In re Holtkamp
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
669 F.2d 505 (1982)
Relevant factsFree
Charles Holtkamp (defendant) filed Chapter 11 just five days before he was set to defend a personal-injury suit brought by Ronald Littlefield (plaintiff), automatically staying that trial; the bankruptcy court granted Littlefield's request to lift the stay for the trial to proceed, but barred him from actually enforcing any resulting judgment. A jury then awarded Littlefield $5,025,000, and Holtkamp appealed the earlier decision to lift the stay.
IssueFree
May the bankruptcy court lift the automatic stay in order for an unsecured creditor to proceed with a civil lawsuit against the debtor in another tribunal?