Court Error – Bankruptcy

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7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Case Name: Christopher A. Trentadue v. Julie Gay
Case No.: 15-3142
Officials: RIPPLE, KANNE, and WILLIAMS, Circuit Judges.
Focus: Court Error – Bankruptcy

Plaintiff and debtor Christopher A. Trentadue and his wife divorced in 2007, and as part of that judgment, Trentadue and his then ex‐wife received joint le‐ gal custody of the couple’s six children. This arrangement proved unworkable and resulted in protracted litigation over custody and child support. The Wisconsin state court overseeing the litigation determined that Trentadue’s conduct resulted in excessive trial time to resolve the case and awarded Trentadue’s ex‐wife $25,000 in attorney’s fees for “overtrial.” The state court directed Trentadue to make the payment directly to his ex‐wife’s attorney, Defendant Julie M. Gay.   Trentadue never paid Gay. Instead, he filed a chapter 13 bankruptcy petition. Gay countered by filing a $25,000 claim for the unpaid overtrial award and classified it as a non‐ dischargeable, domestic support obligation entitled to priori‐ ty. Trentadue objected that the obligation was imposed as a punishment and therefore could not be a domestic support obligation, but the bankruptcy court overruled his objection. The district court agreed with the bankruptcy court after Trentadue challenged its ruling. We find no error and affirm the decision of the district court.

Affirm

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.