Vieira v. Gaither (In re Gaither)

595 B.R. 201
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, D. South Carolina
DecidedNovember 29, 2018
DocketC/A No. 18-01317-dd; Adv. Pro. No. 18-80040-dd
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 595 B.R. 201 (Vieira v. Gaither (In re Gaither)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, D. South Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vieira v. Gaither (In re Gaither), 595 B.R. 201 (S.C. 2018).

Opinion

David R. Duncan, Chief US Bankruptcy Judge *204This matter is before the Court on the defendants', Zachary A. Gaither, Jordan Gaither Willis, Benjamin Richard Gaither, and ZJB, LLC (collectively "Defendants"), Motion to Dismiss pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and (6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.1 [Docket No. 9].

BACKGROUND

This adversary proceeding arises from a tragic accident and a subsequent civil action which resulted in a $1.3 million settlement in favor of Cole and Anita Gaither ("Debtors").

1. On August 14, 2014, Debtors' son, Matthew Gaither, died in an aviation accident.

2. On January 8, 2015, the Charleston County Probate Court named Debtors the personal representatives of Matthew's estate.

3. On January 26, 2015, Debtors filed a lawsuit against Coastal Aviation, Inc. and William Peterson for the damages resulting from Matthew's death.

4. On May 6, 2015, the Charleston County Court of Common Pleas approved a settlement of $1.3 million in favor of Debtors. The net recovery of the settlement totaled $830,183.67 ("Settlement Proceeds").

5. On the same day, Debtors disclaimed their rights to the Settlement Proceeds. As a result, the Settlement Proceeds passed to Debtors' three surviving children, and each child received $276,727.89-a one-third interest.

6. The surviving children subsequently formed ZJB, LLC (the "LLC") and deposited the Settlement Proceeds in an account owned by the LLC.

7. Debtors filed their chapter 7 bankruptcy case on March 16, 2018.

8. In an amended proof of claim, the Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") claimed Debtors owed the federal government a total of $787,239.85.2 Of the total amount, the IRS listed $332,023.52 as the total amount of secured claims and $455,216.33 as the total amount of unsecured claims. Of the total amount of unsecured claims, the IRS listed $102,873.82 as unsecured priority claims and $352,342.51 as unsecured general claims.3

9. On June 4, 2018, the plaintiff and chapter 7 trustee, Michelle L. Vieira ("Trustee"), filed this adversary proceeding, asserting that 11 U.S.C. § 544(b) permits Trustee to avoid Debtors' transfer of the disclaimed Settlement Proceeds to Defendants.4 [Docket No. 1].

10. On July 18, 2018, Defendants filed their Motion to Dismiss, asserting that *205Trustee may not avoid Debtors' transfer of the Settlement Proceeds. [Docket No. 9].

11. On August 17, 2018, Trustee filed an objection to Defendants' Motion. [Docket No. 12].

12. On September 4, 2018, Defendants filed a response to Trustee's objection.5 [Docket No. 14].

13. The Court held a hearing on Defendants' Motion on October 23, 2018 and allowed Trustee to file a supplemental response to Defendants' Reply. Additionally, the Court permitted Defendants to file a final supplemental reply and Trustee to respond to Defendants' final supplemental reply.

14. On November 2, 2018, Trustee filed a supplemental response to Defendants' Reply. [Docket No. 19].

15. On November 9, 2018, Defendants filed a final response to Trustee's Supplemental Response. [Docket No. 20].

16. On the same day, Trustee filed a final supplemental reply to Defendants' Final Supplemental Response. [Docket No. 21].

LEGAL STANDARD

Defendants filed their Motion to Dismiss pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which are made applicable to this adversary proceeding by Rule 7012 of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure. Dismissal is appropriate under Rule 12(b)(1) where the court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction. A party bringing a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(1) contends that the complaint fails to state facts upon which jurisdiction can be founded. When a defendant brings a Rule 12(b)(1) motion, the burden is on the plaintiff to prove jurisdiction, and the court must regard the allegations in the pleadings as "mere evidence on the issue, and may consider evidence outside the pleadings without converting the proceeding to one for summary judgment." Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac R.R. Co. v. United States , 945 F.2d 765, 768 (4th Cir. 1991).

Under Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a party may move to dismiss a complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. To survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, a plaintiff must provide "more than mere labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do." Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly , 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). A pleading that states a claim for relief must contain "a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief." Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2) ; Fed R. Bankr. P. 7008. Moreover, the statement must include "enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face." Twombly , 550 U.S. at 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955. "The plausibility standard is not akin to a probability requirement, but it asks for more than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully." Ashcroft v. Iqbal , 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868

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Bluebook (online)
595 B.R. 201, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vieira-v-gaither-in-re-gaither-scb-2018.