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From: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Newsgroups: net.taxes,net.legal
Subject: Re: Schiff
Message-ID: <1005@psivax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 10-Feb-86 15:06:21 EST
Article-I.D.: psivax.1005
Posted: Mon Feb 10 15:06:21 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 13-Feb-86 17:26:42 EST
References: <662@decwrl.DEC.COM> <1082@lsuc.UUCP>
Reply-To: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Organization: Pacesetter Systems Inc., Sylmar, CA
Lines: 38
Xref: linus net.taxes:893 net.legal:2640

In article <1082@lsuc.UUCP> dave@lsuc.UUCP (David Sherman) writes:
>
>In article <662@decwrl.DEC.COM> alpert@chovax.DEC writes:
>
>>							For example,
>>as Schiff points out, nowhere in our tax code is anyone "required"
>>to file "income" tax returns, nowhere is the language "mandatory"
>>or "required" used in connection with "income" tax returns, nor
>>is failing to file such returns specifically made a crime with
>>specific penalties. 
>
>I would assume it's up to the courts to determine what is or
>is not required by the laws of any given jurisdiction. There is
>no question that there is an Internal Revenue Code in your country,
>and that it was enacted by your federal legislators. Whether it
>requires filing, and what filing it requires, can obviously be
>determined by the courts.
>
	Actually, I think you missed a bet here. Schiff's statements
are actually irrelevent, at least in my understanding of legal
language. The true relevent question is whether the tax code contains
the single word "shall" anywhere in reference to filing returns. As I
understand the accepted usage in legal documents, the word "shall" by
itself is sufficient to create a legal requirement, no other terminology
is needed. I rather strongly suspect that the tax code *does* use the
word "shall" quite frequently throughout, in which case any court in
the US, and probably most other countries as well, would rule that the
code is setting up required actions, even in the absence of explicit
criminal penalties. Also if the language of the sections of the code
creating the IRS is anything like it is for such bodies as the
Copyright Office and the FCC the powers of the IRS are indeed quite
broad as far as making rules and regulations about the income tax.
-- 

				Sarima (Stanley Friesen)

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