An Unusual Supreme Court Split in Bittner v. United States
Today the Supreme Court decided Bittner v. United States. Splitting 5-4, the Court concluded that the Bank Secrecy Act’s $10,000 maximum penalty for the nonwillful failure to file a compliant report accrues on a per-report, not a per-account, basis. Justice Gorsuch wrote for the Court, joined by the Chief Justice and Justices Alito, and Kavanaugh in part, and Justice Jackson in full. Justice Barrett dissented, joined by Justices Thomas, Sotomayor and Kagan.
To say this is an unusual split among the justices is an understatement. The Court did not divide along clear ideological or methodological lines. There are conservative and liberal justices on both sides of the decision.
Justice Gorsuch’s opinion for the Court begins as follows:
The Bank Secrecy Act and its implementing regulations require certain individuals to file annual reports with the federal government about their foreign bank accounts. The statute imposes a maximum $10,000 penalty for nonwillful violations of the law. But recently a question has arisen. Does someone who fails to file a timely or accurate annual report commit a single violation subject to a single $10,000 penalty? Or does that person commit separate violations and incur separate $10,000 penalties for each account not properly recorded withi
Article from Reason.com
