26 USC § 7434 - Civil damages for fraudulent filing of information returns | Title 26 - Internal Revenue Code | U.S. Code

USCPrelim is a preliminary release and may be subject to further revision before it is released again as a final version.

Current through Pub. L. 113-99. (See Public Laws for the current Congress.)

(a) In general

If any person willfully files a fraudulent information return with respect to payments purported to be made to any other person, such other person may bring a civil action for damages against the person so filing such return.

(b) Damages

In any action brought under subsection (a), upon a finding of liability on the part of the defendant, the defendant shall be liable to the plaintiff in an amount equal to the greater of $5,000 or the sum of—

(1) any actual damages sustained by the plaintiff as a proximate result of the filing of the fraudulent information return (including any costs attributable to resolving deficiencies asserted as a result of such filing),

(2) the costs of the action, and

(3) in the court’s discretion, reasonable attorneys’ fees.

(c) Period for bringing action

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action to enforce the liability created under this section may be brought without regard to the amount in controversy and may be brought only within the later of—

(1) 6 years after the date of the filing of the fraudulent information return, or

(2) 1 year after the date such fraudulent information return would have been discovered by exercise of reasonable care.

(d) Copy of complaint filed with IRS

Any person bringing an action under subsection (a) shall provide a copy of the complaint to the Internal Revenue Service upon the filing of such complaint with the court.

(e) Finding of court to include correct amount of payment

The decision of the court awarding damages in an action brought under subsection (a) shall include a finding of the correct amount which should have been reported in the information return.

(f) Information return

For purposes of this section, the term “information return” means any statement described in section 6724 (d)(1)(A).

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(a) In general

If any person willfully files a fraudulent information return with respect to payments purported to be made to any other person, such other person may bring a civil action for damages against the person so filing such return.

(b) Damages

In any action brought under subsection (a), upon a finding of liability on the part of the defendant, the defendant shall be liable to the plaintiff in an amount equal to the greater of $5,000 or the sum of—

(1) any actual damages sustained by the plaintiff as a proximate result of the filing of the fraudulent information return (including any costs attributable to resolving deficiencies asserted as a result of such filing),

(2) the costs of the action, and

(3) in the court’s discretion, reasonable attorneys’ fees.

(c) Period for bringing action

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action to enforce the liability created under this section may be brought without regard to the amount in controversy and may be brought only within the later of—

(1) 6 years after the date of the filing of the fraudulent information return, or

(2) 1 year after the date such fraudulent information return would have been discovered by exercise of reasonable care.

(d) Copy of complaint filed with IRS

Any person bringing an action under subsection (a) shall provide a copy of the complaint to the Internal Revenue Service upon the filing of such complaint with the court.

(e) Finding of court to include correct amount of payment

The decision of the court awarding damages in an action brought under subsection (a) shall include a finding of the correct amount which should have been reported in the information return.

(f) Information return

For purposes of this section, the term “information return” means any statement described in section 6724 (d)(1)(A).

Source

(Added Pub. L. 104–168, title VI, § 601(a),July 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 1462; amended Pub. L. 105–206, title VI, § 6023(29),July 22, 1998, 112 Stat. 826.)

Prior Provisions

A prior section 7434 was renumbered 7437 of this title.

Amendments

1998—Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 105–206substituted “attorneys’ fees” for “attorneys fees”.

Effective Date

Section 601(c) ofPub. L. 104–168provided that: “The amendments made by this section [enacting this section and renumbering former section 7434 as 7435 of this title] shall apply to fraudulent information returns filed after the date of the enactment of this Act [July 30, 1996].”

The table below lists the classification updates, since Jan. 3, 2012, for this section. Updates to a broader range of sections may be found at the update page for containing chapter, title, etc.

The most recent Classification Table update that we have noticed was Friday, May 3, 2013

An empty table indicates that we see no relevant changes listed in the classification tables. If you suspect that our system may be missing something, please double-check with the Office of the Law Revision Counsel.

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"new" means a new section or new note, or all new text of an existing section or note.
"nt" means note.
"nt [tbl]" means note [table].
"prec" means preceding.
"fr" means a transfer from another section.
"to" means a transfer to another section.
"omitted" means the section is omitted.
"repealed" means the section is repealed.
"nt ed change" and "ed change" - See the Editorial Classification Change Table [pdf].

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General Reference

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Refer to the Thomas site for changes that have not yet made it into the classification tables.

26 USC	Description of Change	Session Year	Public Law	Statutes at Large

26 USC § 7434 - Civil damages for fraudulent filing of information returns

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