IRS Backdating Case Nears an End: Agency Settlement Explained

An IRS decision to settle and forgo a $15.2 million penalty in a US Tax Court conservation easement case after the agency admitted it backdated a document is shaking confidence that the same didn’t happen in other tax challenges.

While settlements in the Tax Court are common, it’s unusual for the Internal Revenue Service to concede a penalty entirely.

LakePoint Land II LLC formed a conservation easement in which the partnership donated land development rights to a nonprofit and then allocated the shares of the charitable deduction to investors. The IRS originally rejected LakePoint’s claim of a $38 million deduction ...