Where all the elements for collateral estoppel were established, the bankruptcy court did not err in finding a contract was formed between the trustee and a defendant. But because the court did not articulate its reasoning on damages, the issue ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Leonie Brinkema U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Chapter 7 discharge is no impediment to a bank’s pursuing an action against the owner of real property because the bankruptcy did not void the deed of trust. Background In 2010, Dale Gene Hall and Rebecca Lind Thompson-Hall purchased ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Where the evidence demonstrated the debtor’s wife likely forged his signatures on personal guarantees to obtain loans, the bank failed to carry its burden to prove the guarantees were genuine copies of original documents signed by the debtor. With respect ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Klinette H. Kindred U.S. Bankruptcy Court

A bank’s claims were not barred by the statute of limitations because they were subject to Virginia’s six-year statute of limitations, not the five-year statute of limitations applicable to contracts, as the debtor argued. Background This matter comes before the court ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Paul M. Black U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where a law firm continued to exercise control over garnished funds after receiving notice of the debtor’s bankruptcy filing, it violated the automatic stay. The debtor was awarded attorneys’ fees, but because she did not suffer damages and the firm’s ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Brian F. Kenney U.S. Bankruptcy Court

A creditor who received notice of a bankruptcy filing and then contacted the debtor threatening criminal action if she did not pay, willfully violated the automatic stay and was ordered to pay $170 in actual damages and $500 in punitive ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Paul M. Black U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where the trustee made an offer to settle, which was agreed to for consideration, a binding settlement agreement was reached. But in a question of apparent first impression in the Fourth Circuit, the agreement is binding only if approved by ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Paul M. Black U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where attorneys admitted in Virginia and from outside Virginia acted in bad faith in connection with two consumer bankruptcies, the record supported the bankruptcy court’s imposition of practice and monetary sanctions. For the out-of-state attorneys, however, the amount of sanctions ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District

Chapter 11 bankruptcies will be easier for businesses with smaller debt loads under a new law that takes effect in February. In August, President Donald Trump signed the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019. Sponsored by Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy

A Roanoke federal judge has upheld penalties against two Virginia lawyers who teamed up with a short-lived, Chicago-based national bankruptcy firm accused of high-pressure sales tactics and litigation misconduct. U.S District Judge Michael F. Urbanski refused to undo $5,000 sanctions ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District