OpinionsTrustee could avoid unperfected security interest in renewal commissions and promissory note under strong arm powers. Capital Ventures, LLC v. Estate of Margolis, Adv. Proc. No. 16-2140 (March 2017) -- Chief Judge G.M. Halfenger A mortgage that debtor Capital Ventures, LLC executed to secure debt owed only by debtor Michael Gral was a valid and enforceable mortgage under Wisconsin law. In re Angela Wright, Case No. 16-21463 (March 2017) -- Chief Judge G.M. Halfenger First National Bank, a mortgage creditor in the debtor's bankruptcy case, filed an application for the approval of attorney's fees and costs pursuant to Fed. R. Bankr. P. 2016. The application sought to recover fees that First National Bank had paid its own lawyers to litigate on its behalf, and associated costs. The court denied First National Bank's application as moot because First National Bank had filed a timely proof of claim and the court concluded that the fees allegedly due under the note and mortgage were properly a part of its amended proof of claim. In re Olsen, 563 B.R. 899 (Bankr. E.D. Wis. 2017), aff’d sub nom. Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. v. Country Visions Coop., 628 B.R. 315 (E.D. Wis. 2021), aff’d, 29 F.4th 956 (7th Cir. 2022) (February 2017) -- Judge S.V. Kelley Sale order not binding on entity that held right of first refusal but was never given notice of sale. In re Nelson, Case No. 16-22089 (February 2017) -- Judge B.E. Hanan Debtor's counsel filed an application for compensation seeking allowance of $6,654.43 for services rendered in a relatively straightforward chapter 13 case that lasted only eight months. The court allowed $5,679.43 in compensation because it concluded that the application impermissibly sought compensation for noncompensable clerical tasks and several services that seemed duplicative. The court's decision discuses best practices that counsel should follow when filing fee applications, and highlights the interplay between the district's no-look fees, the local rules, the bankruptcy rules, and pertinent case law on fee applications. In re Brah, 562 B.R. 922 (January 2017) -- Judge S.V. Kelley Chapter 13 debtors' exempt veterans' disability benefits included in current monthly income and calculation of disposable income. Johnson v. US Bank National Association (In re Johnson) (January 2017) -- Judge S.V. Kelley Nonrecourse mortgages securing deferred payment loans counted in determining whether equity existed for purposes of stripping lien from Debtor's property. In re Tinita Holmes, Case No. 15-31329 (December 2016) -- Chief Judge G.M. Halfenger The chapter 13 trustee objected to plan confirmation because the debtor had not demonstrated that she devoted all of her projected disposable income to pay general unsecured creditors. See 11 U.S.C. §1325(b). Specifically, the trustee argued that the debtor failed to account for contributions to the debtor's household made by the debtor's mother when calculating the debtor's projected disposable income. The debtor, relying on 11 U.S.C. §101(10A), contended that because her mother's only income was social security, she did not have to account for her mother's contributions. The court sustained the trustee's objection. In re Olsen, 559 B.R. 879 (November 2016) -- Judge S.V. Kelley Court had ancillary jurisdiction to enforce Chapter 11 plan in closed case; lack of notice to affected party may render sale free and clear void as to that party. In re Toczek, Case No. 13-33214 (November 2016) -- Chief Judge G.M. Halfenger The court held that objections to claims and related notices must be mailed or otherwise delivered to the person and at the address specified by the creditor in the proof of claim. |