Collection Due Process: The Scope and Nature of Judicial Review

Collection due process rights, which Congress created in the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, providing additional taxpayer rights and creating challenges relating to judicial review of these rights. The primary challenge for judicial review relates to the scope and type of review to which a taxpayer is entitled in the few instances in which the taxpayer was given the right to challenge the underlying liability. This article addresses the inconsistency between the U.S. Tax Court's determination that it was permitted to conduct de novo review, rather than abuse of discretion review. The Tax Court reasoned it was not required to conduct abuse of discretion review because the court itself was not subject to the administrative procedure act. This article considers the Tax Court's role and the contrary authority developing in the U.S. District Courts.