In re International Oil Trading Co.

548 B.R. 825, 26 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 61, 2016 Bankr. LEXIS 1856, 62 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 145, 2016 WL 1729227
United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. Florida.·Decided April 28, 2016·No. CASE NO.: 15-21596-EPK·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART THIRD MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS FROM MOHAMMAD AL-SALEH i

Erik P. Kimball, Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court

THIS MATTER came before the Court for hearing on March 18, 2016 and April 14, 2016 upon International Oil Trading Company, LLC’s Third Motion to Compel Production of Documents from Mohammad Al-Saleh [ECF No. 140] (the “Third Motion to Compel”) filed by the alleged debtor International Oil Trading Company, LLC (“IOTC USA”). In the Third Motion to Compel, IOTC USA requests that the Court compel Mohammad Al-Saleh to respond to various discovery requests. As provided in more detail below, the Court grants in part the Third Motion to Compel, requiring Mr. Al-Saleh to provide to IOTC USA, through counsel, a copy of his composite funding agreement with Burford Capital, LLC, from which Mr. Al-Saleh may redact all terms of payment and all terms reflecting attorney mental impressions and opinions concerning Mr. Al-Saleh’s litigation against IOTC USA, subject to further objection and possible review of the same by the Court in camera. All other relief requested in the Third Motion to Compel will be denied.

BACKGROUND

Mr. Al-Saleh is a citizen of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. IOTC USA is a Florida limited liability company. In the mid-2000s, Mr. Al-Saleh and IOTC USA collaborated in procuring and executing contracts to transport fuel across Jordanian territory to Iraq on behalf of the United States military. The-parties’ relationship soured, and Mr. Al-Saleh sued |OTC [829]*829USA and other parties in Florida in 2008. Thereafter, Mr. Al-Saleh entered into a contractual relationship with Burford Capital, LLC (“Burford”) to fund his litigation against IOTC USA. Burford has played a near-daily role in Mr, Al-Saleh’s litigation efforts, providing funding and assisting with legal and strategic decisions.

Mr. Al-Saleh won a judgment against IOTC USA and the other defendants in the Florida litigation in 2011, and the judgment was upheld on appeal. He has been largely unable to collect, despite numerous collection attempts in various courts. As a result, on June 26,2015, Mr. Al-Saleh filed the involuntary bankruptcy petition that commenced this case.

IOTC USA responded to the petition with what is now International Oil Trading Company, LLC’s Amended Answer to Involuntary Petition and Motion to Dismiss or Abstain [ECF No. 90] (the “Motion to Abstain”). The Motion to Abstain contains an answer to the allegations in the involuntary petition, a motion to dismiss under § 303 of the Bankruptcy Code,1 and a motion to abstain under § 305 of the Bankruptcy Code. See ECF Nos. 89, 90 (docketing amended response separately as answer and motions).

In its Order Granting Motion for Summary Judgment, entered on February 8, 2016 [ECF No. 132], the Court denied IOTC USA’s motion to dismiss this involuntary proceeding under § 303. The only issue remaining for trial is whether the Court should abstain from exercising jurisdiction over this involuntary bankruptcy proceeding under § 305.

In its Motion to Abstain, among other things, IOTC USA argues that this bankruptcy is essentially a continuation of its two-party dispute with Mr. Al-Saleh and that this bankruptcy case is harmful to IOTC USA and its other creditors. IOTC USA argues that Mr. Al-Saleh has-more proper venues for his collection efforts, and that this bankruptcy jeopardizes IOTC USAs efforts in certain valuable litigation and thus IOTC USAs debt to another funder in connection with that litigation. In essence, IOTC USA argues that Mr. AlSaleh’s motivation to file this bankruptcy is improper.

IOTC USA also argues that the Court should abstain because Mr. Al-Saleh is not the “real-party-in-interest” in this case. To that effect, IOTC USA argues that through or along with his funding arrangement with Burford, Mr. Al-Saleh transferred some interest in the judgment debt owed by IOTC USA. If so, IOTC USA argues that Mr. Al-Saleh is not “in the driver’s seat” and thus his role as'petitioning creditor is not appropriate.

On July 30, 2015, IOTC USA served Mr. Al-Saleh with its First Request for Production of Documents (the “Request,” attached as Exh. A to the Third Motion to Compel). In sub-parts 13-15 of the Request, IOTC USA requests that Mr. AlSaleh produce documents evidencing any sort of transfer of Mr. Al-Saleh’s judgment against IOTC USA or the debt represented thereby. In sub-part 16 of the Request, IOTC USA requests that Mr. AlSaleh produce all documents relating to transfers of funds from Burford to Mr. AlSaleh. In sub-parts 17-18 of the Request, IOTC USA requests that Mr. Al-Saleh produce all written communications between Mr. Al-Saleh and Burford from January 1, 2011 to the present, as well as all documents relating to such communications (collectively, the “Burford Communications”).

[830]*830On August 17, 2015, Mr. Al-Saleh responded to the Request with a number of general and specific objections to sub-parts 13-18. Most notably, Mr. Al-Saleh objected that all of the responsive documents are subject to attorney-client privilege, common interest/joint defense privilege, and work product protection.2 Mr. Al-Saleh provided a partial privilege log claiming such protections for all documents responsive to sup-parts 13-16 of the Request, which collectively make up the funding agreement between Mr. Al-Saleh and Burford (the “Funding Agreement”). Mr. Al-Saleh requested additional time to prepare, and guidance from the Court in connection with, a .privilege log regarding the Burford Communications, noting that the responsive documents totaled many thousands of pages.

Over the next six months, the Court entertained a number of motions by which IOTC USA sought to compel production of either the Burford Communications or a privilege log describing the documents subject to privilege. Ultimately, on February 19, 2016, IOTC USA filed the Third Motion to Compel, in which it argued that Mr. Al-Saleh had violated this Court’s pri- or orders by failing to tender a privilege log consistent with the Court’s direction. IOTC USA requested that the Court compel Mr. Al-Saleh to produce all documents responsive to sub-parts 13-18 of the Request. IOTC USA also objected that, to the extent Mr. Al-Saleh had provided a compliant privilege log, his claims of attorney-client privilege and work product protection were not appropriate to the documents at issue. IOTC USA asked the Court'to award sanctions against Mr. AlSaleh representing IOTC USA’s fees and costs in connection with its various efforts to compel production.

On March 29, 2016, the Court issued its Order Denying in Part and Setting Further Hearing On International Oil Trading Company, LLC’s Third Motion to Compel Production of Documents from Mohammad Al-Saleh [ECF No. 151] (the “Privilege Log Order”). In the Privilege Log Order, the Court ruled that Mr. AlSaleh had produced a privilege-log that complied with the Court’s prior orders. The Court denied the Third Motion to Compel except as to IOTC USA’s objection to Mr. Al-Saleh’s claims of privilege and work product protection.

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In re International Oil Trading Co., 548 B.R. 825, 26 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 61, 2016 Bankr. LEXIS 1856, 62 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 145, 2016 WL 1729227 (Fla. 2016).

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