Mary Rosenberg and David Rosenberg, Co-Executors of the Estate of Dan Rosenberg, and Mary Rosenberg v. United States

The central issue in this case presents a factual question: whether commissions not actually drawn upon until the year after they were earned constitute constructively received income in the year in which they were earned. Although the doctrine of constructive receipt is to be sparingly applied, its application is proper if the commissions were available to the taxpayer in the year earned. 26 C.F.R. § 1.451-2 (1969). In the instant case, 1 availability turns on whether the taxpayer had a legal right to make withdrawals against his commissions in the year earned and on whether the taxpayer’s…