The US Court of Appeal had reversed a decision from the Tax Court that 26 C.F.R. § 1.482-7A(d)(2), under which related entities must share the cost of employee stock compensation in order for their cost-sharing arrangements to be classified as qualified cost-sharing arrangements and thus avoid an IRS adjustment, was invalid under the Administrative Procedure Act.

The Court of Appeal ruled that the Commissioner of Internal Revenue had not gone beyond the authority delegated under 26 U.S.C. § 482, and that the Commissioner’s rule-making authority complied with the Administrative Procedure Act.

The Opinion was shortly after (August 7, 2018) withdrawn by the Court of Appeal.

A final Decision was issued June 7, 2019, reaching the conclusion that 26 C.F.R. § 1.482-7A(d)(2), under which related entities must share the cost of employee stock compensation in order for their cost-sharing arrangements to be classified as qualified cost-sharing arrangements and thus avoid an IRS adjustment, was not (arbitrary and capricious) invalid under the Administrative Procedure Act..

The Court held that the Treasury reasonably interpreted § 482 as an authorization to require internal allocation methods in the QCSA context, provided that the costs and income allocated are proportionate to the economic activity of the related parties, and concluded that the regulations are a reasonable method for achieving the results required by the statute.