1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*164
A husband and wife joined in the creation of a trust for the benefit of their children, the husband contributing non-income-producing insurance policies upon his life and the wife contributing income-producing properties. The income, though not specifically required by the terms of the trust to be so used, was applied to the payment of premiums upon the insurance policies. The Commissioner included the income of the trust in the gross income of each petitioner (husband and wife).
(1) The income is not taxable to the husband under
(2) The income is not includable in the gross income of the husband under
(3) The income is includable in the gross income of the wife under
3 T.C. 482">*483 These consolidated proceedings involve the following deficiencies in income tax:
Petitioner | Docket | Year | Deficiency |
W. C. Cartinhour | 418 | 1939 | $ 1,037.77 |
W. C. Cartinhour | 112706 | 1940 | 2,477.66 |
Kathleen Gager Cartinhour | 417 | 1939 | 614.92 |
Kathleen Gager Cartinhour | 112707 | 1940 | 1,909.05 |
The issues are whether the income of a trust is taxable to either petitioner under
1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*166 FINDINGS OF FACT.
Petitioners are husband and wife and residents of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. They filed separate income tax returns for the years 1939 and 1940 with the collector of internal revenue for the district of Tennessee. The petitioner in the proceedings docketed at numbers 418 and 112706 will sometimes hereinafter be referred to as Cartinhour, and the petitioner in the others will be referred to as Kathleen.
Petitioners have two children, a daughter and a son. In 1935 the daughter was 10, and the son 7, years of age. On August 15 of that year petitioners created a trust for the benefit of their children, naming Cartinhour and American Trust & Banking Co. trustees.
3 T.C. 482">*484 Kathleen transferred to the trustees 660 shares of the 7 percent employees' participating preferred stock of Provident Life & Accident Insurance Co. Cartinhour was vice president and secretary of this company. The 660 shares were part of 1,200 shares of such stock which had been given to her by Cartinhour on July 31, 1931. At that time he had no thought of later creating a trust. The creation of a trust was suggested to him by an officer of the bank in July 1935. The 1,200 shares represented1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*167 about one-third of Cartinhour's holdings in the insurance company at that time. At the time of the hearing he owned approximately 2,500 shares of such stock, there being approximately 70,000 shares outstanding.
Cartinhour transferred and delivered to the trustees two policies of insurance of $ 50,000 each on his life, one of which had been issued by [ILLIGIBLE WORD] Life & Accident Insurance Co. on September 24, 1924, and the other on March 30, 1928.
The trust agreement provides that either of the trustors may, from time to time, deposit additional securities and make additional insurance policies subject to the terms of the same agreement. The trustees in their discretion are authorized to use the income of the trust estate for the purpose of paying premiums on the policies, but they are not under any obligation to do so. They are authorized to exercise any options, privileges, and benefits in connection with the policies, including the right to surrender them for paid-up policies or for the cash surrender value and to enforce payment.
The trustees are to hold and manage the trust fund, together with such other property as may be acquired, and to manage and control the trust estate, 1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*168 with full power to convey and dispose of it upon such terms and in such manner as may seem to them to be meet and proper. They are given full power to invest and reinvest any part of the trust estate according to their sole judgment and discretion and are not to be subject to any restriction or limitation by reason of the laws of the State of Tennessee with respect to investment of trust funds so long as Cartinhour shall be one of the trustees or while certain named individuals are connected with the corporate trustee; but in the event of the death or resignation of Cartinhour and the ceasing of the named individuals to be connected with the bank, then the trustees may invest only in legal investments under the laws of Tennessee.
The trustees are authorized to purchase securities or other property from the estate of Cartinhour or to make loans to his executor without being liable for any loss resulting to the trust estate by reason of so doing and, in their sole discretion, to make division or distribution in kind, or partly in money.
The beneficiaries of the trust are the children born or to be born of the marriage of Cartinhour and Kathleen. The trustees are to disburse 3 T.C. 482">*485 1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*169 the share of the income "in such manner, for the support, education and assistance of such child as the trustees in the exercise of their judgment may deem proper." They have power to encroach on the corpus for the support, education, and assistance of the beneficiaries. The trust is to cease when each beneficiary reaches the age of 50 years; but the trustees in their discretion may turn over to each beneficiary all or a portion of his share when the age of 30 years has been reached. After attaining the age of 21 each beneficiary can dispose by will of his or her share of the trust. Spendthrift provisions are contained in the trust and periodic statements of receipts and disbursements are required to be rendered to Cartinhour during his life, and after his death to Kathleen and the beneficiaries.
Cartinhour is given the right, during his life, to request the resignation of the named bank as trustee and to appoint a successor. After his death, if neither of the named individuals is connected with the bank, Kathleen has a similar right to request the resignation of the bank as trustee and to appoint successor trustees. In the event of difference in views between the trustees in1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*170 voting the shares of stock, the views of the individual trustee or trustees are to prevail. Upon the death of Cartinhour he is to be succeeded as trustee by Kathleen unless the son has then become of age. The trust is irrevocable. Neither Cartinhour nor Kathleen was in any way connected with the American Trust & Banking Co.
The only addition which has been made to the corpus of the trust was $ 3,000 face value of U. S. Treasury bonds, contributed by Cartinhour in 1937 for the purpose of converting one of the policies of insurance into another more desirable one. This contribution was so used by the trust.
All the income of the trust has come from the initial contribution made by Kathleen and from additions thereto in the way of reinvestments. The income has been primarily from dividends on the insurance company stock. The insurance policies have not produced any income. The income of the trust has been used to pay the expenses of the trust and the premiums on the life insurance policies. The remainder has been invested in Government and corporate bonds and in notes secured by collateral. For each of the years 1939 and 1940 the annual premiums on the life insurance amounted1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*171 to $ 2,381.50.
The investment policies of the trust have always been determined by the trust committee of the trustee bank, composed of its senior officers. This committee has decided what investments should be made. Cartinhour, as co-trustee, has acted only in an advisory capacity; and when his views have differed from those of the trust committee, he has deferred to its judgment.
3 T.C. 482">*486 Cartinhour has never exercised, nor sought to exercise, the powers given him to request the resignation of the bank as trustee and to appoint a successor trustee. In 1942 he relinquished all of such powers and resigned as a trustee. The officers of the bank have always voted the stock in the trust without consulting him. He has never insisted on any course of action by the bank in the handling or disposition of the funds of the trust. On some occasions the bank has acted contrary to suggestions made by him as to trust investments, and in such instances he has acquiesced. No trust income has ever been used for the support, education, or assistance of any beneficiary, and petitioners have never requested the bank, trustee, to so use any of the income. The assets of the trust have at all 1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*172 times been held by the bank.
OPINION.
Respondent's first contention is that Cartinhour is taxable upon the income of the trust under the provisions of
In the
In the
Respondent argues that the facts of the instant proceedings are similar in all material respects to those in the
In many respects the powers acquired by Cartinhour as trustee are comparable with those acquired by the taxpayers in the
While it is apparent from the above, that petitioner was given broad powers over the trust corpus and income, they were not, in our opinion, quite so broad or far reaching as were those given to the taxpayers in the two cited cases. He did not have the power to withdraw all or any part of1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*177 the corpus of the trust, or to alter, amend or modify, or revoke it in whole or in part, possessed by the taxpayer in the
The courts' opinions in the
With respect to the shares of stock, which were the only income-producing properties in the trust estate, and the income thereof, the taxpayer was given control so absolute as to be consonant with full ownership. The trust instrument gave him unlimited power to withdraw the stock from the trust or to alter or amend the provisions of the trust relative to the income thereof in any way. After consideration of these provisions of the instrument, the Commissioner, the Tax Court, a majority of this court, and petitioner himself agree that the taxpayer had complete command over the stock and its income during the tax years involved, and that he might have taken the stock or its income for himself or disposed of it otherwise at his pleasure.
In
In the instant proceedings, petitioners created an irrevocable trust for the benefit of their two minor children. Cartinhour was not the grantor of the income-producing corpus. His contribution consisted of non-income-producing policies of insurance upon his own life. We do not have, therefore, a situation calling for the taxation to the grantor of the income of a trust either because of its short duration and the fact that he will soon reacquire complete dominion,
The principles laid down in the cited cases may be briefly summarized as follows: The power to manage trust property, however unlimited, may not operate to bring the grantor within the provisions of
While it is true that Cartinhour was given rather broad powers with respect to the management of the trust estate, they were given to him in the fiduciary capacity of trustee, and not as an individual. As heretofore pointed out, he did not have the power to alter, amend, revoke, or terminate the trust, nor could he vest title to the corpus in himself. The only benefit he could receive from the income was in the event he and his co-trustee exercised the discretionary power given 3 T.C. 482">*490 1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*182 to them to distribute it for the support, education, or assistance of the beneficiaries, his minor children. The discretionary power was not exercised and no part of the income was used for this purpose during the taxable years.
The income of a trust is taxable to a grantor under the provisions of
Respondent's second contention is that Cartinhour is taxable upon the trust income under
The evidence does not support this argument. On the contrary it clearly indicates that Cartinhour made a gift of 1,200 shares of the stock to his wife in 1931 and in 1935 she conveyed 660 of them to the trust. Since he was not the grantor of this stock, the sole income-producing asset conveyed to the trust, he can not be taxed with the trust income under the provisions of
Respondent's contention that the trust income is includable in Cartinhour's gross income under
The third contention of the respondent is that Kathleen is taxable upon the income of the trust under the provisions of
The grantor of a trust is taxable upon the entire income thereof, where such income may be used to discharge his or her legal obligation to support minor children, although it may be used only in the discretion of the trustees and not in the discretion of the grantor.
Section 8463 of Michie's Tennessee Code of 1938 provides as follows:
8463.
3 T.C. 482">*492 Despite this provision it is contended that the legal obligation to support minor children is still primarily that of the father under the laws of Tennessee, where he is in position to render that support, and that in the years 1939 and 1940 Kathleen had no legal obligation to support the children because the evidence discloses that her husband was financially able to provide for their support.
Petitioners cite
Respondent relies upon
(5)
* * * *
By this section of the Code the obligation for the support of a minor child is no longer primarily charged upon the father, but father and mother are equally and jointly charged with the child's care, nurture, welfare, education, and support. This statutory provision was considered by the court in
"The obligation previously resting upon the father to maintain and support his minor children cannot be said to have been destroyed by this statute. That obligation was to provide for the child 'in a manner commensurate with his means and station in life.'
In the instant proceedings there is no controversy between parents as to the proper contribution of each toward the support of their minor children. We are concerned only with whether a wife, under Tennessee law, has a legal obligation to support her minor children. 1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*190 The Supreme Court of Tennessee, in our judgment, has decided that she does. Its decision is binding upon us.
Since the submission of the instant cases the Congress has added subsection (c) of
Sternhagen,
I am therefore of opinion that, in1944 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 164">*193 Dockets 418 and 112706, the amounts used by the trust to pay the premiums on Cartinhour's insurance are included within his individual net income.
1. Upon brief it is stated: "The Commissioner does not contend that the income is taxable to both. It is contended primarily that the income is taxable to Mr. Cartinhour, and only in the event that the court should decide that it is not so taxable, is it contended that it is taxable to Mrs. Cartinhour."↩
2. (c) Income of a trust shall not be considered taxable to the grantor under subsection (a) or any other provision of this chapter merely because such income, in the discretion of another person, the trustee, or the grantor acting as trustee or cotrustee, may be applied or distributed for the support or maintenance of a beneficiary whom the grantor is legally obligated to support or maintain, except to the extent that such income is so applied or distributed. In cases where the amounts so applied or distributed are paid out of corpus or out of other than income for the taxable year, such amounts shall be considered paid out of income to the extent of the income of the trust for such taxable year which is not paid, credited, or to be distributed under section 162 and which is not otherwise taxable to the grantor.↩
3. (2) Retroactive effect. -- The amendments made by subsection (a) shall also be applicable with respect to all taxable years to which such amendments are not made applicable under paragraph (1), in the same manner as if such amendments had been a part of the revenue laws applicable to such taxable years, but only if there are filed with the Commissioner (in accordance with regulations prescribed by him with the approval of the Secretary) at such time and by such persons as may be prescribed under such regulations, signed consents that there shall be paid, at such time as the Commissioner may prescribe, all of the taxes under Chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code or under the corresponding provisions of prior revenue laws which would have been paid for the taxable years concerned if such amendments had been a part of the revenue laws applicable to such taxable years.↩