Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a) Petition. All
proceedings in the Tribunal must be commenced by the filing of a petition.
1) Form of Petition. The petition shall
contain or identify:
A) the name, address,
and telephone number of the petitioner;
B) the name, address, telephone number and
email address of the petitioner's representatives, if any;
C) the taxpayer's identification
number;
D) a copy of the Statutory
Notice at issue;
E) the years or
periods involved;
F) separately
numbered paragraphs stating, in clear and concise terms a summary of the errors
of fact or law that the petitioner alleges have been made by the Department
(e.g., in issuing the Statutory Notice), together with a statement of the facts
or law upon which the petitioner relies to establish the errors;
G) the relief sought by the
petitioner;
H) the signature of the
petitioner or the petitioner's representative, if any; and
I) a check or money order in the amount of
$500 made payable to Illinois Independent Tax Tribunal or application for
waiver of the fee.
2)
Filing and Service of Petition.
A) The
petition and two copies thereof shall be filed with the Tribunal within the
time limitations prescribed by the applicable statutory Sections. Petitions may
be filed in person at the offices of the Tribunal in Springfield or in Chicago,
by certified or registered mail, by messenger, or by private parcel delivery
service. The Tribunal may permit electronic filing of petitions and other
pleadings. The petitioner shall also serve a copy of the petition upon the
Department simultaneously.
B) When
the clerk of the Tribunal determines that the petition is in proper form, the
clerk shall send to the petitioner a dated acknowledgment of receipt of the
petition and immediately forward a copy of the acknowledgment to the Department
for preparation of the answer. The time within which the Department must answer
the petition shall start to run from the date of its receipt of the Tribunal's
notification that the taxpayer has filed a petition in the proper
form.
3) Protests
Improperly Filed with the Office of Administrative Hearings. In the event a
taxpayer files a protest within the allowable timeframe for that protest with
the Office of Administrative Hearings that is dismissed due to lack of
jurisdiction because it should have been filed with the Tribunal, a petition
will be considered to be timely filed if the taxpayer files a petition with the
Tribunal within 60 days after notice of the dismissal.
4) Corrected Petitions.
A) When the petition filed by a petitioner is
not in the form required by this Section, the clerk shall promptly return it to
the petitioner together with a statement indicating each requirement with which
the petition does not comply, and extend to the petitioner an additional 30
days within which to file a corrected petition with the Tribunal. When the
clerk determines that the corrected petition is in proper form, the clerk shall
then acknowledge receipt of the corrected petition and forward the
acknowledgment and the corrected petition to the Department pursuant to
subsection (a)(2).
For purposes of the time limitations for filing and service
of a petition, a corrected petition is deemed to have been filed and served at
the time the original petition was filed and served. However, the time within
which the Department must answer the corrected petition shall start to run from
the date of its receipt of the Tribunal's notification that the taxpayer has
filed a corrected petition in the proper form.
B) When the petitioner fails to file a
corrected petition within the time prescribed in subsection (a)(4)(A), the
clerk shall notify the Chief Administrative Law Judge, who may take such action
as is deemed appropriate.
5) Discretionary Late Hearings. If a
Statutory Notice becomes final without a timely petition being filed as
provided in subsection (a)(2), the taxpayer may request that the Department
grant a discretionary late hearing as provided in Section 908(b)(2) of the
Illinois Income Tax Act [35
ILCS 5/908(b)(2)] or Section 4 of
the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act [35 ILCS
120/4] . Such application shall be made to the Chief
Administrative Law Judge of the Department's Office of Administrative Hearings,
and it shall specify each Statutory Notice at issue and the reasons why a
timely petition was not filed, and any other information required by 86 Ill.
Adm. Code
200.175. If such
request is granted by the Department, the taxpayer shall file a petition with
the Tribunal within 60 days and shall attach a copy of the letter granting a
discretionary late hearing.
6)
Waiver of $500 Filing Fee. In the event of financial hardship, a taxpayer may
file an application for waiver of the $500 filing fee. A form for the
application will be prescribed by the Tribunal. The application shall be
submitted with the petition.
b) Answer.
1) Filing and Service of Answer. The
Department shall file an answer and two copies with the Tribunal and serve a
copy thereof on the petitioner, if appearing pro se, or the petitioner's
representatives, within 30 days after receipt of the Tribunal's notification
that the taxpayer has filed a petition in the proper form.
2) Form of Answer. The answer as filed shall
contain numbered paragraphs corresponding to the petition and shall contain:
A) a specific admission or denial of each
material allegation of fact contained in the petition;
B) affirmative defenses, if any;
and
C) the relief sought by the
Department.
3)
Allegations Deemed Admitted. Material allegations of fact set forth in the
petition that are not expressly admitted or denied in the answer shall be
deemed to be admitted, unless the Department states in its Answer that it has
no knowledge of the allegations sufficient to form a belief, and attaches an
affidavit of the truth of the statement of want of knowledge.
4) Failure of Department to Answer. When the
Department fails to answer within the prescribed time, the petitioner may make
a motion, on notice to the Department, for a determination of default. The
administrative law judge designated by the Chief Administrative Law Judge to
review the motion shall either grant the motion and issue a default
determination, or grant such other relief as is warranted.
c) Amended Pleadings. Either party may amend
a pleading without leave at any time before the period for responding to it
expires. After such time, a pleading may be amended only with the written
consent of the adverse party or with the permission of the Tribunal. The
Tribunal shall freely grant consent to amend upon such terms as may be just.
Except as otherwise ordered by the Tribunal, there shall be an answer to an
amended pleading if an answer is required to the pleading being amended. Filing
of the answer or, if the answer has already been filed, the amended answer
shall be made no later than 30 days after the filing of the amended petition.
The taxpayer may not amend a petition after expiration of the time for filing a
petition, if the amendment would have the effect of conferring jurisdiction on
the Tribunal over a matter that would otherwise not come within its
jurisdiction. An amendment of a pleading shall relate back to the time of
filing of the original pleading only as prescribed by Section 2-616 of the Code
of Civil Procedure.
