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the various groups of petitioners during these proceedings have
not been consistent in all respects and in some respects the
positions of counsel--primarily Messrs. Izen and Sticht--have
become adversarial.6
Following pretrial conferences on the record in Los Angeles
on July 17, 1995, and January 16, 1996, the evidentiary hearing
was held at special trial sessions of the Court conducted in Los
Angeles on May 13 to 30 and June 10 to 26, 1996, and August 18,
1997.
In the interest of chronology and as an aid to understanding
this opinion, the procedural history of the evidentiary hearing
comes after the Court's detailed findings of fact and before the
ultimate findings of fact.
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. Kersting Tax Shelter Programs and Related Matters
A. The Pike Case
Mr. Kersting began promoting tax shelter programs in Hawaii
in the early 1970's. Mr. Kersting's early tax shelter programs
included an "Auto-Leasing Plan" and an "Acceptance Corporation
Plan." Those plans generally required participants to purchase
5(...continued)
need to participate in the evidentiary hearing. In Gridley v.
Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1997-210, the Court rejected the
argument, raised in the Booths' Motion for Summary Judgment,
that Kersting petitioners who signed stipulations to be bound
to Dixon II were entitled to entry of decisions in their cases
consistent with the decision entered by the Court in the Thompson
case at docket No. 19321-83.
6 See infra pp. 168-169, 171-172, and 187-188.
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