podcast is sponsored by Leimberg Information Service, available on the web at http://www.leimbergservices.com .