In re Yuska

571 B.R. 424, 2017 Bankr. LEXIS 1296, 119 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 1819
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Iowa
DecidedMay 12, 2017
DocketBankruptcy No. 14-01504
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 571 B.R. 424 (In re Yuska) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Yuska, 571 B.R. 424, 2017 Bankr. LEXIS 1296, 119 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 1819 (Iowa 2017).

Opinion

RULING ON TRUSTEE’S RENEWED MOTION TO DISBURSE REAL ESTATE PROCEEDS (LIENS)

THAD J. COLLINS, CHIEF BANKRUPTCY JUDGE

This matter came on for telephonic hearing on April 19, 2017. Debtor David Eugene Yuska appeared pro se. David Yuska has asked that he be referred to as “David.” The Court will honor that request. Eric Lam appeared with and for Trustee Renee Hanrahan. John Waters and Laurie McCown appeared for the Iowa Department of Revenue. Marty McLaughlin appeared for the Internal Revenue Service. David did not file an objection before the hearing. At the hearing, David objected to Trustee’s motion. The Court gave Debtor 7 days to file a written objection setting out the basis of his objection. David timely filed his objection. This is a core proceeding under 11 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A).

BACKGROUND

David filed bankruptcy. In his bankruptcy, the Iowa Department of Revenue and the Internal Revenue Service both filed substantial claims for unpaid taxes. David contested these state and federal tax claims in two adversaries: Yuska v. Iowa Department of Revenue, Adversary No. 15-09004, and Yuska v. Internal Revenue Service, Adversary No. 15-09005 (“the tax adversaries”). In the tax adversaries, David argued, for various reasons, that state and federal tax laws did not apply to him and that he did not owe tax to Iowa or to the United States.

While the tax adversaries were pending, Trustee sought authorization to sell property. David objected. David argued that the property was his, not the Trustee’s. David also argued that it was improper to sell the property to pay tax claims when he was disputing the validity of those tax claims. The Court approved the real estate sale over David’s objection. The Court specifically ordered, however, that the “net remaining proceeds shall be held by the Trustee, and shall not be distributed until further notice and hearing and order from this Court.” (Doc. 236 at 2).

Trustee later filed her Motion to Disburse Real Estate Proceeds (Liens). David objected to the motion. David argued that the real estate proceeds should not be disbursed to the Internal Revenue Service and the Iowa Department of Revenue because he disputed the validity of those tax claims in the tax adversaries. The Court held a telephonic hearing on the motion. The Court ordered that “[t]he Motion to Disburse Real Estate Proceeds (Liens) is held in abeyance pending ruling on the [426]*426adversarial proceedings (15-9004 and 15-9005).” (Doc. 326).

On July 6, 2016, the Court ruled on David’s adversary against the Iowa Department of Revenue. The Court granted the Iowa Department of Revenue’s Motion for Summary Judgment and dismissed the adversary. David appealed this ruling to the Eighth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“B.A.P.”). David did not file a motion for a stay of the order pending appeal. The B.A.P. affirmed this Court’s ruling on May 8,2017.

On February 13, 2017, the Court ruled on David’s adversary against the Internal Revenue Service. The Court granted the Internal Revenue Service’s Motion for Summary Judgment and dismissed the adversary. David appealed this ruling to the District Court. That appeal is still pending. David also did not file a motion for a stay pending appeal in this adversary. No court has stayed this Court’s ruling in the Internal Revenue Service Adversary.

On March 9, 2017, Trustee filed a Re-' newed Motion to Disburse Real Estate Proceeds (Liens), the subject of this ruling. Trustee noted that her original Motion to Disburse Real Estate Proceeds was still pending, that the Court had ruled on the tax adversaries, and that those rulings were not stayed pending appeal. Trustee asked the Court to grant her original motion to disburse and authorize her to" disburse the approximately $1.15 million she is currently holding.

On April 19, 2017, the Court held a telephonic hearing on Trustee’s motion. Trustee asked that, if her motion is granted, the Court sign her previously filed proposed order on the earlier Motion to Disburse Real Estate Proceeds that is docketed at 286 in this case. David objected to Trustee’s motion for the first time at the hearing. David argued that his adversaries were still pending because they were still on appeal. (At the time of the hearing, the B.A.P. had not yet ruled on David’s appeal in the Iowa Department of Revenue adversary.) The Court gave David 7 days to file a written objection and any other supporting documents.

David filed his objection, David argues in his objection that the Trustee should not disburse the funds at issue because he does not owe income tax to Iowa or to the United States. David’s written objection has three parts.

The first part is an affidavit in which David makes a number of statements about his relationship to the United States: in particular, that he is foreign to the United States, that he has never contracted with the United States, that the United States has deceived him in various ways, that he never agreed to pay taxes, and that the United States is extorting money from him, among other things.

The second part is also an affidavit. In it, David states that he does not have the proper “money of account” that complies with Article 1, Section 10 of the Constitution to pay his debt to the United States— namely, “legal money of gold or silver Coin.” David also says that the United States does not issue such money. David says that, unless and until the United States does issue such money, he is legally unable to pay the United States.

The third part is a brief setting out the legal basis for David’s position in his affidavit that he cannot pay taxes because the United States does not issue currency in gold or silver coin. David argues that the gold and silver coin required by Article 1, Section 10 of the Constitution is no longer in circulation. David argues that, because it is impossible for him to get the proper legal tender, it is impossible for him to pay his tax liability. David concludes that he does not owe taxes.

[427]*427David also filed what was captioned as Motion to Dismiss Disbursement Process, Notice of Fraud, Notice of Fraud by Concealment, Notice of Fraud on the Court. It is an affidavit stating that David has no.t contracted with the United States, that he has been defrauded by members of the bar, and that the judgments are void for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, among other things. In it, David requests that “this bankruptcy proceeding, disbursement, be dismissed .... ” The Court will set this motion for hearing. To the extent that this document is part of David’s objection to Trustee’s motion, the Court addresses it along with his other objections in the next section.

' DISCUSSION

David’s position in his written objections is that he does not owe income tax. Whether David owes income tax, however, is not the issue here—the Court has already ruled that David does owe income tax. The issue currently before the Court is whether Trustee should disburse funds from the sale of real estate to David’s creditors. David does not directly address this issue in his written objections.

At the hearing, however, David did address this issue. David argued that it was improper to disburse the funds because the tax adversaries were still pending on appeal. The Court will first address David’s written objections and then address the argument he made at the hearing.

I. Tax liability

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
571 B.R. 424, 2017 Bankr. LEXIS 1296, 119 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 1819, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-yuska-ianb-2017.