OPINION ROBERT N. OPEL, II, Bankruptcy Judge. Presently before this Court are the Motion of the Plaintiff, Franklin County Area Development Corporation, for Summary Judgment and the Cross Motion of the Defendant, John P. Leos, for Summary Judgment. For the reasons stated herein, both Motions for Summary Judgment are denied and the matter will proceed to trial. I. Jurisdiction The Court has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1334 and 157(b)(1) & (2)(A), (B). This is...
AMENDED OPINION IN SUPPORT OF ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR AN EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE AN APPEAL 1 MARY D. FRANCE, Chief Judge. On October 11, 2011, the City Council for the City of Harrisburg ("City Council") filed a bankruptcy petition under Chapter 9 on behalf of the City. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (the "Commonwealth"), the County of Dauphin ("Dauphin County") and the City of Harrisburg by the Honorable Mayor Linda D. Thompson (the "Mayor") and other creditors and interested parties...
OPINION MARY D. FRANCE, Chief Judge. The City of Harrisburg, by its City Council, filed a petition for relief under Chapter 9 of the Bankruptcy Code. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (the "Commonwealth"), the County of Dauphin ("Dauphin County") and the City of Harrisburg by the Honorable Mayor Linda D. Thompson (the "Mayor") and other creditors and interested parties objected to the filing. 1 For the reasons set forth below, the Objections were sustained at the hearing held on November 23,...
OPINION 1 ROBERT N. OPEL, II, Bankruptcy Judge. Pending before the Court is the Defendant, Peddinghaus Corporation's ("Peddinghaus"), Motion to Dismiss the Complaint for Preferential Transfer filed by the Plaintiff, William G. Schwab, Trustee for the Estate of Excel Storage Products, L.P. ("Trustee"). The Motion to Dismiss alleges: (1) improper venue and (2) that the amount of the preference is less than the statutory limit set by 11 U.S.C. 547(c)(9). For the reasons set forth below, the...
OPINION 1 ROBERT N. OPEL II, Bankruptcy Judge. Presently pending before the Court is the Defendant's Motion to Dismiss the Plaintiffs' Complaint which alleges: (I) violation of the automatic stay pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 362(k) 2 ; (II) violation of the Pennsylvania Fair Trade Extension Uniformity Act 73 P.S. 2270.1 and the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade and Consumer Protection Act 73 P.S. 201; (III) violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; and, (IV) injury to a class of which the...
OPINION JOHN J. THOMAS, Bankruptcy Judge. The Chapter 7 Debtors, William and Diane Taitt, have filed a Motion to Avoid Judicial Lien seeking to strike a judgment against them filed by Filomena White Realty, Inc. The underlying facts are not in dispute, as stipulated on the court record. The Debtors are owners of real estate at 117 Bridle Road, Stroudsburg, Monroe County, Pennsylvania. The property is subject to a first and second mortgage in favor of ESSA Bank & Trust (ESSA). The value of...
OPINION JOHN J. THOMAS, Bankruptcy Judge. The bankruptcy case of Wireless Telecommunication, Inc. ("WTI") had more peaks and valleys than our great Appalachian mountain range. The case started in 2000 as an involuntary filing in the District's Harrisburg division, docketed to Case No. 1-00-02188 with our then Chief Judge, Robert J. Woodside, presiding. 1 It was followed by the voluntary Chapter 11 filing of a related entity known as Wireless Ventures, III, Inc. ("WVI") (Case No. 1-00-bk-...
OPINION JOHN J. THOMAS, Bankruptcy Judge. A Complaint to Determine Dischargeability has been filed by the Debtor in this case. The history has been set forth in an earlier disposition and is again set forth, as follows: The parties are in relative agreement as to the procedural background of this case. Sometime in 1991, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued to the Debtor a tank closure order. Thereafter, in 1999, the subject lands previously holding the underground...
OPINION JOHN J. THOMAS, Bankruptcy Judge. The Debtors, William and Lorry Quiles, have filed a Motion to Compel the Chapter 13 Trustee to turnover undistributed funds to them. The fund consists of $1066.25 presumably existing in the possession of the Chapter 13 Trustee on the date that the Debtors converted their case to Chapter 7 on October 12, 2009. The Chapter 13 Trustee responded with new matter indicating that he had disbursed the funds in question on November 9, 2009 as part of his...
OPINION 1 ROBERT N. OPEL, II, Bankruptcy Judge. Presently pending before the Court is the Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment seeking summary judgment on the Plaintiff's Complaint for violation of the automatic stay pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 362(k) 2 . For the reasons stated herein, the Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment is granted, a hearing will be held to determine any damages. I. Jurisdiction The Court has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1334 and 157(B)(...
OPINION MARY D. FRANCE, Chief Judge. The United States Trustee (the "UST") requests dismissal of the bankruptcy petition of John M. and Susan P. Lanza ("Debtors") alleging that, given the totality of their financial circumstances, their petition is an abuse of Chapter 7. Debtors assert in response that because their income is below the state median for a four-person household, their case may not be dismissed under 707(b)(3) simply because they have the ability to repay their creditors....
OPINION MARY D. FRANCE, Chief Judge. I. Background Barry and April James ("Debtors") operate a business 1 known as "Prehistoric Journeys" in which they prepare and mount the skeletal remains of dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals for public or private display. Barry James ("Barry") is a vertebrate paleontologist and April James ("April") has a master's degree in anthropology. Since 1986, they have prepared and mounted over 150 specimens, which are displayed in various museums and...
