L.L. Bean, Inc. v. Commissioner

BOUDIN, Circuit Judge.

L.L. Bean, Inc. appeals from an adverse decision of the Tax Court. Although the decision covers two different tax years (1986 and 1987), the central issue in both years is the status of certain facilities under 26 U.S.C. §§ 38, 48, which govern the investment tax credit. These provisions provided certain tax advantages in the years in question, primarily a tax credit, for qualifying facilities commonly known as “section 38 property.”

The underlying facts are generally undisputed — many of them stipulated — although how tax code definitions should be applied to those facts…