News
Early Sullivan Successfully Has Summary Judgment Order Reversed on Appeal on behalf of Bankruptcy Trustee
An Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae appellate team, comprised of Scott Gizer and Brett Moore, successfully had a bankruptcy court order granting summary judgment against bankruptcy trustee, Amy Goldman, reversed on appeal by the U.S. District Court.
Ms. Goldman brought an adversary complaint against third-party Shawn Dardashti for fraudulent transfer and a resulting trust asserting that the Debtors had transferred their home to Mr. Dardashti to shield it from creditors, but that the Debtors retained the beneficial interest in the property and were the true owners. The bankruptcy court judge granted summary judgment in favor of Mr. Dardashti finding that the bankruptcy trustee could not assert a fraudulent transfer claim because the property had no equity at the time of the fraudulent transfer and that the resulting trust remedy could not be asserted because it was a cause of action that could not be asserted by a bankruptcy trustee.
On appeal, the U.S. District Court agreed with Early Sullivan and Ms. Goldman that a resulting trust is a remedy for a common law fraudulent transfer claim, not a cause of action, and whether the property had equity at the time of transfer is irrelevant when the remedy sought is a resulting trust.