Posted by NCBRC - April 28th, 2023
The bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion in declining to reopen the debtor’s case sixteen years after its closure to administer an asset the debtor did not own until after his bankruptcy case closed. Gamez v. Lopez (In re Lopez), No. 22-2379 (E.D.N.Y. March 9, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - April 25th, 2023
The debtor could not gain traction on any of the four appeals of bankruptcy court orders which approved two settlements negotiated by the trustee, limited his exemption, and overruled his motion to dismiss, where the district court found that the bankruptcy judge considered the appropriate factors and did not abuse her discretion. Delaney v. Messer (In re Delaney), No. 22-2432 (E.D.N.Y. March 20, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - April 21st, 2023
Where the debtor had paid over 70% of the purchase price of real property, the court found that equitable principles precluded granting relief from stay to allow the seller to enforce a provision in the sales documents requiring the defaulting debtor to “forfeit not only the property, but all deposits, improvements and payments made.” Allied Ventures, LLC. v. Cruz, No. 22-23864 (Bankr. W.D. Tenn. Feb. 23, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - April 17th, 2023
The debtor’s own conduct gave the lender reason to believe that the debt owed to him was not discharged, so the bankruptcy court did not err in finding that the lender’s continued collection efforts lacked the requisite scienter to support a contempt sanction for violation of the discharge injunction. Bernhard v. Kull (In re Bernhard), No. 22-854 (E.D. Pa. Feb. 3, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - April 14th, 2023
The debtors’ claim against lenders for charging improper fees during their bankruptcy belonged to the bankruptcy estate, but the lenders’ appeal of the bankruptcy court’s order of abandonment was dismissed because they lacked a direct financial stake in the outcome of the bankruptcy court’s decision and, therefore were not “persons-aggrieved.” In so holding, the Sixth Circuit indicated that had the lenders challenged the “person-aggrieved” standard it would likely have been found to have been abrogated by subsequent Supreme Court precedent and congressional action. Schubert v. Litton Loan Servicing, No. 21-3969 (6th Cir. March 28, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - March 31st, 2023
The bankruptcy court applied the proper standard for determining “reasonably equivalent value” in the tax sale of the debtor’s home where it used a hypothetical foreclosure sale as the comparator rather than the fair market value. The Rooker-Feldman doctrine prevented the bankruptcy court from nullifying the sale despite procedural irregularities. And even where the debtor won, she lost. The court limited her damages based on the tax buyer’s violation of state consumer protection laws to minor pecuniary loss where it found emotional distress damages are unavailable under state law. Marshall v. Abdoun (In re Marshall), No. 22-10 (E.D. Pa. March 20, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - March 29th, 2023
Calling the agreement a “sham,” the district court affirmed the bankruptcy court’s denial of a carve-out agreement between the chapter 7 trustee and the state and federal tax creditors. The court found the agreement would adhere to no one’s benefit but their own. The court also upheld the bankruptcy court’s finding that the debtor’s homestead exemption applied to section 724(b). Summerlin v. Turnage (In re Turnage), No. 22-122 (W.D. N.C. March 14, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - March 24th, 2023
The punitive damages awarded by the bankruptcy court were unconstitutionally excessive where they were seven times greater than actual damages and the bankruptcy court increased the damages on remand because it found the lender’s success at the BAP level would eliminate a substantial disincentive to engage in the conduct establishing the automatic stay violation. Rushmore Loan Mgmt Serv., LLC v. Moon, No. 22-1126 (D. Nev. Feb. 6, 2023). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - March 22nd, 2023
Under Colorado law, spouses in dissolution proceedings own marital property as co-owners. Therefore the debtor’s ex-wife had a vested equitable interest in an up-front sum plus 50% of the proceeds from the sale of their marital residence as ordered by the divorce court, and that interest did not enter the debtor’s chapter 13 estate. Williams v. Goodman (In re Williams), No. 22-1067 (10th Cir. Dec. 13, 2022) (non-precedential). Read More
Posted by NCBRC - March 16th, 2023
The debtor was entitled to reopen her bankruptcy case to disclose a post-confirmation, pre-discharge lawsuit where she successfully completed her 100% plan so there was no harm to creditors by her failure to timely disclose the lawsuit, and the debtor would benefit from the opportunity to comply with Eleventh Circuit disclosure requirements. In re Calixto, No. 17-18317 (Bankr. S.D. Fla. Jan. 31, 2023). Read More