Byrnes v. Byrnes (In re Byrnes)
- Summarized by David Treacy , U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Kentucky
- 3 months 3 weeks ago
- Case Type:
- Consumer
- Case Status:
- Affirmed
- Citation:
- No. 24-2015 (10th Circuit, Sep 17,2024) Not Published
- Tag(s):
-
- Ruling:
- A bankruptcy court imposed sanctions due to litigation conduct that was in bad faith, vexatious, and harassing. Specifically, the court dismissed an adversary proceeding brought by the plaintiff, a retired lawyer suing his ex-wife/debtor for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and required the plaintiff to pay the debtor's legal fees. The U.S. Circuit Court for the Tenth Circuit concluded the plaintiff "forfeited his opportunity to have [the court] review the rulings below on their merits" as his brief failed to raise any claims of error or cite to the record.
- Procedural context:
- The bankruptcy court sanctioned the plaintiff after he refused to participate in a pretrial conference. In its written opinion, the court explained: "[Plaintiff] does not want to try the case against his wife, only to litigate it. [He] knows his wife has limited means and cannot afford litigation. Relying on his experience as a lawyer, [Plaintiff] used this proceeding to harass his wife and drain her of what little money she had, without incurring any substantial expenses of his own. . . . [Plaintiff] has used litigation in the state district court, the state appellate and Supreme Courts, this Court, the district court, the Tenth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel, and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, to vex, harass, and impoverish his wife. [Plaintiff] does not want a judgment, which would be uncollect[a]ble, but to keep this litigation going as long as possible." Plaintiff also made derogatory and otherwise disrespectful statements to the bankruptcy judge, including calling him a "son of a b----" and an "absolute disgrace as a judge[.]"
- Facts:
- Plaintiff Barry Byrnes, a retired attorney, "sued his estranged wife [Sylvia Byrnes] for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress after she told police and a state court he had physically assaulted her." She filed a bankruptcy petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Mexico. The state court suit was removed and consolidated with an an adversary proceeding Plaintiff had filed. "Extensive litigation followed, including multiple pretrial conferences and hearings in the bankruptcy court; imposition of monetary sanctions against [Plaintiff] for discovery violations; denial of his motion to disqualify the bankruptcy judge; dismissal of his five requests for interlocutory relief from the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel; [the Tenth Circuit's] denial of his petition for mandamus; the district court’s dismissal of his motion to withdraw its reference to the bankruptcy court of his adversary proceeding; and [the Tenth Circuit's] dismissal of his appeal from that ruling. In those proceedings [Plaintiff’s] efforts to avoid advancing toward trial in the bankruptcy court were repeatedly rejected." After Plaintiff refused to participate in a pretrial conference, arguing the bankruptcy court lacked jurisdiction to hold it due to Plaintiff's procedural machinations, the bankruptcy court sanctioned Plaintiff by dismissing the proceeding and requiring Plaintiff to pay Debtor's legal fees. Plaintiff appealed to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. The district court adopted a magistrate judge's recommendation to affirm the bankruptcy court's rulings. Plaintiff further appealed to the Tenth Circuit.
- Judge(s):
- Holmes, Hartz, and Rossman
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