United States Ninth Circuit

In a tax case, an order denying the government's petition to enforce a summons issued by the IRS is reversed where: 1) a 29-page "draft opinion letter" sent by taxpayers' accountants to the taxpayers' tax lawyers, containing extensive legal authority and analysis of a complicated tax transaction, constituted a "memorandum"; and 2) thus, even though the letter was characterized as a "draft," it was nevertheless subject to disclosure pursuant to taxpayers' agreement to provide to the IRS "[a]ll opinions and memoranda that provide a legal analysis" of the transaction in question.

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/08/2008
• Decided 05/15/2008
• Published 05/15/2008

Judges

• PER CURIAM:, Before:  CYNTHIA HOLCOMB HALL, T.G. NELSON, and BARRY G. SILVERMAN, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Eileen J. O'Connor, Robert W. Metzler, and Gretchen M. Wolfinger, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., for the plaintiff-appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• David Jacobs and Deanna L. Ballesteros, Epstein Becker & Green, Los Angeles, CA, for the defendant-appellee.