No. 25-7700October Term 2025Before Arguments
Anastasios M. Smalis, Petitioner v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
from the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Case status
- Current stage
- Before Arguments
- Latest event
- Accepted by the Court
- Decision timing
- No window until argument is scheduled.
- What it's about
from the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Question presented
1. Whether the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment permits the Internal Revenue Service to assess and collect a tax deficiency when the government cannot establish that the statutorily required Notice of Deficiency was properly mailed to the taxpayer, thereby depriving the taxpayer of the pre-payment judicial review guaranteed by 26 U.S.C. §§ 6212 and 6213. 2. Whether the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment is violated when the Internal Revenue Service proceeds in a manner that deprives a taxpayer of meaningful pre-deprivation judicial review while simultaneously acknowledging that no statutory Notice of Deficiency—the jurisdictional predicate for Tax Court review—was ever issued. 3. Whether the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment permits the Internal Revenue Service to assess and collect taxes and deprive a taxpayer of property where the government admits that no statutory Notice of Deficiency was ever issued, yet the Tax Court and court of appeals dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction.
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit / Accepted by the Court
- Area
Business and Regulation
Timing
Expected by late June 2026, if argued this term
The Court granted review but has not yet scheduled oral argument. Once argued, the median case reaches a decision in 94 days. Nearly all cases are decided by the end of the term in which they are argued.
Briefing
What it's about
A taxpayer is asking the Supreme Court to review whether the IRS may assess and collect a tax deficiency when it cannot show the required Notice of Deficiency was properly mailed. He says that without that notice, he lost the chance to challenge the bill in Tax Court before paying.
Argument
This is still at the petition stage, and no oral argument is scheduled yet. The petition argues the IRS proceeded even though no statutory Notice of Deficiency was ever issued or properly shown to have been mailed.
Impact
The notice requirement is what usually opens the door to prepayment Tax Court review. If that step can be skipped or left unproven, taxpayers with a disputed IRS bill may have to pay first or face collection before getting a real court hearing.
What is the core dispute in Smalis v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue?
The petition says the IRS assessed and collected a tax deficiency without proving it properly mailed the required Notice of Deficiency. It asks whether that denied the taxpayer a chance to go to Tax Court before paying.
Who could be affected if the Court takes this tax notice case?
Taxpayers who say they never got the required notice could lose prepayment review and face collection first. That can matter for people who cannot afford to pay the disputed amount before fighting it.
What happens next in Anastasios M. Smalis v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue?
The Court has not scheduled oral argument. Watch for a scheduling move or an order on whether the justices will hear it. No decision window is available yet.
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Jul 25, 2026
- Method
- Methodology