NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FILED
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT MAY 19 2011
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
CHIQUITA T. TUTTLE, No. 09-71599
Petitioner-Appellant, Tax Court No. 5661-08L
v. MEMORANDUM*
COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL
REVENUE,
Respondent-Appellee.
Appeal from a Decision of the
United States Tax Court
Diane L. Kroupa, Tax Court Judge, Presiding
Submitted April 15, 2011**
San Francisco, California
Before: NOONAN and SMITH, Circuit Judges, and BLOCK, District Judge.***
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes that this case is suitable for
decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
***
The Honorable Frederic Block, Senior United States District Judge for
the Eastern District of New York, sitting by designation.
Chiquita T. Tuttle appeals the Tax Court’s order dismissing, for lack of
jurisdiction, her petition for review of a decision letter issued by the Commissioner
of Internal Revenue’s Appeals Office. We affirm for the following reasons.
1. The Tax Court did not clearly err in finding that Tuttle’s attorney
did not timely mail her request for a collection due process (“CDP”) hearing and,
therefore, that the Appeals Office correctly held an “equivalent hearing” in lieu of
a CDP hearing. See 26 C.F.R. § 301.6330-1(i)(1) (“A taxpayer who fails to make a
timely request for a CDP hearing is not entitled to a CDP hearing. Such a taxpayer
may nevertheless request an administrative hearing with Appeals, which is referred
to herein as an ‘equivalent hearing.’”). The Tax Court correctly held that it lacked
jurisdiction to review the result of the equivalent hearing. See id.
§ 301.6330-1(i)(2)(A-I6) (“[The Internal Revenue Code] does not authorize a
taxpayer to appeal the decision of Appeals with respect to an equivalent hearing.”).
2. Having held a hearing at which all parties had a full opportunity to
be heard, the Tax Court was not required to announce its oral findings of fact and
opinion in the parties’ presence.
AFFIRMED.
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