United States Ninth Circuit

In actions seeking punitive damages and attorney's fees arising out of the filing of allegedly meritless involuntary bankruptcy petitions against two alleged debtors, judgment against appellants is affirmed in part where: 1) the bankruptcy court properly concluded that 11 U.S.C. section 303(i) permitted an award of attorney's fees for a section 303 action as a whole, including fees incurred to litigate claims for fees and damages under section 303(i)(1) and (2); 2) section 303(i) permitted an award of punitive damages under section 303(i)(2)(B) in the absence of an award of actual damages under section 303(i)(2)(A); and 3) the bankruptcy court properly held two individual appellants jointly and severally liable for the costs and attorney's fees the debtors incurred in obtaining dismissal of the involuntary petitions. However, the judgment is reversed in part where the bankruptcy court erred by holding the individual appellants liable for the debtors' costs and fees incurred on the section 303(i) motions themselves.

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/02/2010
• Decided 06/09/2010
• Published 06/09/2010

Judges

• Before MARY M. SCHROEDER, RAYMOND C. FISHER and N. RANDY SMITH, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Thomas W. Dressler (argued), the Dressler Law Group, LLP, Los Angeles, CA, Stella A. Havkin, Litwak & Havkin, Woodland Hills, CA, for the appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• William Miles Burd, Burd & Naylor, Santa Ana, CA, C. Michael Chapman, Laguna Niguel, CA, Todd Carl Ringstad (argued), Ringstad & Sanders LLP, Irvine, CA, for the appellees.