Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_14-cv-05565/USCOURTS-cand-3_14-cv-05565-2/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Microsoft Corporation
Intervenor
United States of America
Petitioner
William L. Veghte
Respondent

Document Text:

Baker & McKenzie LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304 

+1 650 856 2400 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

Case No. 14-CV-05565(JST)

STIPULATION TO TRANSFER ACTION TO USDC - WESTERN DIST. OF WASHINGTON

Scott H. Frewing, SBN 191311 

BAKER & McKENZIE LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304-1044 

Telephone: +1.650.856.2400 

Facsimile: +1.650 856.9299 

scott.frewing@bakermckenzie.com

James M. O'Brien (Pro Hac Vice) 

BAKER & McKENZIE LLP 

300 East Randolph Street, Suite 5000 

Chicago, IL 60601 

Telephone: +1.312.861.8602 

Facsimile: +1.312.698.2323 

james.m.o'brien@bakermckenzie.com

Attorneys for Respondent 

WILLIAM L. VEGHTE 

Daniel A Rosen (Pro Hac Vice) 

BAKER & McKENZIE LLP 

452 Fifth Avenue 

New York, NY 10018 

Telephone: 212 626 4272 

Facsimile: 212 310 1672 

daniel.rosen@bakermckenzie.com

Attorneys for Proposed Intervenor 

MICROSOFT CORPORATION 

DAVID A. HUBBERT 

Deputy Assistant Attorney General 

NOREENE STEHLIK (DC Bar No. 394479) 

Senior Litigation Counsel, Tax Division 

JEREMY HENDON (OR Bar No. 982490) 

AMY MATCHISON (CA Bar No. 217022) 

Trial Attorneys, Tax Division 

U.S. Department of Justice 

P.O. Box 683, Ben Franklin Station 

Washington, DC 20044-0683 

Email: Noreene.C.Stehlik@usdoj.gov 

 Jeremy.Hendon@usdoj.gov 

 Amy.T.Matchison@usdoj.gov 

 Western.TaxCivil@usdoj.gov 

Telephone: (202) 514-6489 

 (202) 353-2466 

 (202) 307-6422 

MELINDA L. HAAG 

Northern District of California 

United States Attorney 

Attorneys for Petitioner 

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, )

 ) 

 Petitioner, ) 

 ) 

 v. ) 

 ) 

WILLIAM L. VEGHTE, ) 

 ) 

 Respondent. ) 

 ) 

 ) 

 ) 

Case No. 14-CV-5565 (JST) 

STIPULATION AND [PROPOSED] 

ORDER TO TRANSFER ACTION TO 

THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT 

COURT FOR THE WESTERN 

DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON 

Case 3:14-cv-05565-JST Document 25 Filed 01/16/15 Page 1 of 5
Baker & McKenzie LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304 

+1 650 856 2400 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

 2

Case No. 14-CV-05565 (JST)

STIPULATION TO TRANSFER ACTION TO USDC - WESTERN DIST. OF WASHINGTON

Petitioner United States, Respondent William Veghte ("Veghte"), and Proposed Intervenor 

Microsoft Corporation ("Microsoft") (collectively, the "Parties") by and through the undersigned 

counsel, hereby enter into this Stipulation and [Proposed] Order to Transfer Action to the United 

States District Court for the Western District of Washington pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) with 

reference to the following facts: 

Whereas on December 11, 2014, Petitioner initiated an action against Microsoft in the United 

States District Court for the Western District of Washington to enforce a "designated" summons 

served on Microsoft in connection with the Internal Revenue Service's ("IRS") examination of 

Microsoft's 2004 through 2006 taxable years; 

Whereas, the IRS has issued additional "related" summonses that "relate[] to the same return 

as such designated summons"; 

Whereas, to date, the IRS has issued eighteen such "related" summonses to Microsoft, thirdparty recordkeepers, current employees, and former employees, including Respondent. All of the 

"related" summonses seek documents and testimony in connection with Microsoft's 2004 through 

2006 audit; 

Whereas, to date, Petitioner has filed twelve enforcement actions with respect to the "related" 

summonses, ten of which are pending in the United States District Court for the Western District of 

Washington; 

Whereas, all of the "related" enforcement actions pending in the United States District Court 

for the Western District of Washington, in addition to United States v. Microsoft Corp., 2:14-mc00117-RSM, are pending before the Honorable Ricardo S. Martinez; 

Whereas, the enforcement actions pending in the United States District Court for the Western 

District of Washington and this action involve numerous common questions of law and fact, 

including but not limited to, Respondent's and Microsoft's defenses to enforcement; 

Whereas, on December 22, 2014, Petitioner initiated this action by filing a Petition to 

Enforce Internal Revenue Service Summons (DE 1) in the United States District Court for the 

Northern District of California to enforce the "related" summons against Respondent, Microsoft's 

Case 3:14-cv-05565-JST Document 25 Filed 01/16/15 Page 2 of 5
Baker & McKenzie LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304 

+1 650 856 2400 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

 3

Case No. 14-CV-05565 (JST)

STIPULATION TO TRANSFER ACTION TO USDC - WESTERN DIST. OF WASHINGTON

former employee who worked at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond, Washington during the 

Microsoft audit years and now resides in the Northern District of California; 

Whereas, on December 30, 2014, counsel for Respondent conferred with counsel for 

Petitioner regarding Respondent's desire to move to transfer this action to the United States District 

Court for the Western District of Washington in light of the ten other actions to enforce "related" 

summons pending in that district, along with the underlying action to enforce the "designated" 

summons that is also pending in that district; 

Whereas, on December 30, 2014, Microsoft filed a Motion to Intervene in this action, on the 

grounds that 26 U.S.C. § 7609(b)(1) provides Microsoft with an unconditional right to intervene; 

Whereas, on January 7, 2015, Petitioner filed a statement of non-opposition to Microsoft's 

motion to intervene; 

Whereas, Microsoft has filed motions to intervene in the nine other pending actions in which 

it is not a named party, and the United States has filed statements of non-opposition in each of those 

cases; 

Whereas, Microsoft has also filed motions to consolidate the cases pending in the United 

States District Court for the Western District of Washington with the action to enforce the 

"designated" summons; 

Whereas, Microsoft and the United States have reached an agreement on consolidating the 

cases currently pending in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, 

as reflected in a stipulated motion filed on January 13, 2015; 

Whereas, on January 12, 2015, counsel for Petitioner informed counsel for Respondent that it 

would consent to transfer this action to the United States District Court for the Western District of 

Washington pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a); 

Whereas, the Parties believe that transferring this action to the United States District Court 

for the Western District of Washington so that this case, along with the twelve other actions, may be 

heard by a single judge to ensure that the relevant issues are disposed of consistently in the multiple 

enforcement actions; 

Case 3:14-cv-05565-JST Document 25 Filed 01/16/15 Page 3 of 5
Baker & McKenzie LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304 

+1 650 856 2400 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

 4

Case No. 14-CV-05565 (JST)

STIPULATION TO TRANSFER ACTION TO USDC - WESTERN DIST. OF WASHINGTON

Whereas, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington has subject 

matter jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 26 U.S.C. § 7402(a) and 28 U.S.C. § 1345; 

Whereas, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington has 

personal jurisdiction over the Parties because Petitioner is the Government, Microsoft's principal 

place of business is in the state of Washington, and Respondent hereby consents to personal 

jurisdiction in the state of Washington solely for purposes of this action; 

Whereas, venue would be proper in the United States District Court for the Western District 

of Washington because the Parties expressly consent to venue in that district; 

Whereas, if this Court issues the requested order transferring this action to the United States 

District Court for the Western District of Washington, Microsoft and the United States would move 

to consolidate this case with the other summons enforcement actions pending in that district before 

the Honorable Ricardo S. Martinez 

Whereas, Respondent and Microsoft enter into this stipulation and agreement on the 

condition that it will not have any prejudicial effect on any kind or type whatsoever on their rights, 

including but not limited to arguments, affirmative defenses, legal theories, or any other rights. To 

be clear, this Stipulation relates solely to transferring the venue of this action in order to streamline 

the proceedings, conserve judicial and party resources, and avoid inconsistent orders; 

Now, therefore, good cause appearing, the Parties hereby stipulate and respectfully request 

the Court enter an order transferring this action to the United States District Court for the Western 

District of Washington pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) for the convenience of the parties and in the 

interest of justice. All signatories listed, and on whose behalf the filing is submitted, including that 

below, concur in the filing's content and have authorized the filing. 

Case 3:14-cv-05565-JST Document 25 Filed 01/16/15 Page 4 of 5
Baker & McKenzie LLP 

660 Hansen Way 

Palo Alto, CA 94304 

+1 650 856 2400 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

 5

Case No. 14-CV-05565 (JST)

STIPULATION TO TRANSFER ACTION TO USDC - WESTERN DIST. OF WASHINGTON

Dated: January 15, 2015 Respectfully submitted, 

By: /s/ 

NOREENE STEHLIK 

Trial Attorney 

U.S. Department of Justice 

Attorneys for Respondent 

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Dated: January 15, 2015 Respectfully submitted, 

By: /s/ 

Scott H. Frewing 

BAKER & McKENZIE LLP 

Attorneys for Petitioner 

WILLIAM L. VEGHTE 

 Pursuant to General Order No. 45, Section X(B), Scott H. Frewing hereby attests that the 

signatory’s concurrence in the filing of this document has been obtained. 

[PROPOSED] ORDER 

 Based upon the foregoing Stipulation and good cause appearing, IT IS SO ORDERED: 

 1. This action is transferred to the United States District Court for the Western District 

of Washington pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) for the convenience of the parties and in the interest 

of justice. 

Dated: January __, 2015 

Hon. Jon S. Tigar 

United States District Court Judge

 

16

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORN

I

A

IT IS SO ORDERED

 Judge Jon S. Tigar 

Case 3:14-cv-05565-JST Document 25 Filed 01/16/15 Page 5 of 5