Opinion
13619-15
02-27-2023
LAKSHMANA KOKA & VIDHYALAK KOKA, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Mark V. Holmes Judge
This case and its companion were on the Court's May 23, 2016 trial calendar for San Diego, California. In November 2019, the parties filed a stipulation of settled issues that resolved all issues. We put it on a status-report track in the expectation that respondent would seek computations, share them with the Kokas, and together draft decision documents to bring the case to a close. We know that respondent's counsel sought computations, but something in the IRS bureaucracy broke down and for more than three years no computations were done. They still were not done when we last spoke with the parties on January 24, 2023.
This is an unusual and unsatisfactory state of affairs. Respondent's counsel is trying to work things out but still had not done so by the end of January. We appreciate that he has kept the Kokas informed of what he's doingt and he has kept his promise to elevate the urgency of the situations with the computations specialists. He asks for a bit more time, but the the Court remains highly likely to invite petitioners to try to submit their own computations soon -- even though they shouldn't have to bear that expense, and it recognizes this as a situation in which cost-shifting would very likely be reasonable. The case still needs to draw to a close, and it is
ORDERED that on or before March 15, 2023 respondent shall file a status report on his progress.