Tens of millions of Americans may be eligible for refunds on tax penalty and interest charges issued during the COVID-19 pandemic. Whether taxpayers ultimately receive that relief will hinge on the outcome of ongoing legal battles. Judges have determined in recent rulings, most notably in the case of Kwong v. United States , that tax filing and payment deadlines should have been automatically postponed from Jan. 20, 2020, through July 10, 2023––the duration of the COVID-19 disaster declaration—plus an additional 60 days. “By the court’s logic, the IRS should not have assessed penalties for late filing or payment during that 3.5-year period, nor charged interest on those amounts,” National Taxpayer Advocate Erin M. Collins explained in recent blog posts . The decision is anticipated to face pushback from the Department of Justice, Collins noted, and it may be years before the court process is resolved.…