D'Agostini Land Company LLC v. Department of Treasury

*547 This Court is asked again to determine the character of a rather protean actor under Michigan tax law, the "unitary business group." The group has no independent existence outside of tax law, unlike, for example, a partnership or corporation. It is a recent *548 creation of tax law, and its definition has changed markedly since inception.

In this appeal, petitioner D'Agostini Land Company, LLC, as the representative member of a unitary business group, claims that it should be treated as a unified taxpayer for purposes of the Michigan Business Tax Act's small business alternative credit. Because…