I also call it “blogfodder.” The internet cognoscenti call it “content.” But whatever the name, it’s what keeps readers reading and followers following. And it doesn’t matter if your webpages load in three seconds (good, according to said cognoscenti) or eleven seconds (bad, you lose readers). Nobody will look if you haven‘t got something useful to tell them.

Not only do I scan the Tax Court website, but I also check with my colleagues and look for sources to see what hasn’t yet hit the blogosphere or the trade press. There’s a lot of digging that goes nowhere, so when I get a tip and it turns out to be less than productive, it’s disappointing.

Back in September, I wrote up Giorgio P. Martinelli, Docket No. 4122-18, filed 1/10/20; see my blogpost “Yes, Giorgio,” 9/20/19. I was told there was a real human-interest story here, as well as a technical review of the Section 6038D megachops for offshore undisclosed bank accounts. Nothing came out in the summary J motion then, because Rule 121(e).

So when I saw today’s order from Judge James S (“Big Jim”) Halpern, it was a real letdown. Case continued on joint motion from next month’s trial calendar in my home town. Move, settle or talk, but none of that is going to bring out any of the details of a cross-examination or the technical analysis that even a T. C. Sum. Op. would do. The odds are there won’t be a trial, and the real story will remain untold.

Disappointing.