Howard M. Morgan and Glenice S. Morgan - Page 4




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            things, informed her that petitioners had until July 14, 1999, to                          
            petition this Court to redetermine respondent’s determination.                             
            The employee also provided Ms. Tahim with the telephone number of                          
            this Court’s petition section.                                                             
                  On July 14, 1999, 90 days after respondent mailed to                                 
            petitioners the notices of deficiency, petitioners filed a                                 
            lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and Does 1 through                            
            40 (collectively, the defendants) in the United States District                            
            Court, Central District of California, generally challenging                               
            respondent’s determination.  On September 29, 1999, the                                    
            defendants moved to dismiss the lawsuit without prejudice to                               
            petitioners’ paying the tax and filing a proper refund action,                             
            asserting primarily that the District Court lacked subject matter                          
            jurisdiction.  Following the District Court’s filing of                                    
            petitioners’ opposition to the defendant’s motion,5 the District                           
            Court, on October 25, 1999, filed a stipulation of the parties                             
            there stating that the court “may dismiss * * * [petitioners’]                             
            Complaint and action on the sole ground that the Court lacks                               
            subject matter jurisdiction, without prejudice to * * *                                    
            [petitioners] filing a subsequent suit in a court of competent                             



                  5 Petitioners agreed in their opposition that the District                           
            Court lacked jurisdiction, but they went to great lengths to                               
            maintain that the court should dismiss the case without rendering                          
            judgment on the merits of the case.  Petitioners’ opposition                               
            states that they do not want the court’s dismissal to be given                             
            res judicata effect in any further proceeding.                                             




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