In Walsh v. Blaggards III Restaurant Corp., 131 A.D.3d 854, 17 N.Y.S.3d 11 [1st Dept., 2015], the First Department approved the use of tax estoppel as a basis for awarding summary judgment. The Court wrote: Defendant stated in its tax returns that the $50,000 paid by plaintiff was a loan and that the outstanding balance was $44,500; those statements are binding on defendant. Thus, contrary to defendant's argument otherwise, that amount is a loan, not an investment and summary judgment in plaintiff's favor on the single' cause of action in his complaint is warranted. (Walsh, 131 A.D.3d at 854.)