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Discussion
A. Summary Judgment. Summary judgment may be granted if
it is demonstrated that no genuine issue exists as to any
material fact and that a decision may be entered as a matter of
law. See Rule 121(b); Sundstrand Corp. v. Commissioner, 98 T.C.
518, 520 (1992), affd. 17 F.3d 965 (7th Cir. 1994). The moving
party bears the burden of proving that there is no genuine issue
of material fact, and factual inferences will be read in a manner
most favorable to the party opposing summary judgment. In that
regard and solely for purposes of deciding the issue here, we
accept petitioner’s interpretation that the lease terminated upon
acquisition of the vessel. The parties’ contentions with respect
to section 167(c)(2) are delineated in a way that would obviate
the need to decide whether any of the leases continued to exist
after the acquisition of the vessel. That is so because
petitioner contends that the statute applies to property only if
acquired subject to a lease that continues in the future, and
respondent contends that the statute would apply here because the
property acquired was subject to a lease when acquired.
Construing the transactional facts here most favorably to the
defending party, we are to decide whether a lessee of an asset
who purchases that asset for the purpose of terminating the lease
is subject to section 167(c)(2). Accordingly, we may render
judgment on the issue as a matter of law. See Rule 121(b). The
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