Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_15-cv-02411/USCOURTS-cand-3_15-cv-02411-10/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Les Fields/C.C.H.I. Insurance Services
Plaintiff
United States of America
Defendant

Document Text:

Joint Status Report

C-15-02411-WHA 1

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BRIAN J. STRETCH (CABN 163973)

United States Attorney

THOMAS MOORE (ASBN 4305-078T)

Chief, Tax Division

CYNTHIA STIER (DCBN 423256)

Assistant United States Attorney

450 Golden Gate Avenue, Box 36055

San Francisco, California 94102-3495

Telephone: (415) 436-7000

FAX: (415) 436-7009

Attorneys for the United States

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION

LES FIELDS/C.C.H.I. INSURANCE 

SERVICES, A California corporation,

 

Plaintiff,

v.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Defendant.

Case No. CV-15-02411 WHA

JOINT STATUS REPORT and [PROPOSED] 

ORDER MAINTAINING STAY UNTIL 

FEBRUARY 10. 2017

This Court has stayed this action pending the resolution of an associated Tax Court case which 

has litigated the same issues. The Court has maintained the stay, originally entered on January 25, 2016, 

three times after receiving joint status reports. The most recent Order maintaining the stay was entered 

after the parties represented that tax computations were due in the Tax Court on December 5, 2016, 

which were necessary to resolve this district court tax refund suit. The Tax Court has extended the date 

to submit the computations to February 21, 2017. 

One issue in this case is whether Plaintiff’s corporate officer, Les Fields, was an employee of 

Plaintiff during the periods at issue. That issue has been resolved, with the parties agreeing that Les 

Fields was an employee of Plaintiff for employment tax purposes. Because Plaintiff treated Fields as an 

independent contractor, however, Plaintiff did not make deposits of employment taxes. The Internal 

March

Case 3:15-cv-02411-JCS Document 51 Filed 01/11/17 Page 1 of 2
Joint Status Report

C-15-02411-WHA 2

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Revenue Service assessed a penalty under Section 6656 with respect to the Plaintiff’s failure to make 

deposits of employment taxes during the periods at issue. The penalty was not at issue in the Tax Court 

case. The Tax Court case was limited to the corporation’s income tax liabilities, including the amount 

of wage expenses the corporation could claim with respect to the years at issue. The Section 6656 

penalties therefore remain at issue in the District Court Case.

The parties anticipate that computations of Plaintiff’s employment tax liabilities reflecting the 

agreed wage amounts, including penalty amounts, will be provided to Plaintiff’s counsel during the 

week of January 23, 2017. The parties require a few weeks after the computations are presented in 

order to determine if they can negotiate a resolution of the penalties. Accordingly, the parties request a

further extension of the stay to determine whether to dismiss this case or proceed to litigation in district 

court with the remaining issues in this case. Accordingly, the parties request that this Court maintain the 

stay through March 10, 2017. The parties will submit a joint status report on March 8, 2017, by noon. 

Respectfully submitted, 

BRIAN J. STRETCH 

United States Attorney

__________/S/____________ 

CYNTHIA STIER

Assistant U.S. Attorney

Tax Division

________/s/______________ 

BERNARD KENNEALLY 

Counsel for Plaintiff, Les Fields

ORDER MAINTAINING STAY

For the reasons set forth in the Joint Status Report filed by the parties, the stay is maintained

until March 10, 2017. The parties shall file a joint status report by March 8, 2017, by noon. 

SO ORDERED this ___ day of _________, 2017. 

____________________________

WILLIAM ALSUP

United States District Judge

11 January

Case 3:15-cv-02411-JCS Document 51 Filed 01/11/17 Page 2 of 2