Free Joint Preliminary Status Report - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:06-cv-00285-CCM

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS DAVID S. and MALIA A. LITMAN, Plaintiffs, No. 05-956T v. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Defendant. ROBERT B. and MICHELLE S. DIENER, Plaintiffs, No. 05-971T v. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Defendant. HOTELS.COM, INC. and Subsidiaries (f/k/a HOTEL RESERVATIONS NETWORK, INC.) Plaintiffs, v. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Defendant. No. 06-285T Judge Christine O. C. Miller

JOINT PRELIMINARY STATUS REPORT Plaintiff Hotels.com, Inc. and Subsidiaries and defendant United States submit this joint preliminary status report pursuant to Appendix A of the RCFC. Answers to the questions set forth in paragraph 4 of Appendix A are as follows: (a) The parties agree that the Court has jurisdiction. (b) This case was consolidated with Litman et al. v. United States, No. 05-cv-956 (Ct. Fed. Cl.) pursuant to the Court's May 1, 2006, Order.

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(c) Trial should not be bifurcated. (d) Proceedings in the case should not be deferred pending consideration of another case before the Court or any other tribunal. (e) Not applicable. (f) Additional parties will not be joined. (g) Hotels.com may file a motion pursuant to RCFC 56. If such a motion is filed, it will be filed after the close of discovery. At this time, the United States does not anticipate filing a motion pursuant to RCFC 56 concerning Hotels.com's claim for refund of income taxes. (h) In brief, the relevant factual and legal issues raised by Hotels.com's claim for a refund of income taxes concern the valuation of certain shares of stock for tax purposes, and the appropriate goodwill amortization deductions based on the issuance of that stock. (i) The parties continue to be willing to explore the possibility of settlement. (j) It is possible that the matter will proceed to trial. The parties do not request expedited trial scheduling. (k) There are no specific issues regarding electronic case management needs. Consistent with the Court's consolidation order of May 1, 2006, the discovery schedule in this case will be the same as that in Litman et al. The parties also will exchange Rule 26 disclosures by May 12, 2006.

Dated: May 10, 2006

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Respectfully submitted,

By

s/ Kim Marie K. Boylan KIM MARIE K. BOYLAN Attorney of Record Latham & Watkins LLP 555 Eleventh Street, N.W., Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20004-1304 (202) 637-2235 (202) 637-2201 [email protected]

Of Counsel: MCGEE GRIGSBY Latham & Watkins LLP 555 Eleventh Street, N.W., Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20004-1304 (202) 637-2256 (202) 637-2201 [email protected] KARI M. LARSON Latham & Watkins LLP 555 Eleventh Street, N.W., Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20004-1304 (202) 637-1018 (202) 637-2201 [email protected] By s/ Cory A. Johnson_________ CORY ARTHUR JOHNSON Attorney of Record U.S. Department of Justice Tax Division 555 Fourth Street, N.W., Room 8122 Washington, D.C. 20001 (202) 307-3046 [email protected] EILEEN J. O'CONNOR Assistant Attorney General DAVID GUSTAFSON Acting Chief, Court of Federal Claims Section STEVEN I. FRAHM Asst. Chief, Court of Federal Claims Section s/ Steven I. Frahm Of Counsel

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