Taxation & Estate Planning

Ex-quarterback's Wife Sues IRS for Wrongful Sale of Home

By Darrin Mish

The ex-wife of Kenny Stabler, former quarterback for University of Alabama, Rose Burch Stabler is suing the IRS alleging they wrongfully sold a home her former husband had transferred to her before the sale. The house in question is on Ono Island near
Orange Beach.

In August 2006, the federal government sued Kenny Stabler for unpaid personal and business taxes. According to Rose Stabler?s lawsuit, the government?s suit was only filed two years after Kenny Stabler had agreed to transfer all ownership of the house to her as part of their divorce agreement. Baldwin County circuit judge Charles Partin issued the final divorce order in August last year.

Rose Stabler?s court papers showed that the Stablers have maintained separate finances and tax returns. The ex-Mrs. Stabler also fought the forfeiture of her home and had personally spent $160,000 in repairs and improvements to the home after Hurricane Ivan
struck in 2004. Regardless of that, a federal court judge ordered that the house be sold to help pay for Kenny Stabler?s tax debts. the proceeds of the sale was to have been divided equally between the Kenny and Rose, with his share going towards settling his tax liabilities.

The house was sold by the government for $680,000 and Rose Stabler received $222,426.24 as her share of the sale. Her lawsuit claims that as a result of this sale, she lost between $457,574 and $1,077,57 in equity in her home. In addition, Rose Stabler also incurred $8,000 in moving costs on top of the expenses in fighting the case in court.

Originally, Rose Stabler reluctantly signed an agreement to sell the house but was taken aback when she reviewed papers indicating the house would be sold at a foreclosure auction. At that, she tried to withdraw her consent but was turned down by a Mobile court judge. The judge also declined to give Rose Staber the chance to sell the house on her own through a marketing company.

Rose Stabler insists that when Kenny filed for divorce in 2002, the joint ownership of the house changed was ?undeterminable?. Subsequently, the IRS issued tax liens in July 2002, February 2003, August 2003 and January 2004 but they all came after the
divorce filing.

Rose Stabler said she was fighting this case for her two adult children. ?I don?t want them to remember their childhood home had been foreclosed on,? she said.

Ex-quarterback's Wife Sues IRS for Wrongful Sale of Home is a post from: IRS Tax Problem Solver Blog - IRS Help

Full post as published by IRS Problem Solver Blog on October 13, 2010 (boomark / email).