MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER D. SIMS CRAWFORD , United States Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came before the Court on the Motion to Transfer Venue to the United States District Court for the Southern District of California (the "Motion to Transfer") filed by defendant Vestavia Hills Ltd. d/b/a Mount Royal Towers ("Vestavia Hills") (doc. 2), the Motion to Remand and/or for Abstention (the "Motion to Remand") filed by plaintiff Commonwealth Assisted Living, LLC, Series E ("Commonwealth") (...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , United States Bankruptcy Judge . This adversary proceeding came before the Court on December 16, 2019, for a hearing on the Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment, the Plaintiff's Response to Motion for Summary Judgment, the Motion to Strike Response to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment, and for a status conference on the pretrial conference and on the Defendant's Motion for Sanctions. 1 Appearing before the Court were Jerome...
MEMORANDUM OPINION JAMES J. ROBINSON , Chief Bankruptcy Judge . Introduction The Debtor and the Chapter 13 Trustee (the "Plaintiffs") commenced this adversary proceeding against Ditech Financial, LLC ("Ditech") pursuant to Bankruptcy Code (the "Code") 544(a)(1) and (a)(2) to avoid a security interest Ditech claims in the Debtor's double-wide 1996 Fleetwood mobile home (the "Mobile Home"). 1 Those Code sections read as follows: (a) The trustee shall have, as of the commencement of the...
MEMORANDUM OPINION PARTIALLY AVOIDING REDSTONE FEDERAL CREDIT UNION'S JUDICIAL LIENS CLIFTON R. JESSUP, JR. , Bankruptcy Judge . This case is before the Court on Debtors' Motions to Avoid two judicial liens held by Redstone Federal Credit Union (hereinafter "Redstone"). The Debtors contend that their principal residence has a fair market value of $110,000 and argue that there is no non-exempt equity in the property to which Redstone's judicial liens may attach. Accordingly, the Debtors...
MEMORANDUM OPINION JAMES J. ROBINSON , Chief Bankruptcy Judge . I—Introduction In the fall of 2017 Lisa Watson ("Watson") filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of St. Clair County, Alabama (the "Circuit Court") 1 claiming that Nadine Evette Lanier (the "Debtor"), trespassed on and injured her property. After a trial, the Circuit Court entered an Order (the "Order") 2 awarding Watson damages, attorney's fees and injunctive relief. The Debtor then filed chapter 7 bankruptcy in an attempt...
MEMORANDUM OPINION DENYING MOTION TO HOLD MAX SWOBODA AND EQUITY TRUST COMPANY IN CONTEMPT Clifton R. Jessup, Jr. , United States Bankruptcy Judge This case first came before the Court on August 19, 2019 upon Debtors' Motion to Hold Max Swoboda and Equity Trust Company in Contempt (collectively "Swoboda"). The Debtors seek an order finding that Swoboda violated the automatic stay by initiating a postpetition criminal action against the Debtor, Steve Shickles, Jr. ("Shickles"), in an...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This case came before the Court on December 3, 2019, for a hearing on the Motion to Extend Deadline for Objection to Discharge and/or to Challenge Dischargeability of Debt filed by Strategic Funding Source, Inc ("Strategic"). Appearing before the Court were Erno D. Lindner and Rita L. Hullett, attorneys for Strategic Funding Source, Inc.; Matthew A. Dunaway, attorney for the Debtors, Timothy Edward Trapp and Sherry...
MEMORANDUM OPINION ON ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE WHY DEFENDANT SHOULD NOT BE HELD IN CONTEMPT AND ON DEBTORS' MOTION FOR CONTEMPT CITATION AND SANCTIONS Clifton R. Jessup, Jr. , United States Bankruptcy Judge . This case came before the Court on September 4, 2019 upon Order Requiring the Jackson County Solid Waste Department to Show Cause Why Defendant Should not be Held in Contempt and Sanctions Imposed; Debtors' Motion for Contempt Citation and Sanctions, and on Amended Response to Motion for...
OPINION AND ORDER JAMES J. ROBINSON , Bankrupty Judge . I-State Court Trespass Lawsuit Lisa Watson ("Watson") and the debtor, Nadine Evette Lanier ("Debtor"), are neighbors. Their homes are in a subdivision in St. Clair County, Alabama, and their residential lots share a common boundary line of approximately 200 feet. A creek or waterway that carries surface drainage runs behind both residences. The waterway flows first across the Debtor's lot and then continues across Watson's lot. The...
MEMORANDUM OPINION REGARDING THIRD AMENDED COMPLAINT Clifton R. Jessup, Jr. , United States Bankruptcy Judge . This Adversary Proceeding is before the Court upon the Third Amendment to Plaintiffs' Complaint Objecting to Claim No. 17 and all Amendments to that Claim (hereinafter "Third Amended Complaint"). 1 Although Russell Nelson and Deborah Nelson (hereinafter the "Plaintiffs") are represented by competent legal counsel in their underlying Chapter 13 bankruptcy case, the Plaintiffs...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This bankruptcy case and adversary proceeding came before the Court on March 12, 2019 for a trial on the Objection to Claim of Loay Ebayyah filed by the Debtor, Mohammed Jaber; and on the Amended Complaint 1 filed by Loay Ebayyah, the Plaintiff. 2 Appearing before the Court were Michael V. Rasmussen, attorney for Loay Ebayyah; Alan B. Lasseter and C. Taylor Crockett, attorneys for Mohammed Jaber; Mohammed Jaber, Debtor;...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This adversary proceeding came before the Court on February 11, 2019 for a hearing on Debtor Robert Bradford Johnson's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and As a Matter of Law in the HDL Trustee's Anti-Discharge Case Due to No Underlying Liability (the "Motion") (A.P. Doc. 24); Liquidating Trustee's Opposition to Debtor Johnson's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and As a Matter of Law in the HDL Trustee's Anti-...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This case came before the Court on February 11, 2019 for a hearing on the Debtors' Objection and Motion for a Judgment on the Pleadings and As a Matter of Law As to Proofs of Claim Numbers 5, 6 and 7 Filed by Richard Arrowsmith As Liquidating Trustee of the HDL Liquidating Trust (the "Objection and Motion") (Doc. 312); the Liquidating Trustee's Opposition to Debtors' Objection and Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER SUSTAINING THE OBJECTIONS OF BUFFALO ROCK COMPANY AND JAMES C. LEE, III TO THE DEBTOR'S CLAIMS OF EXEMPTIONS OVER CERTAIN LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This matter came to be heard upon: (i) the Buffalo Rock Company and James C. Lee, III's (collectively referred to herein as " Buffalo Rock ") Objection to the Debtor's Claims of Exemptions Related to Certain Life Insurance Policies (the " Exemption Objection ") [Doc. No. 145];...
MEMORANDUM OPINION JAMES J. ROBINSON , Chief Bankruptcy Judge . Background and Findings Tina Renae Ferguson (the "Debtor") filed a petition for relief under chapter 13 (Bk Doc. 1) 1 of the Bankruptcy Code. 2 Attorney David G. Poston ("Poston") and his law firm, Brock & Stout, LLC ("Brock") represented the Debtor in her bankruptcy case, and they identified themselves in Form 2030, Disclosure of Compensation of Attorney for Debtor(s) (Bk Doc. 1, p. 55), as follows: David G. Poston Brock...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEBTORS' MOTION FOR ENTRY OF AN ORDER (I) AUTHORIZING, BUT NOT DIRECTING, THE DEBTORS TO (A) REJECT THEIR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS, (B) MODIFY CERTAIN UNION-RELATED RETIREE BENEFITS, AND (C) IMPLEMENT TERMS OF THEIR SECTION 1113 AND SECTION 1114 PROPOSAL, AND (II) GRANTING RELATED RELIEF TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This case came before the Court for hearing on February 20, 21, and 22, 2019 on Debtors' Motion for Entry of an Order (...
MEMORANDUM OPINION ON AMENDED COMPLAINT FOR DETERMINATION OF DISCHARGEABILITY AND OBJECTION TO DISCHARGE Clifton R. Jessup, Jr. , United States Bankruptcy Judge . This Adversary Proceeding came before the Court on November 14, 2018 for trial upon the Amended Complaint for Determination of Dischargeability and Objection to Discharge filed by Gil and Patricia Madsen (collectively, the "Plaintiffs") against Micah and Alexanderia Easterling (collectively, the "Defendants"). The issues before...
NOT INTENDED FOR PUBLICATION MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER TAMARA O. MITCHELL , Bankruptcy Judge . This case came before the Court on January 7, 2019, for a pretrial conference on the Adversary Complaint 1 and Objection to Claim of Republic Finance, LLC filed by the Debtor, and a hearing on the Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Adversary Complaint (the "Motion") filed by the Defendant Republic Finance, LLC. Appearing before the Court were Wilson A. Webb, counsel for the Debtor; Jonathan...
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER JAMES J. ROBINSON , CHIEF UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY JUDGE . Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC ("Carrington") holds a mortgage (the "Mortgage") on the Debtor's residence (the "Mortgaged Property"). 1 The Mortgage secures the Debtor's Note in the original principal amount of $141,112 (the "Note"). Carrington filed a proof of claim in the Debtor's chapter 13 bankruptcy case for the prepetition Mortgage debt, and now seeks to recover the additional fees paid to...
MEMORANDUM OPINION JAMES J. ROBINSON , Bankruptcy Judge . I — Introduction and Jurisdiction This is a proceeding under Rule 7001(6) of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure to determine the dischargeability of a debt Thompson Tractor Co., Inc. ("Thompson") alleged is owing by Jeremy C. Schleicher (the "Debtor") pursuant to his continuing guaranty of payment. The Debtor filed a petition for relief on October 10, 2016 under chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, and later was granted a...
