Victims of federal crimes have a right to “full and timely restitution, as provided in law.”[1] Lacking the inherent authority to order restitution, courts can only order restitution when provided by statute. Once a court has ordered restitution, other governmental organizations play a role in enforcing the order and collecting the restitution, such as the Department of Justice, the Financial …
The IRS has broad power under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) § 7201 to punish anyone who “attempts in any manner to evade or defeat any tax imposed by [Title 26].”[1] IRC § 6201(a)(4)(A) grants the IRS the power to assess and collect restitution as a tax for “failure to pay any tax imposed under [Title 26]”.[2] Thus arises the question of …
In the Greek dramatist Euripides’ tragedy, Phrixus, there is the following line: “The gods visit the sins of the fathers upon the children.” Such words are no more applicable than in the case of Bontrager v. Commissioner. According to the Tax Court, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) was authorized (under I.R.C. § 6201(a)(4)) to assess restitution against Mr. Bontrager, the …
