Secretary of Revenue Summons Enforcement Proceedings Not Subject To Civil Procedure Rules

On Friday, the NC Supreme Court in In re Summons of Ernst & Young held that summons enforcement proceedings brought by the Secretary of Revenue to get documents related to a tax investigation are not subject to the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure. Instead, such proceedings are governed by a special, if slender, procedure contained in General Statute § 105-258(a), requiring only an application to Wake County Superior Court and a satisfactory showing resulting in an order to comply. This procedure, as opposed to a full-blown civil action, among other things allows for expedited investigations -- in this case, of Ernst & Young's creation of "tax shelters" for Wal-Mart.