Background
Jun Dam, proceeding pro se, appealed a district court order that granted a motion to dismiss his challenge to a bankruptcy court’s approval of a law firm’s final fee application. The appeal was filed in the Ninth Circuit.
The court’s reasoning
The panel determined it had jurisdiction under Section twenty-eight United States Code, Section one thousand two hundred and ninety-one. The appellant argued that success in a separate appeal, Case Number twenty-five dash two thousand four hundred and fifty-nine, would require reversal here. However, a concurrently filed memorandum disposition in that separate case directed the district court to dismiss the claims without prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Consequently, the appellant’s sole argument for reversal failed. The court also noted that the appellant waived all other issues by failing to address them in the opening brief.
What it means going forward
The decision confirms that fee challenges in bankruptcy proceedings may be dismissed as moot if the underlying claims in related litigation are dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
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