Curran v. Moon (In re Curran)
Curran v. Moon (In re Curran)
Opinion of the Court
The Debtor, Jeannette Curran, appeals the Bankruptcy Court's
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Curran filed a voluntary chapter 7 petition simultaneously with an application to waive the filing fee. Her application was denied, and she was ordered to pay four equal installments on specific dates between April and July 2018. After conducting the 341 meeting the Chapter 7 Trustee filed objections to Curran's exemption claims and an adversary proceeding to recover real estate she transferred pre-petition. Curran amended her schedules and objections to those amendments were lodged by the Trustee. His objections to exemptions were sustained and sanctions were imposed against Curran. She then moved to voluntarily dismiss her bankruptcy case which was denied as well as her motion to reconsider that ruling.
Two installment payments were timely made by Curran. When the third installment payment was not received a standard order was entered to show cause why the case should not be dismissed. The Trustee filed a response requesting that automatic dismissal of the case for non-payment of the filing fee be denied. On June 22, 2018 the Bankruptcy Court entered an order vacating the Order to Show Cause which stated: "The Court will extend the Third and Final Installment deadlines indefinitely pending the Chapter 7 Trustee's filing of a Final Report or NDR.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
An order denying relief under Rule 60(b) is reviewed for abuse of discretion. Needler v. IRS (In re Burival) ,
DISCUSSION
"An appeal from the denial of a Rule 60(b) motion does not raise the underlying *274judgment for our review but only the question of whether the district court abused its discretion in ruling on the Rule 60(b) motion." Noah ,
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(1) allows a court to relieve a party from a final judgment, order or proceeding for "mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect." It also includes a catch-all provision that allows a court to consider granting relief where it is justified for any other reason. Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(6). Rule 60(b) motions are left to the sound discretion of the court. " Rule 60(b)(1) relief will not be granted merely upon a showing of mistake. The movant must establish a meritorious defense, lack of prejudice to the plaintiff and freedom from culpability." Forbes v. Forbes (In re Forbes) ,
Curran's briefs contain extensive and repetitive factual argument expressing frustration with the bankruptcy process but she fails to identify any clearly erroneous facts or an incorrect application of the law that would entitle her to relief under any of the circumstances identified in Rule 60(b). We see no error or abuse of discretion in the Bankruptcy Court's Order denying Curran's motion for reconsideration.
Accordingly, the Bankruptcy Court's order is AFFIRMED.
The Honorable Cynthia A. Norton, Chief Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Missouri.
A report that no assets are available for distribution.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- IN RE: Jeannette Elaine CURRAN, Debtor. Jeannette Elaine Curran, Debtor-Appellant v. Fred Charles Moon, Trustee-Appellee
- Status
- Published