Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Tax Court

A specialized federal or state court that decides cases involving tax-related controversies.

All state governments and the federal government provide a means of adjudicating cases dealing with taxation. Tax courts deal solely with tax disputes, which may involve the valuation of real property, the amount of tax the state or federal revenue agency seeks to collect, or the tax status of a PENSION plan or a charitable organization.

The U.S. Tax Court is organized under Article I of the U.S. Constitution (26 U.S.C.A. § 7441). Currently an independent judicial body in the legislative branch, the court was originally created as the U.S. Board of Tax Appeals, an independent agency in the EXECUTIVE BRANCH, by the Revenue Act of 1924 (43 Stat. 336) and continued by the Revenue Act of 1926...