Opinion
17036-22
07-05-2024
RICHARD W. CARPENTER & NANCY W. CARPENTER, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Ronald L. Buch Judge.
On July 5, 2024, the Commissioner filed a Motion to Dismiss and to Strike Partnership-Related Items. The motion recites that petitioners do not object. For the reasons set forth below, we will order the Commissioner to supplement his motion.
In his motion, the Commissioner recites that some of the adjustments in his notice of deficiency arise from petitioners' interest in River Oaks Pike, LLC, which the Commissioner alleges is a partnership subject to the BBA. In his notice of deficiency, however, the Commissioner recites that River Oaks Pike, LLC is a disregarded entity owned 100% by Mr. Carpenter. That same notice of deficiency further recites that one or more of the deductions at issue originated in Flint River Oaks, LLC, in which River Oaks Pike owned a 1% interest.
The Tax Court is a court of limited jurisdiction and can exercise its jurisdiction only to the extent provided by Congress. I.R.C. § 7442; Judge v. Commissioner, 88 T.C. 1175, 1180-81 (1987). And the Tax Court has jurisdiction to determine its jurisdiction. Bongam v. Commissioner, 146 T.C. 52, 54 (2016). Regardless of the parties' views as to our jurisdiction, it is the Court, not the parties, that must determine whether we have jurisdiction. Charlotte's Off. Boutique, Inc. v. Commissioner, 121 T.C. 89, 102 (2003) ("Where, as here, the parties agree that we lack jurisdiction, that agreement is not dispositive . . . ."), aff'd, 425 F.3d 1203 (9th Cir. 2005).
To clarify the Commissioner's bases for asserting that we lack jurisdiction over items contained in his notice of deficiency and placed at issue in the petition, it is
ORDERED that, by July 26, 2024, the Commissioner shall supplement his Motion to Dismiss and to Strike Partnership-Related Items clarifying the items over which the Court lacks jurisdiction, from what entities those items originate, and which of those entities are partnerships, including documentation supporting his position.