ABSTENTION ORDER AND ORDER DISMISSING PROCEEDING Robert A. Mark , Judge , United States Bankruptcy Court. Debtor's complaint in this proceeding seeks a judgment declaring that certain obligations he owes to his ex-wife under a marital settlement agreement are not domestic support obligations ("DSOs"). The defendant ex-wife has filed a motion for abstention arguing that this Court should abstain and allow the state court judge to decide the issue. Based upon the history of the state court...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER ON CONDOMINIUM UNIT OWNER'S RIGHT TO ATTORNEY'S FEES Robert A. Mark , Judge . Under Florida law and typical condominium declarations, unit owners have the right to recover attorney's fees if they prevail in litigation against the condominium association. The issue addressed in this opinion is whether this right to attorney's fees extends to litigation by an existing owner against the association over additional units the owner was attempting to purchase. For...
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO STRIKE JURY DEMAND Erik P. Kimball , Judge . Bank Leumi, USA, the defendant in the above-captioned adversary proceeding, asks the Court to strike the jury trial demand presented by the plaintiff, Michael R. Bakst, as chapter 7 trustee. ECF Nos. 64, 87, 137 and 160. For the reasons stated below, the Court will deny that request. The defendant raises three arguments in support of its motion to strike the plaintiff's jury trial demand: (1) the trustee is bound by...
ORDER DETERMINING DEBTOR IS ELIGIBLE FOR CHAPTER 13 RELIEF LAUREL M. ISICOFF , Chief Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before the Court on May 23, 2017, on the Debtor, David Stone's, Objection to Claim No. 6 filed by Jorge Alberto Echandia Tobon (ECF #50) (the "Echandia Claim Objection") and Objection to Claim No. 5 filed by Abraham Vaisberg (ECF #53) (the "Vaisberg Claim Objection" and, together with the Echandia Claim Objection the "Claims Objections"). The parties seem to have agreed...
ORDER DISAPPROVING SUPPLEMENTAL APPLICATIONS FOR ALLOWANCE FILED BY EXAMINER'S COUNSEL A. Jay Cristol , Judge , United States Bankruptcy Court. THESE CASES initially were filed under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. During the Chapter 11 phase, this Court ordered the appointment of an examiner, and the United States Trustee appointed Jeffrey R. Truitt (the " Examiner "). The Examiner employed the law firms Stutman, Treister & Glatt, P.C. (" Stutman Treister "), and GrayRobinson, P.A....
ORDER INTERPRETING RIGHT OF FIRST REFUSAL Robert A. Mark , Judge . Before the Court is a motion by the Debtor, Sixty Sixty Condominium Association, Inc. (the "Debtor" or the "Association"), for approval of a proposed bulk sale that includes the sale of all of the Debtor's assets (the "Sale Motion") [DE #174]. Ordinarily, the Court's analysis would be limited to a determination of whether the proposed sale satisfies the "sound business purpose" test and otherwise complies with section 363...
CONSOLIDATED ORDER GRANTING MOTIONS TO DISMISS Erik P. Kimball , Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court . In the above-captioned adversary proceedings, Robert C. Furr, as chapter 7 trustee (the "Trustee") of the bankruptcy estates of Rollaguard Security, LLC ("Rollaguard") and the substantively consolidated debtors, Shamrock Jewelers, Inc. and Shamrock Jewelers Loan & Guarantee, LLC (together, the "Shamrock Entities" and, with Rollaguard, the "Debtors"), sues TD Bank, N.A. ("TD Bank") (Adv....
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO VALUE AND DETERMINE SECURED STATUS OF LIEN ON REAL PROPERTY LAUREL M. ISICOFF , Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before me upon the Debtor's Motion to Value and Determine Secured Status of Lien on Real Property (the "Motion to Value") (ECF #38). At issue is whether a debtor must use a motion to value to modify the interest rate on a debt coming due during the pendency of a bankruptcy notwithstanding that the debtor is not seeking to adjust the amount of the...
MEMORANDUM OPINION DENYING CREDITOR'S MOTION TO REOPEN BANKRUPTCY CASE LAUREL M. ISICOFF , Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before me on July 5, 2017, on Motion of Creditor the Bank of New York Mellon F/K/A the Bank of New York, as Trustee to Reopen Debtor's Bankruptcy Case and to Compel Surrender of Mortgaged Property (the "Motion") (ECF #32). Bank of New York Mellon ("BONY") seeks to reopen the Debtors' 2009 bankruptcy case in order to compel the Debtors to surrender their real...
John K. Olson , Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court . FINDINGS OF FACT, CONCLUSIONS OF LAW AND MEMORANDUM OPINION THIS ADVERSARY PROCEEDING came before the Court for trial on April 26, 2017 on the Amended Adversary Complaint ("the Complaint") [ECF 81] filed on December 16, 2015, by Scott N. Brown, as Chapter 7 Trustee (the "Plaintiff" and/or "Trustee") of the bankruptcy estate of Sigma-Tech Sales, Inc. (the "Debtor") as scheduled by the Court's Order [ECF 330] entered March 14, 2017....
AMENDED MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN FAVOR OF DEFENDANT AND DENYING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT 1 LAUREL M. ISICOFF , Chief Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before me for a hearing on January 31, 2017, on the Motion for Summary Judgment of the Defendant Leonidas Ortega T (the "Debtor" or the "Defendant") (ECF #50) (the "Debtor's Motion") and the Motion for Partial Summary Judgment of...
AMENDED MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN FAVOR OF DEFENDANT AND DENYING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT 1 Laurel M. Isicoff , Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before me for a hearing on January 31, 2017, on the Motion for Summary Judgment of the Defendant Leonidas Ortega T (the "Debtor" or the "Defendant") (ECF # 50) (the "Debtor's Motion") and the Motion for Partial...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S REQUEST FOR COMITY LAUREL M. ISICOFF , Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before me for the last time on January 17, 2017, 1 on Defendant Fabrizio Dulcetti Neves' (the "Defendant" or "Neves") Supplemental Objection to Plaintiff's Ex-Parte Motion for Writ of Execution and Memorandum of Law in Support of Objection and Request for International Comity (ECF # 1375) (the "Comity Motion") and Motion of the Plaintiffs'...
AGREED ORDER GRANTING IN PART PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR RELIEF FROM ORDER AND JUDGMENTS A. JAY CRISTOL , Bankruptcy Judge . THIS CAUSE came before the Court without a hearing on the motion of Plaintiff, Maria Yip, as Trustee for the estate of Ibes Gomez, for relief [ECF No. 101] pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b) from the (1) Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law [ECF No. 92] ("Findings of Fact") entered by this Court on November 11, 2016, and available at 560 B.R. 866 (...
ORDER DENYING DEBTOR'S AMENDED MOTION TO VACATE [D.E. 147] AND GRANTING CREDITOR'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO ENFORCE [D.E. 87] Raymond B. Ray , Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court . THESE MATTERS came before the Court for an evidentiary hearing on March 21, 2017 on Secured Creditor Crossfire Financial Network, Inc.'s Emergency Motion to Enforce Court Order Compelling Surrender [ECF NO. 84] And For Contempt And Sanctions [D.E. 87] (Creditor's Motion), Debtor's Motion for Relief From "Agreed...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO DISMISS AMENDED COMPLAINT (ECF # 29) Laurel M. Isicoff , Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge . THIS MATTER came before me on November 22, 2016, (the "Hearing") on the Motion to Dismiss Amended Complaint (the "Motion to Dismiss") (ECF # 29) filed by the Defendants, Alinia Corporation ("Alinia") and 110 CPS, Inc. ("CPS") (collectively, the "Defendants"). I have considered the Motion to Dismiss, the...
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO COMPEL ARBITRATION Erik P. Kimball , Judge , United States Bankruptcy Court. This matter came before the Court for hearing on December 14, 2016 upon the Motion to Determine Designation of Claims [ECF No. 54] (the "Motion to Designate Claims") filed by Defendant Navient Solutions, LLC f/k/a Navient Solutions, Inc. ("NSI"), Defendant Navient Solutions, Inc.'s Motion to Compel Arbitration of All Claims and Dismiss or Stay Pending Arbitration and Incorporated...
MEMORANDUM OPINION ON ORDER CONDITIONALLY GRANTING OCEAN BANK'S MOTION FOR RELIEF FROM STAY BUT DENYING OCEAN BANK'S REQUEST FOR DISMISSAL Laurel M. Isicoff , Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge This matter came before me on December 8, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. upon Ocean Bank's Motion for Entry of an Order (I) Dismissing the Debtor's Chapter 11 Case or, Alternatively, (II) Granting Relief from the Automatic Stay (the "Motion") (ECF #55). Having considered the pleadings, 1 other matters...
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND GRANTING DEFENDANTS' CROSS-MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT ERIK P. KIMBALL , Bankruptcy Judge . Plaintiff SunTrust Bank filed its Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 76] and defendants The Wojo Corp d/b/a Prontis Italia Kitchen, along with Douglas A. Wojciechowski and Lori J. Wojciechowski (together, the "Debtors" and collectively with The Wojo Corp., the "Defendants"), filed their Defendant's Response to Plaintiff's...
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO COMPROMISE CONTROVERSY ERIK P. KIMBALL , Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before the Court for hearing on December 7, 2016 upon the Motion to Approve Stipulation to Compromise Controversy Between Chapter 7 Trustee, Michael R. Bakst and the Estate of Raymond P. Niro and Niro Law, Ltd. [ECF No. 265] (the "Motion to Compromise") filed by Michael R. Bakst, Esq. (the "Trustee"), the Debtor's Amended Objection to Motion to Approve Stipulation to Compromise...
