He Made a Federal Case of it - and Lost

Here's the scenario: You're a successful oral surgeon.  In 2008 and 2009, you went a little overboard on tax deductions.  You took travel expenses for commuting to your office and deducted meals that weren't related to your business.  Everybody does it a little, right?  Anyway, your 2009 car expenses claimed were $24,288 for which you have receipts of $1,771.14.

Enter the IRS auditor who disallows most of what you claimed.  This is a summary of what happened in a recent Tax Court case, Javad Bigdeli, et ux. v. Commissioner, (2013) TC Memo 2013-148.  How did Dr. Bigdeli handle it?  Maybe he consulted a tax advisor who said these things have never been deductible, and if they were, you don't have the substantiation to claim them?  Reluctantly paid the tax owed?  Of course not.  Instead, Dr. Bigdeli literally made a federal case of it.  Of course, the Tax Court upheld the IRS.

The point here is not that these particular personal expenses are not deductible - they never have been and the court's decision is no surprise at all.  What's interesting is that the taxpayer, in the face of being utterly wrong and with no chance of success decided to take the claim to court.  While that is (of course) his right, it's a window into human behavior.  No doubt, Dr. Bigdeli really believed he shouldn't have to pay this tax and was being wronged by the government.  However, you would think an educated taxpayer would understand the futility of this and the reality that a Tax Court case wasn't going to get him anything but additional expense. 

You can't win 'em all, but with cases like this, you can't win any of 'em.  My bet: an appeal is coming.