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berate us.” Petitioners submitted only the minutes as evidence.3
Without the trust documents and/or other evidence, we are
not persuaded that Mr. Wilde has the required capacity to file a
petition on behalf of petitioners in this Court. Petitioners
have failed to establish that the minutes submitted are what they
purport to be (i.e., the resignation of Stein & Stein as trustee
and the appointment of Mr. Wilde as successor trustee). We have
no way to determine whether: (1) Stein & Stein was the original
trustee or was, at any time, a trustee; (2) Stein & Stein had the
legal authority to name Mr. Wilde the successor trustee; and (3)
the requirements of the trust for appointing a successor trustee
were followed in appointing Mr. Wilde.
In view of the evidentiary shortcomings in the record, we
cannot conclude that Mr. Wilde has the requisite capacity to file
a petition on behalf of petitioners.4 We therefore shall grant
3 At the hearing, petitioners attempted to introduce two
incomplete documents regarding the trust which were not accepted
into evidence.
4 We note that Mr. Wilde is no stranger to this Court.
Recently, he filed petitions in Scenic Wonders Gallery, LLC v.
Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2000-64, and Photo Art Mktg. Trust v.
Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2000-65. In those cases, we granted the
Commissioner’s motions to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction on the
ground that Mr. Wilde lacked the requisite capacity to file
petitions on behalf of the taxpayers.
Additionally, Jimmy C. Chisum, who is listed as cotrustee in
the minutes submitted by petitioners in the instant case, has
filed petitions in at least three similar cases where motions to
dismiss for lack of jurisdiction were granted on similar grounds.
See Banana Moon Trust v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2000-73
(continued...)
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