A: Brad’s answer: Some contracts can be verbal in nature, and the receipt of payment can be construed as acceptance of the verbal offer. In theory, the facts you've presented provide enough evidence to create an enforceable verbal contract.

However, there is a legal concept known as the statute of frauds. This concept indicates that some transactions must be memorialized in writing in order to be enforceable. Under Alabama law, "a contract for the sale of goods for the price of five hundred dollars ($500) or more is not enforceable by way of action or defense unless there is a record sufficient to indicate that a contract for sale has been made between the parties and signed by the party against whom enforcement is sought." Ala. Code Section 7-2-201(1). "Goods" is defined as "all things . . . which are movable at the time of identification to the contract for sale." Ala. Code Section 7-2-105(1). Assuming that your mobile home is not affixed to the land and that you were not selling both the lot and the home together, your mobile home would be classified as a "good" for purposes of the statute of frauds (and even if you were selling both the lot and the mobile home, that would then make this a real estate transaction, which is also subject to the writing requirement of the statute of frauds).

With that being said, if you had any written communication with the potential buyer (including e-mail or text), this could potentially be used by the potential buyer to show that the statute of frauds was satisfied. It would depend on the specifics of the e-mail or text, such as whether your communications can be viewed as a "signed" document. But if there was nothing in "writing" whatsoever, then this verbal contract can't be enforced due to the statute of frauds.

Lastly, even if there is a writing or otherwise the contract is deemed to be enforceable for some reason, it sounds as if you intended to create either an option to buy or a contingent contract. Essentially, the potential buyer provided you a deposit to purchase a good contingent upon a specific event occurring or not occurring by a defined date (one month from the deposit). That event occurred within a month, and pursuant to your agreement, the contract would not be executed.

Ultimately, the potential buyer can sue for eviction and possessory rights, but if it comes to that, you likely have defenses that can be raised. Provide your stance to him in writing now and make the effort to return the money. If this turns into a legal action, you'll need to decide how and if you defend it, but your best defenses would likely be A) statute of frauds and B) the verbal contract was an option to buy/contingent contract that never came to fruition.

A: Brad’s answer: Under Alabama law, if an Alabama resident earns income in another state, that income is still subject to Alabama income tax. Even if your husband was physically absent from the state of Alabama for all or most of the year, he is still identified as a resident of Alabama unless he takes specific steps to abandon his domicile in Alabama and establish domicile in another state. While changing your domicile is usually a matter of intent, this intent is evidenced by taking various actions, such as obtaining a driver's license in the new state, registering to vote in the new state, acquiring a residence in the new state, etc.

If your husband abandoned his Alabama domicile and took steps to establish domicile in Florida, then you should challenge the assessment. This should be done during the audit, but if the audit has been closed, then you should receive appeal rights shortly thereafter.

If your husband did not abandon his domicile in Alabama and was merely working in Florida with an intent to remain a resident of Alabama, then the Florida income is subject to Alabama tax. Assuming this is the case, it is unfortunate that the tax return preparer failed to properly report the income. Had it been reported on the original return, you would have owed the tax that the Alabama Department of Revenue is now assessing, but you would have avoided some interest and penalties by being afforded the opportunity to address the balance shortly after filing, rather than years later.

If you agree that your husband was an Alabama resident and is subject to Alabama income tax, then you need to focus on paying the balance owed. Some preparers have insurance policies or contractual guarantees about the accuracy of their work. You can speak with the tax return preparer about their mistake and whether they would consider assisting with paying the interest and penalties that have accrued due to their mistake. In the meantime, you want to address the balance owed as quickly as possible in order to prevent the unnecessary accrual of more interest and penalties.

You should receive a final audit report, and you should be given time to submit additional information to the examiner before the audit is closed. If you are not challenging the assessment, then during that period of time, you can make voluntary payments toward the balances owed to reduce them as much as possible. Once the audit is closed, you will receive a Notice of Preliminary Assessment, followed by a Notice of Final Assessment. Each notice affords you 30 days to appeal the assessment if you have information that would change the tax owed. Assuming you are not challenging the assessment, you can continue to use these periods of time to pay the balances down as much as you can.

After the Notice of Final Assessment has been issued and 30 days have passed, the Department will start the process of sending the assessment to the Collection Services Division. You usually can not set up a formal installment agreement until the assessment has been received by the Collection Services Division. If you receive a letter that is titled "Final Notice Before Seizure" or "Warning Seizure," this is indicative of the balance being in collections. It is at this point in time that you should be allowed to set up a formal installment agreement.

If you have not done so already, you should set up an account on the My Alabama Taxes website (https://myalabamataxes.alabama.gov/). You can make payments online, as well as request an installment agreement via the website.

A: Brad’s answer: I am assuming that the lien to which you are referring was filed by either the IRS or Alabama Department of Revenue for past due income taxes. If so, then these liens are typically valid for a period of up to 10 years, as this is the statutory amount of time that the IRS and state can collect past due income taxes.

With that being said, if this transfer occurred 11 years ago, then it is likely that the taxes that were owed at that time have been written off as uncollectible, as the collection statute expiration date has probably passed. If you check with the county probate court to see if a lien release has been filed, that would verify that the lien is no longer enforceable. Even if a lien release has not been filed, the original lien filing may contain an expiration date (usually worded as "last date for refiling"). If the lien was not refiled by that date, then it most likely has expired.

It is possible for the IRS or state to reduce the assessment of taxes owed to a judgment by filing a complaint. If the court enters a judgment, then the judgment can be enforced for up to another 20 years. In that instance, I would assume that the IRS or state would have filed another lien in order to publicly record its interest created by this judgment, but its entirely possible that the judgment exists and that no lien was filed.

Ultimately, I think the best way to get a definitive answer would be to have your brother contact the IRS or state and inquire about the balance owed. If the balance still exists, then the lien would still attach to this property despite the fact that it was transferred to you. Due to the amount of time that has passed, I would assume that the balance has been written off as statutorily uncollectible, but there are too many factors to consider that could make that assumption incorrect.