Okerson v. Commissioner
United States Tax Court
123 T.C. 14 (2004)
Relevant factsFree
Okerson's (plaintiff's) divorce decree required him to make payments to his ex-wife, but specified that if she died, the payments would continue and go toward their children's education instead; his ex-wife remained alive throughout the relevant tax years, and Okerson claimed an alimony deduction for the payments, which the Commissioner (defendant) disallowed.
IssueFree
Whether a taxpayer's payments to a spouse are taxable as alimony if the taxpayer's obligation to make the payments would continue after the recipient spouse's death.