Lapierre v. Advanced Medical Spa Inc. (In re Advanced Medical Spa Inc.)
- Case Type:
- Business
- Case Status:
- Reversed and Remanded
- Citation:
- EC-16-1087-KuMaJu (9th Circuit, Nov 28,2016) Not Published
- Tag(s):
- Ruling:
Bankruptcy court applied an incorrect standard of proof when balancing the relative harms to the parties in its denial of a stay relief motion.
- Procedural context:
Appeal from the bankruptcy court for the Eastern District of California; reviewed for abuse of discretion.
- Facts:
Debtor's former client filed a prepetition state court action against debtor for medical malpractice and medical battery. When debtor subsequently filed for bankruptcy, the automatic stay prevented client's binding arbitration case from proceeding. Client moved to lift the stay to prosecute the arbitration proceeding and enforce any resulting award only against available liability insurance proceeds. Debtor and chapter 7 trustee opposed client's motion. Bankruptcy court held that granting client's request for relief would interfere with the administraiton of debtor's estate.
- Judge(s):
- Kurtz, Martin, Jury
