Opinion
5242-10
04-22-2024
DALE A. AFFONSO & JANE G. AFFONSO, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Mark V. Holmes Judge
This case was assigned to this division of the Court years ago because it was related to a large cluster of cases filed by David Greenberg and William Goddard. Back in July 2018 the Court spoke with the parties and all agreed that it would be most efficient to wait till those cases became final and unappealable. It took years, but the Supreme Court denied rehearing of its denial of certiorari in the last of those appeals last December. That did not bring this case to a close. We then put the case on a pretrial-order track, but there are now so many special sessions calendared for trial that no more special sessions can be calendared this year.
We issued a pretrial order and an order scheduling briefing on respondent's summary-judgment motion. Then, on April 9, petitioners moved without objection to vacate those orders and try their hand at settling with IRS Appeals. After 14 years of litigation one might view this as dilatory, but it turns out respondent had refused them that chance all along.
With some reluctance, it is
ORDERED that the Court's scheduling orders of September 19, 2023 and March 22, 2024 are vacated. It is also
ORDERED that on or before July 19, 2024 the parties file a status report describing their progress at IRS Appeals.