Opinion
20608-18 7097-19 7703-19
11-17-2022
EXCELSIOR AGGREGATES, LLC, BIG ESCAMBIA VENTURES, LLC, TAX MATTERS PARTNER, ET AL., Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Albert G. Lauber Judge
These consolidated cases are calendared for trial at the Court's special session in Atlanta, Georgia, beginning December 5, 2022. The trial will be conducted in person in Room 1136, Russell Federal Building and Courthouse, 75 Ted Turner Drive, S.W., Atlanta, Georgia, 30303. By Order served July 15, 2022, we granted the parties' Motion for Leave to Use Electronic Equipment.
On October 24, 2022, the Court convened a teleconference with the parties, during which they requested additional days of trial. We granted the parties' request and have reserved the Atlanta courtroom through December 16, 2022, for this trial. However, the undersigned has commitments in Washington, D.C., on Friday, December 16, and thus hopes to complete the trial on Thursday, December 15.
Also during the teleconference, counsel for petitioners stated that they have hired a contractor to set up the "electronic courtroom." Because a Tax Court trial will be taking place the prior week, the contractor may not have access to the courtroom until after that trial concludes. In that event, the contractor may set up and test the equipment on the first day of trial, commencing work as early as possible that morning. Trial will commence thereafter.
Upon due consideration, it is
ORDERED that the parties shall file, on or before November 28, 2022, a joint status report listing the names of all personnel who will enter the Courthouse for the purpose of setting up electronic equipment. The parties in their report shall also list the personnel they request be allowed to possess electronic devices such as cellular phones and laptop computers during the trial.
The GSA Building Manager of the Courthouse will have final approval concerning any equipment brought into the building or used in the courtroom. Any questions relating to the set-up of electronic equipment or admittance of persons to the courtroom should be directed through the Court by contacting Samuel Hamer, law clerk for the undersigned, at Samuel.Hamer@ustaxcourt.gov.