OpinionsCertain electronic fund transfers and credit card receivables received prepetition by the chapter 11 debtor's fuel supplier were avoidable preferences. Because payment terms for new fuel shipments changed from being due 10 days after delivery to cash-in-advance, the additional payments on the balance owed the supplier were neither contemporaneous exchanges for new value nor made in the ordinary course of the parties' business. In re Share Building Products, Inc., Case No. 09-21553 (June 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Court overruled chapter 11 debtor's objections to claims of former employees. Employees were entitled to wages earned but not paid pursuant to doctrine of quantum meruit. In re Vance Robert Schuster, Case No. 08-20892 Published: In re Schuster, 428 B.R. 833 (May 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Because chapter 13 debtor failed to establish the untimely filing of claim on behalf of omitted creditor was the result of his excusable neglect, his motion for enlargement of time in which to file a claim was denied. Even if excusable neglect had been established, any amount still due and owing to omitted creditor upon debtor's discharge would remain nondischargeable. In re Federico Teran, Case No. 09-37858 (April 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Secured creditor opposed confirmation of chapter 13 plan which required creditor to notify debtor annually of accrued postpetition fees, expenses or charges. The court overruled the objection, finding the annual notice requirement was not onerous. In re Todd & Kathryn Brennecke, Case No. 09-34193 (April 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Court sustained chapter 13 trustee's objection to confirmation of plan based upon debtors' erroneous calculation of tax obligations. In re CAM Recycling & Materials, Inc., Case No. 09-25303 (April 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Minority owner and major creditor of chapter 7 corporate debtor objected to the proofs of claim of the debtor's majority owner and former employee. The court sustained the objections and found the claimants were not entitled to compensation under the doctrine of quantum meruit. In re Mary Nunez, Case No 09-32442 (March 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Chapter 13 trustee opposed confirmation of plan because it limited contribution of one half of the debtor's tax refund to shorten the length of the plan rather than to pay unsecured creditors. The court sustained the objection, finding if a below-median income debtor elects to propose a longer term than three years and the court for cause approves such longer term, the requirements for payment of disposable income (which includes tax refunds), in years four and five of the plan remain the same as those in the first three years of the plan. In re Wolverine_Fire Apparatus Co. of Sherwood Michigan, Case No. 09-32985 (February 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity In a "double debtor" scenario, secured creditor's perfected security interest in collateral in possession of debtor lapsed one year after collateral was transferred from secured creditor manufacturer to debtor. Because the manufacturer had filed its financing statement in an incorrect location, its security interest was unperfected, as well. Consequently, first and second secured creditors' interests were subordinate to third secured creditor with perfected security interest in debtor's collateral. (This decision is a court minute decision, only.) In re DuWayne & Faith Kirchoff, Case No. 09-21188, USA v. Debtors, Adv. No. 09-2159 (February 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment seeking a determination that obligations owed it were excepted from the debtors' discharge, as well as a denial of the debtors' discharge. The debtors had allegedly converted the plaintiff's collateral by failing to account for missing livestock and feed. The court granted the motion, in part, finding the debtor husband's judgment of nondischargeability in a prior bankruptcy case was nondischargeable in the current case. The court denied the motion, in part, finding issues of material fact, namely the debtors' subjective intent, precluded the entry of summary judgment on the other counts. In re David M. Larsen, Case No. 09-22963, Teri Jendusa-Nicolai, et al. v. Debtor, Adv. No. 09-2231 Published: In re Larsen, 422 B.R. 913 (January 2010) -- Judge M.D. McGarity Issue preclusion barred relitigation of state court judgments against chapter 7 debtor for assault and battery, as well as derivative claims for loss of society and companionship, making the judgments nondischargeable under sec. 523(a)(6). |