In re: Maliah Isis Bush; Charles W. Wills, Chapter 7 Trustee v. Turnbull Law Group, LLC

CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. Georgia
DecidedMarch 31, 2026
Docket25-01016
StatusUnknown

This text of In re: Maliah Isis Bush; Charles W. Wills, Chapter 7 Trustee v. Turnbull Law Group, LLC (In re: Maliah Isis Bush; Charles W. Wills, Chapter 7 Trustee v. Turnbull Law Group, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re: Maliah Isis Bush; Charles W. Wills, Chapter 7 Trustee v. Turnbull Law Group, LLC, (Ga. 2026).

Opinion

A As RN @ es y □ IT IS ORDERED as set forth below: (5)

Date: March 31, 2026 Susan D. Barrett United States Bankruptcy Judge Southern District of Georgia

IN THE UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA Augusta Division IN RE: ) Chapter 7 Case ) Number 24-10908 MALIAH ISIS BUSH, ) Debtor. ) oo) ) CHARLES W. WILLS, CHAPTER 7 ) TRUSTEE, ) Plaintiff. ) ) Adversary Proceeding Vv. ) Number 25-01016 ) TURNBULL LAW GROUP, LLC, ) Defendant. )

OPINION AND ORDER Before the Court is a Motion to Dismiss (“Motion”) filed by Defendant Turnbull Law Group, LLC (“Defendant”). Dckt. No. 14. Plaintiff Charles W. Wills, as Chapter 7 Trustee (‘Plaintiff’), filed

a Response and Defendant subsequently filed its Reply in support of the Motion. Dckt. Nos. 21, 22. Having been considered and heard, and for the reasons stated below, the Motion is DENIED. BACKGROUND A. The Complaint

Debtor Maliah Isis Bush (“Debtor”) filed her chapter 7 petition on December 26, 2024. Case No. 24-10908, Dckt. No. 1. Plaintiff initiated this adversary proceeding on October 7, 2025. Dckt. No. 1. Plaintiff pleaded the following facts in his Complaint: On or about January 12, 2023, Debtor entered a “Client Engagement Agreement” (the “Agreement”) with Defendant for a “Debt Resolution Program” where Defendant would receive funds from Debtor and disburse the funds, minus fees, to Debtor’s creditors “on an adjusted, reduced, and/or compromised basis.” Dckt. No. 1 ¶ 10. Under the Agreement, Defendant’s fees would amount to 6.5% of the total debts included in the Agreement as a “retainer fee” and 20.5% of the total debts included in the Agreement as a “service cost” for the “management of Debtor’s ‘debt negotiation plan.’” Id. ¶ 11.

Debtor listed 6 creditors with claims totaling $37,247.00 to be included in the Agreement. Id. ¶12. From January 19, 2023 to June 7, 2025, Debtor paid Defendant a total of $18,071.77. Id. ¶ 13. Between April 26, 2023 and December 26, 2024, Defendant paid $8,900.02 to Debtor’s creditors. Id. ¶ 14. Meanwhile, between May 1, 2023 and May 29, 2024, Defendant paid itself $8,289.54 in fees, amounting to 46% of the total amount Debtor paid. Id. ¶ 15. Plaintiff has asserted several causes of action arising from this course of dealing. In Count One, Plaintiff asserts he is entitled to avoid the payments to Defendant as fraudulent transfers under 11 U.S.C. §548(a)(1)(B).1 Dckt. No. 1 ¶¶ 16–22. Plaintiff alleges the payments (i) constituted a

1 Unless otherwise stated, all references are to Title 11 of the United States Code. transfer of Debtor’s interest in property, (ii) the payments were made within two years of the petition date, (iii) Debtor received less than reasonably equivalent value in exchange, (iv) there was no reasonable likelihood Defendant’s services would benefit Debtor and the Agreement left Debtor in a worse financial position, and (v) Debtor was insolvent at the time of the payments or became insolvent

as a result. Id. ¶¶ 17–21. In Count Two, Plaintiff asserts he is entitled to avoid the payments to Defendant pursuant to O.C.G.A. §18-2-75(a), made applicable by §544(b)(1), for the reasons set forth in Count One. Id. ¶¶ 23–29. In Count Three, Plaintiff asserts pursuant to §550(a) that he is entitled to recover from Defendant the value of Debtor’s payments because Defendant was the initial transferee of the payments and/or the person for whose benefit the Payments were made. Id. ¶¶ 30–32. Counts Four and Five pertain to Georgia state law. In Count Four, Plaintiff asserts Defendant violated §18-5-2 and §18-5-3.2 of the Georgia Debt Adjustment Act (“GDAA”) by charging fees for its debt adjustment services in excess of the 7.5% allowed by O.C.G.A §18-5-2 and by failing to disburse all funds to Debtor’s creditors within thirty (30) days of receipt as required by O.C.G.A. §18- 5-3.2 and therefore Defendant is liable for a civil fine of $50,000.00 and $23,071.77 in damages

pursuant to O.C.G.A. §18-5-4(b)(1)-(2). Id. ¶¶ 33–44. Count Five relies on Count Four, asserting Defendant’s violations of the GDAA also are violations of the Georgia Fair Business Practices Act (“GFPBA”).2 Id. ¶¶ 45–47. Plaintiff states he notified Defendant of its violation by letter and asserts Defendant is liable for damages including actual damages, treble damages, and attorney’s fees and expenses pursuant to O.C.G.A. §§ 10-1-399(a) and (c)–(d). Id. ¶¶ 48–51. B. The Motion to Dismiss Defendant argues Counts One and Two should be dismissed for failure to state a claim, asserting the Complaint is conclusory as to Debtor’s receipt of less than reasonably equivalent value and

2 O.C.G.A. §10-1-391. “[Plaintiff] does not offer any factual allegations about the extent of the services that [Defendant] provided, why such services were worth less than what Debtor paid for, or whether any debts of Debtor were negotiated or settled.” Dckt. No. 14, at 6–7. Defendant argues because Counts One and Two fail, so must Plaintiff’s claim for transfer avoidance in Count Three. See id. at 9. Defendant also argues

the Court should dismiss Count Four because the GDAA does not apply to Defendant “as [it is] a law firm that provided legal services to Debtor” which is expressly exempted from GDAA and “any claim is barred by the exemption set forth in O.C.G.A. §18-5-3, as well as the separation of powers doctrine under the Georgia Constitution.” Id. at 9. Furthermore, Defendant argues Count Five should be dismissed for the same reasons because Plaintiff’s “sole allegation” for liability under the Georgia Fair Business Practices Act (“GFBPA”) is dependent on liability under the GDAA. Id. at 17. Defendant acknowledges the recent decision in Schofield v. The Brian A. Moore Law Firm, LLC (In re Mai), Adversary Proceeding No. 24-02004, 2025 WL 2803789 (Bankr. S.D. Ga. Sept. 30, 2025), wherein another bankruptcy court in this district denied a motion to dismiss in a case with nearly identical facts and arguments. Dckt. No. 14, at 13. Defendant argues this Court should not

follow the reasoning of that decision because: (1) that defendant in Mai is currently seeking leave to appeal the order to the district court3 and the bankruptcy court’s conclusions have not been reviewed and ruled upon by the district court, the Eleventh Circuit, or considered by any Georgia state court; and (2) the decision is incorrect on its merits. Id. at 13–17. In support of its Motion, Defendant attached a declaration (“Declaration”) by Christopher Turnbull, the member-manager of Defendant. Dckt. No. 14-1. Attached to the Declaration is a copy

3 The law firm in In re Mai has requested leave to appeal the bankruptcy court’s interlocutory order denying its motion to dismiss. The Brian A. Moore Law Firm LLC v. Schofield, Case No. 2:25- cv-00127 (S.D. Ga. Oct. 15, 2025), Dckt. No. 2. As of the date of this Order, there has been no ruling on the law firm’s request to appeal. of the Agreement signed by Debtor and Jordon Solomon, who is identified as one of Defendant’s attorneys, and a document displaying Ms. Solomon’s membership with the State Bar of Georgia. Dckt. Nos. 14-2, 14-3; see also Dckt. No. 14, at 4.

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In re: Maliah Isis Bush; Charles W. Wills, Chapter 7 Trustee v. Turnbull Law Group, LLC, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-maliah-isis-bush-charles-w-wills-chapter-7-trustee-v-turnbull-gasb-2026.