Phillip Anschutz Owed More Than $94 Million In Taxes, According To Recent Federal Court Ruling

A federal appeals court ruled against Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz Tuesday, finding he and his subsidiary company together owed more than $94 million in taxes.

The Denver Business Journal explains the amount is comprised of $17.3 million from both Philip and his wife, Nancy, and $77 million from The Anschutz Co., a corporation owned entirely by Anschutz. Anschutz was made aware of the deficiencies in 2007, after which he paid the taxes and filed an appeal.

The tax dispute stems from stock transactions in 2000 and 2001, which Business Week says were built to portion taxes over a period of several years. Regulators maintain the transactions were outright sales, while Anschutz says they should be qualified as pending transactions and an essential business tool for raising capital.

According to court documents obtained by the LA Times, Liberty Media Corp. argues in a friend-of-the-court filing that the money was used as a loan. Money rooted in the transaction was used to save Sirius XM Radio Inc. from bankruptcy.

Altogether, Anschutz made near $374 million in the transaction. The Denver Post writes some of the proceeds were also used to purchase and merge Regal Cinemas with United Artists Theatre Co. and Edwards Theatre Co., forming the largest theater chain in the U.S.

"The IRS making its ruling retroactive caught us in the 2000 timeframe by surprise," said Jim Monaghan, Anschutz's spokesman, to the Associated Press. "The IRS took the position that this is just a tax maneuver. It's a bona fide business procedure in which we raise capital." No decision has been made yet whether to appeal the decision.