Blixseth v. Brown (In re Yellowstone Mountain Club, LLC), ___F.3d ___, 2016 WL6936595 (9th Cir. 11/28/2016)
Blixseth v. Brown (In re Yellowstone Mountain Club, LLC), ___F.3d ___, 2016 WL6936595 (9th Cir. 11/28/2016): In Blixseth, the Ninth Circuit Extends Barton doctrine, to Protect Creditors’ Committee Members
In Blixseth, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals became the first US appeals court to hold that the Supreme Court’s Barton doctrine, barring suits against receivers and trustees without permission from the appointing court, also protects creditors’ committee members from claims based on actions taken within the scope of authority.
The appeal involved Timothy Blixseth, former owner of the bankrupt Yellowstone Mountain Club LLC, who used some proceeds from a loan to the club to pay personal debts. The same lawyer who advised Blixseth about the loan was also his divorce lawyer before the club’s bankruptcy.