United States District Court

for the

Southern District of Florida

In re South Sky Aviation 

Corporation, Debtor. 

)

)

Bankruptcy Withdrawal

Case No. 22-62288-Civ-Scola

Order Granting Motion to Withdraw Bankruptcy Reference

This matter is before the Court on the Debtor’s motion to withdraw the 

reference. (Mot., ECF No. 1.) The underlying bankruptcy proceeding is a 

voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding involving South Sky Aviation 

Corporation as the Debtor (“South Sky”). (Id. ¶ 1.) South Sky seeks to withdraw 

the reference of this matter, a personal injury claim against South Sky by 

Fernando Quispe Diaz and Silvia Valeria Coello Mena (the “Claimants”) relating 

to an April 25, 2016 airplane crash (identified as “Claim 6-1” in the bankruptcy 

proceeding). (Id. ¶¶ 4-6.) No party has responded in opposition to the motion, 

and the time to do so has passed. Having reviewed the motion, the record, and 

the relevant legal authorities, the Court grants the motion. (ECF No. 1.)

The Debtor asks this Court to withdraw the reference under 28 U.S.C. 

§ 157(d), Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 5011(a), and Southern District 

of Florida Local Bankruptcy Rule 5011-1. Section 157(d) states that a “district 

court may withdraw, in whole or in part, any case or proceeding referred under 

this section ... for cause shown.” Although the statute does not define cause, 

“the Eleventh Circuit has recognized certain factors to be considered, such as: 

uniformity in bankruptcy administration; decreasing forum shopping and 

confusion; efficient use of the resources of the courts and the parties; and 

avoidance of delay.” In re MFS Roofing, Inc., No. 17-23910-CV, 2018 WL 

11476411, at *1 (S.D. Fla. Oct. 30, 2018) (Williams, J.) (citing Dionne v. 

Simmons (In re Simmons), 200 F.3d 738, 742 (11th Cir. 2000)). The Debtor also 

relies on subsection (b)(5) of Section 157, which states the following: 

The district court shall order that personal injury tort and wrongful 

death claims shall be tried in the district court in which the bankruptcy 

case is pending, or in the district court in the district in which the claim 

arose, as determined by the district court in which the bankruptcy case 

is pending.

28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(5). 

The Debtor seeks to partially withdraw the refence with regards to Claim 

6-1 based on the plain terms of 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(5). (Mot. ¶ 14.) This 

Case 0:22-cv-62288-RNS Document 8 Entered on FLSD Docket 04/19/2023 Page 1 of 2
determination is consistent with the plain terms of Section 157(b)(5). And, 

because the Claimants’ case was originally filed in the Seventeenth Judicial 

Circuit Court in and for Broward County, Florida, and the Debtor’s bankruptcy 

proceeding is in the Southern District of Florida, the Southern District of 

Florida is the appropriate location for Claim 6-1 to be tried under the statute’s 

terms. (R. at 108-09, 131-133, ECF No. 2-1); 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(5). 

 Accordingly, the Court grants the motion to withdraw the reference. 

(ECF No. 1.) The Bankruptcy Court reference is partially withdrawn to the 

United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida for the purpose 

of a jury trial and all dispositive motions relating to Claim 6-1. The reference to 

the Bankruptcy Court remains in effect for all other pre-trial matters. The 

Court requests that the Bankruptcy Court issue a report and recommendation 

on any dispositive pretrial motions.1 The hearing scheduled for Wednesday, 

May 3, 2023 at 8:30 A.M. at the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. Federal Courthouse, 

Courtroom 12-3, is canceled. The Clerk is directed to close this case. All 

pending motions, if any, are denied as moot. 

Done and ordered in Miami, Florida, on April 19, 2023. 

 ________________________________ 

 Robert N. Scola, Jr. 

 United States District Judge 

1 See 28 U.S.C. § 157(c)(1); Exec. Benefits Ins. Agency v. Arkison, 573 U.S. 25, 40 (2014). 

Case 0:22-cv-62288-RNS Document 8 Entered on FLSD Docket 04/19/2023 Page 2 of 2