United States v. Lewis

Lewis (plaintiff) received a $22,000 bonus from his employer in 1944 and used the full amount unconditionally as his own, reporting it as income that year. In 1946, a state court determined the bonus had been miscalculated and Lewis was only entitled to $11,000, so Lewis returned the excess and sued in the Court of Claims for a refund of the taxes he had paid on that returned portion. The Court of Claims ruled the mistakenly received excess was never really income to Lewis and ordered a refund.