Anthony Meggs & Beth Meggs v. Commissioner

T.C. Memo. 2019-5
UNITED STATES TAX COURT
ANTHONY MEGGS AND BETH MEGGS, Petitioners v.
COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
Docket No. 14604-12. Filed February 4, 2019.
Christopher J. Rajotte, Joseph A. DiRuzzo III, Jeffrey J. Molinaro, and
Jennifer Correa Rierra, for petitioners.
Derek P. Richman and Daniel C. Munce, for respondent.
MEMORANDUM FINDINGS OF FACT AND OPINION
PUGH, Judge: In a notice of deficiency dated March 13, 2012, respondent
determined the following deficiencies and penalties:1
1
Unless otherwise indicated, all section references are to the Internal
(continued...)
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[*2] Penalty
Year Deficiency sec. 6662A
2006 $467,150 $137,397
2007 118,812 ---
After concessions,2 the issue for decision is whether $813,978 and $455,264,
respectively, were properly classified as capital gains for the 2006 and 2007 tax
years.
FINDINGS OF FACT
Some of the facts have been stipulated and are so found. The stipulated
facts are incorporated in our findings by this reference. Petitioners resided in
Florida when they timely filed their petition.
Petitioner Anthony Meggs began his career in business working for
American Express, starting in its account services department and eventually
1
(...continued)
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended and in effect for the years in issue. Rule
references are to the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure. All monetary
amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.
2
Respondent conceded that petitioners did not understate their trust income
by $576,000 for 2006. Petitioners conceded that they were not entitled to a
$576,000 deduction for contributions to a trust for 2006, that they were not
entitled to $209,461 of the charitable contribution deduction they claimed for
2007, and that they are liable for a sec. 6662A accuracy-related penalty for an
understatement with respect to a reportable transaction.
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[*3] being promoted to senior project manager. During this time he focused on
process improvement and automation. After seven years he left American Express
and worked in supply-chain management. In December 2001 he joined Hancock
Information Group (HIG) as vice president of business development.3
HIG provided business-to-business lead generation services for its clients.
It contacted potential customers for its clients and arranged appointments for its
clients’ sales teams. Lori Sprague was HIG’s executive vice president. Ms.
Sprague hired Mr. Meggs, and they developed a friendly working relationship.
Precision Response Corp. (PRC) acquired HIG in late 2001 or early 2002.
Under his 2001 employment contract, HIG paid Mr. Meggs both a salary
and a 3% commission. His salary started at $120,000 in his first year and was set
to decrease by $20,000 in each subsequent year. Thus, commissions would make
up a greater portion of his pay as he settled into his position. Commissions from
each client’s billings also decreased over six years, creating an incentive for Mr.
Meggs to sign new clients. In 2002 Mr. Meggs and HIG agreed to modify his
compensation structure, forgoing any salary in favor of straight 4% commission
payments.
3
Mr. Meggs’ employment contract with HIG, dated November 27, 2001,
offers him the position of vice president of sales.
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[*4] In mid-2002 Mr. Meggs began to design a method by which a business
allocates leads and marketing efforts to its sales pipelines on the basis of each
pipeline’s capacity to develop leads effectively. On September 17, 2002, Mr.
Meggs filed a provisional patent application for his method, calling it “Method
and Apparatus for Managing Resources within an Organization and in the Sales
and Marketing Pipeline” (Pipeline IP). On September 16, 2003, HIG waived any
rights it had in Pipeline IP and Mr. Meggs filed a regular, nonprovisional, patent
application for Pipeline IP.
Mr. Meggs’ decision to patent Pipeline IP stemmed from his 2002
discussions with representatives of American Express Corporate Services (USCC)
regarding the possibility of contracting with HIG for lead generation services. He
successfully secured the USCC account for HIG in October 2002, and HIG’s work
on the account began in December 2002. USCC was the first American Express
account that Mr. Meggs secured for HIG. In 2003 he secured the American
Express OPEN (OBSN) account for HIG. HIG’s work on the OBSN account
began in early November 2003. And in November 2003 Mr. Meggs secured the
American Express Travel One (Travel One) account, on which HIG’s work began
on January 2, 2004. Pipeline IP was an important aspect of Mr. Meggs’ successful
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[*5] effort to secure the three American Express accounts for HIG. He was not
involved in managing the accounts after he secured them.
In 2004 Mr. Meggs’ relationship with HIG changed again. On May 3, 2004,
he and HIG signed a broker agreement (2004 broker agreement) under which he
was no longer an employee of HIG but instead a broker on HIG’s behalf through
his wholly owned S corporation, Caleb, Inc. (Caleb). Under the 2004 broker
agreement, Mr. Meggs continued to receive a 4% commission from new account
billings. However, these commissions terminated three years from the date on
which HIG’s work on the account originated. The origination date was the day on
which HIG began to make calls or do production work for an account.
InterActiveCorp, PRC’s parent company, began to consider a sale of PRC
towards the end of 2005. PRC was using Pipeline IP with Mr. Meggs’ permission
and, in preparation for its sale, PRC tasked Ms. Sprague with obtaining the rights
to Pipeline IP. In December 2005 Ms. Sprague approached Mr. Meggs about
acquiring the rights to Pipeline IP. Mr. Meggs needed cash to support another
venture and was receptive to a transfer. In early 2006 he proposed two options:
(1) he would license Pipeline IP to PRC and receive royalties, which would
increase once the patent was awarded or (2) he would assign all rights in Pipeline
IP to PRC in exchange for an extension of his commissions from the American
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[*6] Express accounts. These options were summarized in an email that he sent
Ms. Sprague in February 2006. Both he and Ms. Sprague wanted to act quickly,
and on February 14, 2006, Mr. Meggs executed an assignment of Pipeline IP to
PRC.4 As of the time of trial, the patent application for Pipeline IP had been
abandoned.
Also in early 2006 Mr. Meggs and PRC executed a written addendum to his
commission structure, dated January 2, 2006 (2006 addendum), with a handwritten
date of “1/2/06” by Mr. Meggs’ signature. The 2006 addendum extended the
period during which Mr. Meggs would receive commissions from the American
Express accounts to 3-1/2 years from their origination dates.
Under the 2004 broker agreement the origination and termination dates for
the three American Express accounts were as follows:
Origination date Termination date
USCC December 2002 December 2005
OBSN November 2003 November 2006
Travel One January 2, 2004 January 2, 2007
Under the 2006 addendum the origination and termination dates for the American
Express accounts were revised as follows:
4
Mr. Meggs executed another, notarized assignment of Pipeline IP to PRC
on May 6, 2006.
-7-
[*7] New origination date New termination date
USCC January 1, 2004 June 30, 2007
OBSN January 1, 2004 June 30, 2007
Travel One January 2, 2004 June 30, 2007
The 2006 addendum explained that these changes were made “due to the
circumstances surrounding AMEX USCC and AMEX [OBSN]”.
Mr. Megg’s commissions on the American Express accounts remained at
4% under the 2006 addendum. The 2006 addendum also provided that in the
event PRC terminated its relationship with Mr. Meggs, it “agrees to pay the
equivalent of one month’s commission (based on the average of the most recent 12
months of commissions) for each year of service provided.” Neither Mr. Meggs
nor Ms. Sprague consulted a lawyer in connection with the transfer of Pipeline IP
or the 2006 addendum.
During the years in issue, Mr. Meggs received the following amounts as
commissions from the American Express accounts:
2006 2007
USCC $424,431 $211,331
OBSN 779,094 300,773
Travel One 61,518 40,634
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[*8] The amounts Mr. Meggs received as commissions from the American Express
accounts generally were consistent from month to month. HIG issued a Form
1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Income, to Caleb reporting a payment from PRC of
$1,307,922 in nonemployee compensation for 2006.
On December 1, 2007, PRC terminated its broker relationship with Caleb as
it prepared to file for bankruptcy. PRC filed for bankruptcy on January 23, 2008.
Mr. Meggs filed a proof of claim in PRC’s bankruptcy case on April 9, 2008, for
$511,799 in severance pay. He miscalculated the severance pay he was due; he
included commissions attributable to periods after the termination date for the
American Express accounts. After the termination date the American Express
accounts were considered “house accounts”, meaning that commissions were not
owed, but PRC’s internal records still calculated commission amounts attributable
to Mr. Meggs even though he was not entitled to receive them. Ultimately, the
parties agreed to a lower severance amount.
Petitioners reported $396 of long-term capital gains on their 2006 Form
1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. Caleb reported $1,324,520 of total
income on its 2006 Form 1120S, U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation, in
April 2007. Petitioners and Caleb each amended their 2006 return in October
2008. On their 2006 Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return,
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[*9] petitioners reported $813,978 of long-term capital gains and attributed them
to “Patent”.5 Caleb reduced its reported total income by $813,978 to $510,542 on
its amended 2006 Form 1120S and reported a loss of $466,444 for the 2006 tax
year.
On their 2007 Form 1040, filed on October 9, 2008, petitioners reported
$549,597 of long-term capital gains, also attributed to “Patent”. Petitioners
reported the portion of the payments to Mr. Meggs attributable to the 2006
addendum as long-term capital gains. On its 2007 Form 1120S, Caleb reported
total income of $149,138 and a $140,339 business loss.
OPINION
I. Burden of Proof
Ordinarily, the burden of proof in cases before the Court is on the taxpayer.
Rule 142(a)(1); Welch v. Helvering, 290 U.S. 111, 115 (1933). Under section
7491(a), in certain circumstances the burden of proof may shift from the taxpayer
to the Commissioner. The resolution of this issue does not depend on which party
5
Mr. Meggs mistakenly reported a greater amount of long-term capital
gains for 2006 on his Form 1040X than was correct because he based his
calculations on an incorrect origination date for OBSN, resulting in an
overestimate of the payments attributable to the 2006 addendum. The correct
amount of 2006 long-term capital gains will be determined in Rule 155
computations.
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[*10] has the burden of proof, however, because we resolve it on a preponderance
of the evidence in the record. See Knudsen v. Commissioner, 131 T.C. 185, 189
(2008), supplementing T.C. Memo. 2007-340; Schank v. Commissioner, T.C.
Memo. 2015-235, at *16.
II. Classification of Income
We must decide whether any of the payments under the 2006 addendum
were in exchange for Pipeline IP or were owed to Mr. Meggs under his broker
agreement. We start with section 1235.
A. Section 1235
Section 1235(a) provides that the “transfer * * * of property consisting of all
substantial rights to a patent * * * by any holder shall be considered the sale or
exchange of a capital asset held for more than 1 year”. This treatment applies
regardless of whether payments in consideration of the transfer are payable
periodically or are contingent on the productivity, use, or disposition of the
property. Sec. 1235(a). The patent need not be in existence at the time of transfer
if the requirements of section 1235 are otherwise met. Sec. 1.1235-2(a), Income
Tax Regs.
All substantial rights to a patent means “all rights * * * which are of value at
the time the rights to the patent * * * are transferred.” Id. para. (b)(1). We
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[*11] consider “[t]he circumstances of the whole transaction, rather than the
particular terminology used in the instrument of transfer” in determining whether
all substantial rights were transferred. Id. (flush language); see Soffron v.
Commissioner, 35 T.C. 787, 789 (1961); Spireas v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo.
2016-163, at *22, aff’d, 886 F.3d 315 (3d Cir. 2018). The holder, for purposes of
section 1235, includes “any individual whose efforts created such property”. Sec.
1235(b)(1).
Respondent does not dispute that Pipeline IP was transferred or that the
transfer of Pipeline IP meets the requirements of section 1235. However,
respondent does dispute that the payments attributable to the 2006 addendum were
made in consideration for that transfer and should be treated as long-term capital
gains under section 1235. To decide this dispute, we must analyze the terms of the
addendum.
B. Contract Interpretation
“The cardinal rule in the interpretation of contracts is to ascertain the mutual
intention of the parties”. Pickren v. United States, 378 F.2d 595, 599 (5th Cir.
1967). Under Florida law, we limit the scope of our search to the four corners of
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[*12] the document if its terms are clear and unambiguous.6 Crawford v. Barker,
64 So. 3d 1246, 1255 (Fla. 2011). Where the terms of the document are unclear or
ambiguous, we “may consider extrinsic evidence as well as the parties’
interpretation of the contract to explain or clarify the ambiguous language.” Levitt
v. Levitt, 699 So. 2d 755, 757 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1997). A term is ambiguous
when it is susceptible of more than one interpretation. Friedman v. Va. Metal
Prods. Corp., 56 So. 2d 515, 517 (Fla. 1952); Strama v. Union Fid. Life Ins. Co.,
793 So. 2d 1129, 1132 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2001). The parties’ construction of
ambiguous terms in a contract “is entitled to great weight in determining its
meaning.” Pickren, 378 F.2d at 600.
However, extrinsic evidence is admissible under Florida law only to explain
a latent ambiguity; it is not admissible to explain a patent ambiguity. Carson v.
Palmer, 190 So. 720, 722 (Fla. 1939); Clayton v. Poggendorf, 237 So. 3d 1041,
1047 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2018). A patent ambiguity is uncertainty on the face of a
document arising “from defective, obscure, or insensible language”, and a latent
6
We look to State law to determine what kind of interest or right a taxpayer
has in property. Morgan v. Commissioner, 309 U.S. 78, 80-81 (1940). Florida
law governs our interpretation of the 2006 addendum because all of the parties to
the contract resided in Florida at all relevant times and the place of performance
under the 2006 addendum was in Florida. See Gov’t Emps. Ins. Co. v. Grounds,
332 So. 2d 13, 14-15 (Fla. 1976).
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[*13] ambiguity “is said to exist where a contract fails to specify the rights or
duties of the parties in certain situations and extrinsic evidence is necessary for
interpretation or a choice between two possible meanings.” MDS (Can.) Inc. v.
Rad Source Techs. Inc., 720 F.3d 833, 844 (11th Cir. 2013) (quoting Forest Hills
Util. Inc. v. Pasco Cty., 536 So. 2d 1117, 1119 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1988)).
The text of the 2006 addendum is susceptible of more than one
interpretation. Specifically, in the provision that resets the origination dates of
USCC and OBSN, the clause “NOTE: due to the circumstances surrounding
AMEX USCC and AMEX [OBSN]” exhibits characteristics of both patent and
latent ambiguities; it is not clear to what, if anything, within the document it
refers, and more than one “circumstance” may have surrounded the American
Express accounts.7 Therefore, we are not limited to the four corners of the 2006
addendum, and we may consider “the practical construction which the parties
themselves placed on the contract”. Pickren, 378 F.2d at 600; see also MDS
(Can.) Inc., 720 F.3d at 844 (“Florida courts have recognized ‘intermediate
7
For example, respondent posits that the clause refers to the possibility that
Mr. Meggs would attempt to take the American Express accounts for himself. See
infra p. 16. Alternatively, the clause could refer to the importance of Pipeline IP
to securing and maintaining the American Express accounts.
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[*14] ambiguity,’ when both latent and patent ambiguity exists; extrinsic evidence
is permitted to clarify the parties’ intentions.”).
Respondent contends that the payments under the 2006 addendum were not
consideration for Pipeline IP but rather for some other purpose and that petitioners
were compensated for Pipeline IP--which respondent argues had little to no
value--in some other way. First, respondent points out that there is no reference in
the 2006 addendum to the transfer, Mr. Meggs did not retain a security interest,
and the addendum includes several provisions standard in a commission
agreement. Second, respondent argues that the circumstances surrounding the
2006 addendum do not support petitioners’ claim. He argues that the 2006
addendum was executed before Mr. Meggs’ discussion with Ms. Sprague about
transferring Pipeline IP, and he asserts that both parties would have obtained legal
assistance with the transfer. And third, respondent argues that the form of the
transaction does not support petitioners’ claim because both PRC (on a Form
1099-MISC) and petitioners (on their tax return) initially reported the 2006
payments as nonemployee compensation to Caleb rather than as consideration for
Pipeline IP, and petitioners cannot escape the tax consequences of their chosen
form.
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[*15] There is no explicit reference to the transfer of Pipeline IP in the 2006
addendum and the date on the 2006 addendum, January 2, 2006, by itself seems to
support respondent’s contention that the addendum was signed before and,
therefore, was independent of the discussions between Mr. Meggs and Ms.
Sprague about the transfer of Pipeline IP. However, the most coherent explanation
for the sequence of events, on the basis of the record before us, is that offered by
petitioners. First, Ms. Sprague credibly testified that she approached Mr. Meggs
about the transfer in December 2005. Mr. Meggs, Ms. Sprague, and John Turner,
HIG’s director of human resources, credibly testified that “the circumstances
surrounding AMEX USCC and AMEX [OBSN]” referred to the transfer of
Pipeline IP. They also credibly testified that they understood the 2006 addendum
to be consideration for the rights to Pipeline IP. We believe it is significant that
the parties to the 2006 addendum conceive of it in the same way.
At trial neither petitioners nor respondent questioned whether January 2,
2006, was the date it was signed. It is possible that the 2006 addendum was
signed on January 2, 2006, in contemplation of some sort of transfer. It also is
possible that January 2, 2006, was meant to be the effective date of the 2006
addendum and was thought required because of the original December 2005
termination date of the first American Express account and the 2006 addendum
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[*16] was signed sometime later. In any event, in the context of the other
evidence, in particular the credible testimony of key participants in the transaction,
we cannot conclude that the date on the 2006 addendum forecloses a conclusion
that PRC agreed to pay the additional amounts under the 2006 addendum in
exchange for Pipeline IP.
Respondent’s other alternative explanations lack any support in the record.
He suggests that the 2006 addendum was a makeshift noncompete agreement
rather than consideration for the rights to Pipeline IP and that PRC compensated
Mr. Meggs for those rights in some other way. However, Mr. Meggs had no
involvement with the American Express accounts after securing them for HIG, and
we have found no evidence that Mr. Meggs had the desire or the capacity to
manage the American Express accounts himself. The record shows that PRC
valued Pipeline IP. Ms. Sprague was tasked with acquiring Pipeline IP from Mr.
Meggs, not a noncompete agreement. For this reason we also reject respondent’s
other theory that Pipeline IP had only nominal value to PRC. We are also
convinced that PRC would want something in return for the additional payments
and the only valuable consideration remaining is Pipeline IP. Therefore, we find
on the record before us that the 2006 addendum provided for additional payments
in exchange for his transfer of all rights in Pipeline IP to PRC.
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[*17] We also find that Mr. Meggs’ and Ms. Sprague’s failure to obtain legal
advice or Mr. Meggs’ failure to retain a security interest was a reflection of the
parties’ circumstances as they were discussing the transfer rather than evidence
that the 2006 addendum constituted an ordinary commission or noncompete
agreement. Both Mr. Meggs and Ms. Sprague were focused on transferring
Pipeline IP as soon as possible--Mr. Meggs wanted cash to invest in a new
venture, and Ms. Sprague wanted to obtain the rights before PRC was sold. They
had worked together since 2001 so it is plausible that they would have a level of
trust.
And we are not convinced that PRC’s reporting of the 2006 payments
indicates that the 2006 addendum did not relate to Pipeline IP. Because those
payments mirrored Mr. Meggs’ commissions, it was reasonable for both PRC and
Mr. Meggs to continue reporting commission payments as they always had in the
absence of any tax or legal advice. We will not bind petitioners to the reporting by
PRC in the face of other contrary evidence before us.
C. Unreported Income
Finally, we find that the record does not support respondent’s argument that
Mr. Meggs received additional commission income in 2007 that he did not report.
We accept Mr. Meggs’ explanation that he miscalculated the severance pay he
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[*18] claimed in PRC’s bankruptcy proceedings; and we accept his explanation,
and Ms. Sprague’s, that PRC’s internal records included commission payments for
the second half of 2007 that Mr. Meggs was not entitled to receive. At trial
respondent indicated that he would move to amend his answer to state that
petitioners had unreported income. We instructed respondent to make that motion
in writing. No motion was filed; instead respondent argues on brief that while he
has not moved to increase the deficiency, the unreported income he alleges “would
likely more than offset any reduction in deficiency resulting from any PRC income
being characterized as capital gain.” We will not accept his invitation to end run
the procedure for addressing the unreported income issue, particularly in the light
of the questions that petitioners raised about respondent’s claim.
D. Conclusion
Mr. Meggs’ transfer of Pipeline IP to PRC met the requirements for
long-term capital gains treatment under section 1235. Because the payments on
the American Express accounts attributable to the 2006 addendum, as determined
in Rule 155 computations, were consideration for the rights to Pipeline IP, those
payments are properly classified as long-term capital gains for those taxable years.
Any contentions we have not addressed we deem irrelevant, moot, or
meritless.
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[*19] To reflect the foregoing,
Decision will be entered under
Rule 155.