In re Windmill Environmental Services, LLC

381 B.R. 717, 2008 Bankr. LEXIS 257, 2008 WL 313452
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Indiana
DecidedJanuary 17, 2008
DocketNo. 06-60075 JPK
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 381 B.R. 717 (In re Windmill Environmental Services, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Windmill Environmental Services, LLC, 381 B.R. 717, 2008 Bankr. LEXIS 257, 2008 WL 313452 (Ind. 2008).

Opinion

[719]*719 MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND ORDER CONCERNING MOTION FOR AUTHORITY TO SELL CERTAIN ASSETS

J. PHILIP KLINGEBERGER, Bankruptcy Judge.

On May 30, 2007, Windmill Environmental Services, LLC (“Windmill”), as the debtor-in-possession in this Chapter 11 case, filed a Motion for Authority to Sell Certain Assets. This motion was promptly attacked by Windmill’s principal creditor, the Estate of George B. Holmes (“Estate”), which filed its Objection to Debtors’ Motion for Authority to Sell Certain Assets, and Request for Immediate Telephonic Hearing on June 6, 2007. Cannonades were lobbed back and forth between the parties, including the Debtor’s Motion for Sanctions Under Fed.R.Civ.P. 11 and Fed.R.Bankr.P. 9011 filed on July 9, 2007 and the Estate of George B. Holmes’ Response to Motion for Sanctions Under Fed. R.Civ.P. 11 and Fed.R.Bankr.P. 9011 filed on July 24, 2007. The Rule 9011 motion is addressed to the Estate’s objection to the sales motion, and because of the interrelationship between these two contested matters, the Court will address both in this decision.

The Court has subject matter jurisdiction of both of the foregoing contested matters pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1334(a) and (b), pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 157(a) and (b), and pursuant to N.D.Ind.L.R. 200.1(a). The contested matter concerning the sales motion is a core proceeding under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(N), and the Rule 11 contested matter is a core proceeding under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A).

I. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

The contested matter concerning the sales motion was initiated by Windmill’s Motion for Authority to Sell Certain Assets, filed on May 30, 2007, to which the Estate responded by filing its objection to that motion on June 6, 2007, to which Windmill responded by its Debtor’s Response to Objection of the Estate of George B. Holmes to the Debtor’s Motion for Authority to Sell Certain Assets, and Request for Immediate Telephonic Hearing filed on June 8, 2007. Other documents were filed by each of the parties in relation to procedural skirmishes prior to engagement in battle over the sales motion; however, the Court does not deem it necessary to designate these documents for the purposes of stating the status of the record.

The contested matter concerning the Rule 11 motion arose from the Debtor’s Motion for Sanctions Under Fed.R.Civ.P. 11 and Fed.R.Bankr.P. 9011 filed on July 9, 2007 and the Estate’s response to that motion filed on July 24, 2007.

On July 9, 2007, the Court held a hearing which addressed, in addition to other matters pending between Windmill and the Estate, the manner in which further proceedings would be held with respect to the two contested matters. This order required the parties to file a pre-trial order, which was filed on July 23, 2007. The order also scheduled an evidentiary hearing for July 27, 2007.

At the July 27 hearing, the parties determined that the two contested matters would be submitted to the Court on essentially a stipulated record, which will be set out in the succeeding section of this decision.

II. DESIGNATION OF FACTS

The factual record was provided by the parties’ stipulation at the July 27, 2007 hearing as to the record to be considered by the Court with respect to the Estate’s objection to the sales motion. The objection is focused upon the contention that [720]*720certain of the property sought to be sold by means of the motion is not property of Windmill’s bankruptcy estate.

The documentary exhibits to be considered by the Court are the following:

1. Windmill’s Trial Exhibit # 1 (“Agreement and Plan of Reorganization, among U S Liquids of Illinois, Inc., and D & H Holding Company, Inc., and George B. Holmes, Ronald L. Holmes, George H. Holmes, and the James Holmes Irrevocable Trust”);

2. Windmill’s Exhibit # 2 (“Agreement of Lease” dated October 30, 1998, entered into between George B. Holmes as landlord and U S Liquids of Illinois, Inc. as tenant);

3. Windmill’s Exhibit # 16 (entitled “Liquidation Value of Plant and Processing Equipment [Fifth Third Bank]”);

4. The Estate’s Exhibit # 3 (“Agreement to Terminate Lease” dated October 30, 1998 between George B. Holmes as landlord and Dombrowski & Holmes, Inc. as tenant); and

5. The Estate’s Exhibit #4 (a two-page document comprised of a letter dated December 14, 1998, to which is attached a document entitled “General Conveyance, Assignment and Bill of Sale”).

In addition to the foregoing documentary evidence, the parties stipulated to the following:

a.The original equipment/personal property in plant # 1 of the leased premises — property on those premises prior to October 30, 1998 — is comprised of items # 1 (“Filter Press”), # 10 (“Rotary Screen”) and # 18 (“Steel Tank”) as designated in Windmill’s Exhibit # 16.

b. The items designated as # 21, # 22 and # 23 in Windmill’s Exhibit # 16 are property of the debtor’s bankruptcy estate.1

c. All other items designated in Windmill’s Exhibit # 16 were placed in the leased premises after October 30, 1998.

Finally, the following facts were stipulated between the parties in the pre-trial order:

1. The Debtor previously occupied the premises commonly known as 3-141 Street, Hammond, Indiana pursuant to a nonresidential real property lease.

2. The lease arose on or about October 30, 1998, with George Holmes, as lessor, agreeing to lease the premises to U.S. Liquids of Greater Chicago, Inc.

3. On or about March 12, 2004, and pursuant to an order of the Superior Court for Lake County, Indiana, U.S. Liquids assigned its rights in the lease to the Debtor as the sole tenant.

4. The Debtor purchased the U.S. Liquids of Greater Chicago, Inc. assets pursuant to the Assets Purchase Agreement.

5. After acquiring the assets, the Debt- or operated the business of U.S. Liquids of Greater Chicago, Inc.

The Court’s determination with respect to the sales motion will be made by applying provisions of the stipulated documents to the circumstances with respect to the designated items of equipment as provided by the parties’ foregoing stipulations.

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Bluebook (online)
381 B.R. 717, 2008 Bankr. LEXIS 257, 2008 WL 313452, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-windmill-environmental-services-llc-innb-2008.