Opinion
11774-22
08-23-2022
SANDY RUSSELL, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Kathleen Kerrigan, Chief Judge.
By Order served July 22, 2022, the Court directed petitioner to file an objection, if any, to respondent's Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction, filed July 20, 2022. On August 16, 2022, the copy of the foregoing Order that was served on petitioner at the mailing address listed by petitioner in both the Petition, filed May 16, 2022, and the First Amended Petition, filed August 8, 2022, was returned to the Court by the United States Postal Service. A USPS label affixed to the envelope reads: "RETURN TO SENDER[.] REFUSED[.] UNABLE TO FORWARD[.]" No forwarding address is listed on the label.
Petitioner is informed that Rule 21(b)(4) of the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure requires that petitioner promptly notify the Court of any change in petitioner's mailing address by filing a notice of change of address. A form for this purpose (Form 10) will be attached to this Order and is also available on the Court's website at www.ustaxcourt.gov/case_related_forms.html. Petitioner is further informed that, in the event petitioner fails to notify the Court of a change in petitioner's mailing address, the fact that petitioner does not receive notice of developments in this case may not excuse any failure by petitioner to take actions necessary to protect petitioner's interests.
Additionally, upon further review of the record in this case, the Court notes that neither the Petition nor the First Amended Petition appears to bear a proper signature or date of signature. Although petitioner has captioned both the Petition and First Amended Petition in the name of "Sandy Russell," above the line provided for the signature on both forms petitioner has printed only the name, "Jesus," and, above the line provided for the date of the signature, petitioner has printed only, "Old and New Testament."
Rule 23(a) of the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure requires that any paper filed with the Court bear the original signature of the party's counsel, or the party personally if the party is self-represented, as here. Rule 23(a) also requires that the date of the signature be placed on all papers filed with the Court.
Upon due consideration and for cause, it is
ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall attach to the copy of this Order served on petitioner a copy of Form 10, Notice of Change of Address. It is further
ORDERED that, together with this Order, the Clerk of the Court shall re-serve on petitioner a copy of the Court's Order served July 22, 2022. It is further
ORDERED that, in addition to regular service, the Clerk of the Court shall serve a copy of this Order (with the attachments noted herein) on petitioner at the mailing address listed on the Form 1040 appearing at page 25 of the First Amended Petition. It is further
ORDERED that the time within which petitioner shall file an objection, if any, to respondent's Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction is extended to September 21, 2022. It is further
ORDERED that, on or before September 21, 2022, petitioner shall file a notice of change of address advising the Court of petitioner's current mailing address and current telephone number. It is further
ORDERED that, on or before September 21, 2022, petitioner shall file with the Court in paper form (not electronic) a ratification of petition bearing an original signature (not a photocopy), preferably in blue ink, in which petitioner states, if such be the case, that petitioner has read the First Amended Petition filed with the Court on August 8, 2022, and ratifies and affirms the filing of said document. It is further
ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall attach to the copy of this Order served on petitioner a form that petitioner may use to ratify and affirm the filing of the First Amended Petition in this case.
Petitioner is hereby informed that failure to comply in full with this Order may result in the dismissal of this case or other appropriate action by the Court.
NOTICE OF CHANGE OF ADDRESS
RATIFICATION OF FIRST AMENDED PETITION
I, ___________, have read the First Amended Petition filed with the Court on August 8, 2022, and do hereby ratify and affirm the filing of said document by affixing my signature hereto.
See Rule 200(e), which requires each person admitted to practice before the Tax Court promptly to notify the Admissions Clerk of any change in office address for mailing purposes. Filing Form 10 in a pending case satisfies this requirement. If a practitioner has not entered an appearance in a pending case, the practitioner can satisfy the Rule 200(e) notification requirement by mailing Form 10 (omitting any caption and docket number) or other written communication to the Admissions Clerk, or by electronically updating the practitioner's registration information by clicking the "Update Info" hyperlink through "Practitioner Access" on the Court's Internet website at www.ustaxcourt.gov.