Taxation: Chinese Theatres Has Been Certified For Publication.

Revenue and Taxation Code § 1611.6 Fees Award Of $180,000 To Chinese Theatres Was Reversed On Appeal As A Matter Of Law

            In a December 9, 2020 post, we discussed Chinese Theatres, LLC v. County of Los Angeles, Case No. B302708 (2d Dist., Div. 3) which was unpublished at that time.

            In Chinese Theatres, which involved the historical Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, the 2/3 DCA reversed a Revenue and Taxation Code § 1611.6 fees award of $180,000 to Chinese Theatres.  The reversal was dictated by the narrow circumstances under which § 1611.6 fee entitlement arises in tax refund actions: (1) a county board fails to make requested findings, or (2) the lower court concludes the Board’s findings are so deficient that it remands the matter with directions for the Board to make findings that fairly disclose its determination on the point at issue.  Neither of the circumstances existed – with the Board making a finding, but simply failing to explain how it reached its finding, and with the superior court’s remand for a recalculation based on its finding – not a remand to correct deficient findings.

          We can now report that Chinese Theatres was certified for publication on January 4, 2021.