Summary:
The Chapter Trustee sought denial of Spiers’ discharge, exemptions, and monetary relief on the grounds that Spiers had intentionally failed to disclose numerous assets and transfers of assets he owned or had an interest in at the time of the filing of the bankruptcy petition, attempted to suborn perjury from another witness, and failed to cooperate with the Trustee to the point that the Trustee forced to expend a substantial amount of time and resources in attempting to obtain an accurate portrayal of Spier’s finances and to recover for the benefit of his creditors.
As such, the bankruptcy court found that Spiers had engaged in conduct that warranted denial of his discharge under 11 U.S.C. § 727. Going further, the “bankruptcy court may surcharge a debtor’s exemptions when reasonably necessary to protect the integrity of the bankruptcy process. See Latman v. Burdette, 366 F.3d 774, 786 (9th Cir. 2004); Malley v. Agin, 693 F.3d 28, 29 (1st Cir. 2012), and Spiers was surcharged nearly $70,000 for the costs of pursuing him so that “his creditors and the bankruptcy estate should be put in back into the position it would have been had Spiers filed accurate and truthful schedules.” Lastly, the Order of the bankruptcy court was referred to the U.S. Attorney, presumably for review as to whether bankruptcy crimes had been committed.
For a copy of the opinion, please see:
Spiers- Denial of Discharge and Surcharge for Costs of Estate.pdf
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