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Manglona sets 2014 bench trial for lawsuit vs US govt over FICA taxes
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Posted on Feb 20 2012
The federal court has set a March 14, 2014, bench trial in the lawsuit filed by the owner of Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino and a defunct garment manufacturer against the U.S. government to recover alleged wrongfully assessed taxes.
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona issued last week a case management scheduling order after conducting a conference in the case on Tuesday, Feb. 14.
Attorney Alexis Fallon, lead counsel for Tinian Dynasty owner Hong Kong Entertainment (Overseas) Investment Ltd. and Rifu Apparel Corp., appeared by telephone at the scheduling hearing. Trial attorney Andy R. Camacho from the U.S. Department of Justice also appeared by phone as counsel for the U.S. government.
Manglona set a final pretrial conference and hearing on all motions on Feb. 28, 2014.
The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit in 2010 against the U.S. government to recover allegedly wrongfully assessed Social Security and Medicare taxes (collectively called FICA) that were erroneously paid.
Last month, Hong Kong Entertainment, through counsel G. Anthony Long, asked the court to set a conference hearing as a scheduling conference has not been held in this case.
Accordingly, Long said, a scheduling order has not been issued by the district court.
Eleven other defunct garment factories as well as the former Concorde Garment Manufacturing Corp. and numerous Chinese nationals formerly employed by Concorde and its affiliated companies, also filed last year separate but similar lawsuits against the U.S. government.
The plaintiffs alleged that they erroneously withheld the taxes from the wages of their then employees and paid to the U.S. government.
Last Dec. 29, Manglona ordered the owners of the 11 defunct garment manufacturers to explain why the court should not dismiss their lawsuit for lack of prosecution. The judge noted that the case has been pending for more than one year without any action taken by the parties in that period.
