Erickson v. Wilson-Aguilar (In re Erickson)
- Summarized by David Treacy , U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Kentucky
- 1 year 5 months ago
- Case Type:
- Consumer
- Case Status:
- Affirmed
- Citation:
- No. 23-60037 (9th Circuit, Sep 24,2024) Not Published
- Tag(s):
-
- Ruling:
- The U.S. Circuit Court for the Ninth Circuit affirmed a bankruptcy court's rulings (a) dismissing a debtor's chapter 13 petition for bad faith under the circuit's "totality of the circumstances" test, (b) imposing a two-year bar to refiling for bankruptcy relief, and (c) denying the debtor's motion for reconsideration based on "newly discovered evidence."
- Procedural context:
- Debtor and his spouse's efforts to contest the validity of the lien on their residence and to prevent foreclosure include litigation since 2010 (if not earlier) in the state courts of Washington (trial court, court of appeals, Supreme Courts), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Washington, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. A 2023 BAP decision states Debtor and his spouse obtained a loan to purchase the residence in 2006 and stopped making loan payments in 2009. They apparently have prevented completion of the foreclosure process via their litigation efforts through the issuance of this latest opinion.
- Facts:
- Debtor John Earl Erickson filed "six bankruptcy petitions (including the present one), none of which resulted in confirmation. Further the petitions were clearly intended to defeat state and federal court litigation concerning [Debtor's] primary residence and the debt [Debtor] and his wife secured against the property and thus delay the impending foreclosure proceeding" filed by the secured creditor. The chapter 13 trustee, Jason Wilson-Aguilar, moved to dismiss the latest case with a four year bar to re-filing. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Washington, applying the factors set out in In re Leavitt, 171 F.3d 1219 (9th Cir. 1999), found Debtor's bad faith constituted cause to dismiss the case and imposed a two-year bar to refiling under 11 U.S.C. § 349(a) and § 1307(c). Debtor moved for reconsideration, arguing newly discovered evidence warranted relief. However, that "evidence" concerned "the enforceability of the [secured] creditor's claim-an issue that has been repeatedly decided by state and federal courts and that had no bearing on the [bankruptcy] court's dismissal on grounds of bad faith" as "federal district courts have no authority to review the final determinations of a state court in judicial proceedings." The bankruptcy court denied the motion for reconsideration. Debtor appealed to the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit, which affirmed. Debtor filed a further appeal to the Ninth Circuit.
- Judge(s):
- FLETCHER and JOHNSTONE, Circuit Judges, and RAKOFF, District Judge
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