Opinion
5006-19
03-31-2023
TERRY W. MORRIS, JANET HAWKEN, NEXT FRIEND, AND GLORIA J. MORRIS, JANET HAWKEN, NEXT FRIEND, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
ORDER
David Gustafson Judge
Petitioners have filed, through their next friend, Janet Hawken, a motion (Doc. 52) under Tax Court Rule 260 to enforce our determination--in the stipulated decision entered February 4, 2022--of overpayments of income tax for the years 2015, 2016, and 2017. We will order the Commissioner to file a response.
On February 4, 2022--well over a year ago--we entered stipulated decisions in this case and in a consolidated case, Morris Tech Inc. v. Commissioner, No. 5007-19. In both cases the decisions included determinations of overpayments of tax. In April 2022 Ms. Hawken inquired of the Commissioner's counsel about the status of the overpayments. Counsel sent a reply email which included: "As an attorney, I have no involvement with your case once the case is resolved in Court. Other than the fact that your case has been closed by my office, I know nothing about the status of your refund."
Ms. Hawken eventually asked the Court to schedule a telephone conference with the parties, which we conducted on December 8, 2022. We pointed out to the Commissioner's counsel that, notwithstanding that the case had been closed by her office, she would in fact become responsible for further work on the case if petitioners filed a motion under Rule 260 and 26 U.S.C. § 6512(b)(2) to order the refunds; and we encouraged her, in light of this looming remedy, to become involved in assisting petitioners in getting their refunds. Counsel stated that, within 30 days, she would contact petitioners to assure them that these cases were properly in the queue for the processing of the refund checks. Evidently the refund in the consolidated case, No. 5007-19, was delivered to petitioners in January 2023. We assume that counsel's work contributed to that outcome, and we appreciate that work.
However, the latest communication attached to the motion was made more than two months ago on January 23, 2023; and petitioners allege that they still have received no refund of the overpayments determined in this case, No. 5006-19, for 2015, 2016, and 2017. We hope and expect to be able to rule on their motion without the necessity of a hearing, so we will first order the Commissioner to file a written response. (If it becomes necessary to hold a hearing in order to resolve the motion, then we would expect to hold it in Washington, D.C., and to hear testimony from the relevant IRS personnel.) It is therefore
ORDERED that, no later than May 1, 2023, the Commissioner shall file a response to the motion. Ideally, that response will state that the refunds have been delivered. If so, then the response need say little more. If not, then that response shall include a detailed description of the communications and actions not only by counsel, but also by IRS personnel responsible for processing the overpayments, which personnel shall be identified in the response. It is further
ORDERED that, no later than May 26, 2023, petitioners shall file a reply to the Commissioner's response. If the refunds have been delivered, then the reply should so state.