Opinion
12443-21
09-16-2024
LOUIS F. LENTINE & KELLI M. LENTINE, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
Mark V. Holmes Judge
This case is on the Court's October 28, 2024 trial calendar for Atlanta, Georgia. On June 20, 2024 respondent moved for partial summary judgment. As that was being briefed, he moved for partial summary judgment on a separate issue. And then petitioner moved for a continuance. This was the fourth motion for a continuance in a case that has now been in front of four different judges.
Some pretrial management seemed in order.
We spoke with the parties on September 11, 2024 to figure out how to bring the case to trial or settlement. There is a substantial deficiency at stake dating back to tax years 2013 - 2016. The parties do agree that informal discovery has worked and they should be able to work productively on stipulations and agree on the admisssion of most of the evidence. But the two big issues - whether a boat was placed in service in petitioner's business, and a somewhat arcane question of inventory accounting - remain unsettled. We all agreed that a reasonable way forward is to get the two motions for partial summary judgment fully briefed, get them decided, and then contact the parties again to discuss whether the case is headed to settlement or trial, and whether any trial would require a special session.
It is therefore
ORDERED that petitioners' September 5, 2024 motion for continuance is granted in that this case is stricken from the Court's October 28, 2024 trial calendar for Atlanta, Georgia. It is also
ORDERED that the undersigned retains jurisdiction of this case. It is also
ORDERED that respondent's September 6, 2024 Motion for Leave to File Reply to Response to Motion for Partial Summary Judgment is granted, and the Reply to Response to Motion for Partial Summary Judgment shall be filed. It is also
ORDERED petitioner shall file a response to respondent's second motion for partial summary judgment, filed on August 29, 2024, on or before November 4, 2024. It is also
ORDERED that respondent may file a reply to petitioner's response to his second motion for partial summary judgment on or before December 16, 2024.