Opinion
6590-21
08-16-2023
BELFORD OAKS PROPERTY, LLC, BELFORD OAKS MANAGER, LLC, TAX MATTERS PARTNER, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Mark V. Holmes, Judge.
This case was on the Court's October 24, 2022 trial calendar for Atlanta, Georgia. It is one of many syndicated conservation-easement cases before the Court, and we spoke with the parties on July 19, 2022 to discuss how the case can best be developed. We learned that this case is closely related with another one on the calendar, Ogeechee Plantation v. Commissioner - in both the subject property was divided from the same, larger parcel. We also learned that two more cases, also involving property divided from that same large parcel, are in Exam and may well be on their way to the Court. They all present similar questions of valuation and possibly similar legal questions. Both parties stressed that they are only in the earliest stages of pretrial development. Both also agreed that the first steps are to complete responses to petitioners' FOIA requests and work together in informal discovery. They recently reported that respondent terminated this FOIA request without telling petitioners. Nevertheless it continues to makes sense to keep the case on a somewhat longer status-report track and it is
ORDERED that on or before October 16, 2023 the parties shall file a status report to describe their progress in informal discovery, particularly respondent's progress in gathering his materials requested by petitioner under FOIA.