1099-S

[davesmusic]

My former business partners and I were the target of two eminent domain lawsuits by the State of Texas in 1983. The proceedings wound through the court system until last year (2019) when the one of the cases was settled in our favor. There was a net gain on one of the suits over the original proposed settlement in our favor by $11,188 (approximate). I received a payment from the attorneys trust fund in the amount of $11,188. In February 2020 however, both the State of Texas and the attorney's office sent me 1099-S forms in the full amount of approximately $55,500 (approximate). In 1983 (approximate) the original settlement of $43,000 was deposited to our corporate account. In the intervening years, the corporation was dissolved and the proceeds of corporation became the property of one of the partners after he bought our shares. He spent the escrowed money in the intervening years. When the lawsuit finally resolved in 2019, the net proceeds of the suit were signed over to the law office representing the three of us in the suit; the original suit named us as individuals rather than the corporation. I was awarded the net gain from the suit by consent of the other two partners. How do I correct the amount the Feds believe I received based on the 1099-S filed in 2019? There are no corporate or bank records available to me for the time period. 

Thank you.

DD

[Anonymous_ · Accepted solution]

If you received the entire sum and only a certain share belonged to you, then you need to report the shares that you received on behalf of others as nominee on your income tax return.

Essentially, your return would show a reduction (from the total) for the other shares. TurboTax does not support nominee distributions for certain tax reporting statements, including a 1099-S. However, it can be done in Forms Mode but only the desktop (installed) versions of TurboTax support Forms Mode.