FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

TOM HALE, 

No. 06-35349 Appellant,

D.C. No.

v.  CV-04-00289-EJL

U.S. TRUSTEE,

OPINION Appellee. 

Appeal from the United States District Court

for the District of Idaho

Edward J. Lodge, District Judge, Presiding

Submitted November 8, 2007*

Seattle, Washington

Filed December 10, 2007

Before: William C. Canby, Jr., Susan P. Graber, and

Ronald M. Gould, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge Graber

*The panel unanimously finds this case suitable for decision without

oral argument. Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). 

16189
COUNSEL

Tom Hale, Shelly, Idaho, appellant in propria persona. 

Gary L. McClendon, United States Department of Justice,

Boise, Idaho, for the appellee. 

OPINION

GRABER, Circuit Judge: 

Appellant Tom Hale assisted Debtors Eric and Selina Jones

in filing a bankruptcy petition. The bankruptcy court found

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16191
that, in doing so, Hale failed to honor his legal and ethical

obligations as their lawyer. The bankruptcy court denied

Hale’s motion requesting judicial recusal, denied his request

for a jury trial on the reasonableness of his attorney fees, disgorged him of his attorney fees, and sanctioned him. The district court affirmed those rulings, and Hale timely appealed.

On appeal, he raises only the attorney fees and sanction

issues. We affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Hale provided “PRE-FILING legal services” to Debtors

pursuant to a signed disclosure agreement. For a $250 fee, he

agreed to analyze Debtors’ financial situation and prepare

their bankruptcy petition and required exhibits, but disclaimed

representing them at the meeting of creditors required under

11 U.S.C. § 341. In addition, the agreement specified that

Hale’s representation “d[id] not include the following services: Adversary proceedings, appeals, and/or conversions,

non-dischargeability proceedings, or any other representation.” Hale refers to this practice as providing “unbundled”

legal services to “pro se” debtors. 

In 2001, Debtors filed for bankruptcy pro se. Hale did not

sign the petition. The bankruptcy petition listed the $250 fee

paid to Hale and explained that the fee covered “preparation,

assistance, pro se advice and counsel, pre-filing, to obtain discharge order, or confirmation of plan.” 

Shortly after Debtors filed their petition, the bankruptcy

court ordered sua sponte that Hale account for the $250 fee.

The order stated that “there is inadequate information in the

record to allow the Court to determine whether amount

received by Counsel is reasonable under the circumstances.”

The court requested an itemization of all services that Hale

had rendered to Debtors, including “a detailed and specific

description of each individual item of service rendered; the

name of the individual who rendered each such service; the

16192 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
date such service was rendered; and the time expended in rendering such service.” 

A few days later, the United States Trustee issued a notice

of intent to seek sanctions against Hale for his failure to sign

the petition. The notice alleged that this omission violated

Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9011(a). 

Hale submitted an itemization, but the bankruptcy court

ruled that the itemization was “incomplete and not fully in

compliance” with its order. The court explained that the itemization “use[d] a generic description of services with no

detail.” The court ordered that Hale supplement his itemization within 15 days. 

About three weeks after the expiration of that 15-day

period, Hale submitted a 15-page supplemental itemization.

For most of the 15 pages, he took issue with the bankruptcy

court’s inquiry into his fee. For example: 

This is not the first time that I have attempted to

protect the debtors and myself from the judicial tyranny that flows from the chambers of a biased Judge.

. . . . 

Judge Terry L. Myers has continued the tradition

of Judge Pappas by ordering an accounting of more

cases to determine subjectively if my legal services

were worth $250.00 to the debtors. To provide the

“necessary” legal services to debtors, needed to file

a no asset Chapter 7 bankruptcy, an attorney must

spend hours of his time, at an hourly rate of $125.00.

Hale then described each of the services rendered, but he did

not provide “the name of the individual who rendered each

such service.” 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16193
The bankruptcy court ruled that Hale’s supplemental itemization still was incomplete: “The Supplemental Itemization

contains, at pp. 9-11, fifteen separate descriptions of services

rendered, which are segregated by date and time. Counsel

shall identify whether he personally performed each and every

such service or whether some were performed by his staff

and/or interns.” The court required that Hale further supplement his itemization within 10 days. 

Hale did not submit any additional itemizations. Instead, he

filed a 28-page “Motion to Recuse, Vacate, and Amended

[sic] Jury Trial Demand,” wherein he accused Bankruptcy

Judges Jim D. Pappas and Terry Myers of harboring bias

against him and of casting the legal system into disrepute. He

moved for recusal of Judge Myers and requested a jury trial

on the issue of his $250 fee. 

The bankruptcy court scheduled a hearing to examine

Hale’s compliance with its itemization orders. Hale then filed

an 11-page “Motion to Recuse, Vacate Hearing, and Jury

Trial Demand.” The motion included six pages of unattributed

hearsay accusations, in the form of stories and narratives, leveled at Judge Myers. Hale repeated his motion for Judge

Myers to recuse himself, renewed his request for a jury trial

on the issue of his $250 fee, and asked that the scheduled

hearing be vacated. With regard to the latter, he argued that

he was unable to attend the hearing because he was working

as a professor and because Judge Myers should recuse himself. 

The hearing remained on the docket as scheduled. Hale did

not attend, and the bankruptcy court continued the matter for

further briefing. The court gave the U.S. Trustee three weeks

to respond to Hale’s motions and gave Hale 10 days to

respond to the U.S. Trustee’s brief once filed. The U.S.

Trustee filed a brief, but Hale did not file a reply. 

Thereafter, the bankruptcy court published a Memorandum

of Decision. In re Jones, No. 01-02853, 2002 WL 818275

16194 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
(Bankr. D. Idaho Apr. 4, 2002). In it, the court denied Hale’s

motion for judicial recusal. Id. at *5. The court ruled that Hale

had tendered only rumors, innuendos, and unsupported allegations in support of his motion, which are insufficient to warrant recusal under 28 U.S.C. § 455(a). Jones, 2002 WL

818275, at *4-5. The court also denied Hale’s request for a

jury trial, citing In re Rheuban, 121 B.R. 368 (Bankr. C.D.

Cal. 1990), and In re Rheuban, 128 B.R. 551 (Bankr. C.D.

Cal. 1991). Jones, 2002 WL 818275, at *6. 

The bankruptcy court then scheduled a status conference to

set a briefing schedule on the reasonableness of Hale’s fee.

On the morning the conference was to take place, Hale faxed

the bankruptcy court a note: “Please accept my apology for

not being able to attend the Status Conference scheduled for

3:00 p.m., today. I left class feeling extremely disoriented and

I was forced to seek medical assistance.” The bankruptcy

court vacated the hearing and rescheduled the status conference for a date nearly three months later.1

 All parties attended

the rescheduled conference, at which the court established a

discovery time line and scheduled a hearing on Hale’s fee. 

The U.S. Trustee filed an amended motion for sanctions

against Hale, stemming from his representation of Debtors. In

its motion, the U.S. Trustee alleged that Hale failed to sign

Debtors’ bankruptcy petition in violation of Federal Rule of

Bankruptcy Procedure 9011(a); failed to provide Debtors with

legal representation covering the normal, ordinary, and fundamental aspects of their case; failed to obtain Debtors’

informed consent to limit his representation of them; and

failed to create accurate and complete documents for filing in

Debtors’ case. The U.S. Trustee asked that the bankruptcy

court disgorge all attorney fees Debtors had paid to Hale, that

Hale reimburse Debtors for all costs and expenses incurred in

1Even were Appellant’s fax construed as a motion to vacate or continue

the hearing, local rules require that such a motion be filed at least three

days before the hearing. Bankr. D. Idaho R. 2002.2(f)(4). 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16195
connection with their bankruptcy case, and that the court

order Hale to sign all bankruptcy petitions of future debtorclients and represent them in all normal, ordinary, and fundamental aspects of their cases, including attendance at the 11

U.S.C. § 341 meeting of creditors. The motion argued that

sanctions were authorized under 11 U.S.C. §§ 105(a), 307,

and 329; Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure 2016(b) and

9011; Idaho Rules of Professional Conduct 1.2(c) and 1.4(b);

“and the inherent authority of the court to sanction bad faith

conduct.” The bankruptcy court scheduled the hearing on the

motion for sanctions concurrent with the attorney fees hearing. 

Next, the U.S. Trustee filed a notice of intent to call witnesses at the upcoming hearing. Two days before the hearing,

Hale filed a “Motion to Dismiss, Response to Amended

Motions, Request for Sanctions, Offer of Proof, and Renewed

Request for a Jury Trial.” In his motion, Hale wrote a fourpage notice to Debtors in which he accused the bankruptcy

court of impropriety and the Debtors’ current counsel of

incompetent and unethical behavior. He then renewed his

motion for a jury trial and stated: “I will be in Salt Lake City,

Utah on the day of this hearing and I intend to rest on the

pleadings. My presence is not mandated or necessary to the

adjudication of the issues, in my opinion.” 

The bankruptcy court held the hearing, as scheduled, on

Hale’s attorney fees in Debtors’ bankruptcy case. Hale did not

attend. 

The bankruptcy court subsequently issued a second Memorandum of Decision. The court summarized that, at the hearing, Debtor Selina Jones testified that Hale never informed

her or her husband about the § 341 meeting of creditors or his

intention not to appear at the meeting. When Hale sent Debtors the disclosure agreement, he told them to read over the

papers but did not mention the section of the disclosure that

states that he would not appear at the meeting. She further

16196 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
testified that she did not and does not understand

what the term pro se means, and stated that it was

never explained to her. She thought Hale was their

attorney. . . . [She] unequivocally testified that the

Debtors would not have filed bankruptcy through

Hale had they understood that he would not be

appearing or providing services after filing. They

needed an attorney, thought they’d hired one, and

expected to have the assistance of one. 

In addition, “[s]omewhere between the filing of the petition

and the scheduled § 341(a) meeting, the Debtors received

another telephone call from Hale. He advised them that there

was ‘something wrong with the paperwork’ and that the Debtors should dismiss their bankruptcy.” Debtor Selina Jones

“testified that Hale was quite firm on dismissing the case, but

not at all clear on why it needed to be dismissed,” nor did he

offer to refund the fee paid by Debtors. Hale drafted a motion

to dismiss “without any request, input or assistance from the

Debtors.” The telephone call and draft motion “scared” Debtors into hiring additional counsel, J. Bart Green. 

Green met with Debtors the day before the scheduled § 341

meeting and agreed to appear with them at the meeting. “He

found the Debtors confused over the entire process and without any material understanding of what they had signed or

what awaited them. From these conversations, Mr. Green also

determined that numerous errors existed in the Hale-generated

documents, and that multiple amendments were required.”

For example, although Debtors had informed Hale about a

residence and two apartment buildings that they owned in

Pocatello, Idaho, the original petition did not disclose any real

property.2

2

In his supplemental itemization, Hale maintained to the district court

that he provides low-cost “unbundled” legal services for no-asset bankruptcy filings, but Debtors in fact had assets. 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16197
The bankruptcy court then proceeded to the merits of the

motions because Hale, a licensed lawyer, specifically represented in his motion two days before the hearing that he

intended to rest on the pleadings and that his presence at the

hearing was “not mandated or necessary,” and because he

never requested that the court continue or vacate the hearing.

The court summarily denied Hale’s renewed motions for a

jury trial and for judicial recusal because he had not raised

any new arguments since the court’s earlier decision denying

the original motions. The court ruled that Hale violated Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9011(a) when he failed to

sign Debtors’ bankruptcy petition, which he prepared. The

court disgorged his $250 fee because he failed “to provide the

Debtors with competent legal representation covering the normal, ordinary and fundamental aspects of the case,” failed “to

create adequate and complete documents for filing,” and

failed “to obtain the informed consent of his clients to the purported limitations on representation.” The court sanctioned

Hale $2,000 to encourage him to change his conduct, serve as

a deterrent to others, and reimburse the U.S. Trustee for some

of the fees and expenses that it incurred attempting to gain

Hale’s compliance with Rule 9011. 

The court also imposed non-monetary sanctions. The court

noted:

Hale has in the past been required to, among other

things, disgorge fees in several cases. See, e.g., [In

re ]Castorena, 270 B.R. [504,] 532 [(Bankr. D.

Idaho 2001)] (in which $125.00 was ordered disgorged in each of 19 cases, for a total of $2,375.00).

Neither the Court’s prior decisions nor these economic consequences have had appreciable impact on

subsequent conduct. 

. . . . 

16198 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
Hale continues to prepare a large number of chapter 7 petitions in this District. For example, a report

generated by the Court’s clerk shows that, in the 12

months immediately preceding this Decision . . . ,

Hale filed 226 cases. 

A random review of some of Hale’s more recently

filed cases indicates that his overall approach

remains the same. 

Consequently, the bankruptcy court ruled: 

Unable or unwilling to conform his conduct to the

requirements established by the Court’s prior decisions and rulings, and to the standards by which all

other debtors’ counsel in the District abide, Hale has

earned specific restrictions, by express order, on his

practice. . . . 

Hale shall not file, nor shall he prepare or cause

to be prepared for filing by a debtor, any bankruptcy

petition unless Hale signs said petition. 

Further, Hale shall not file, nor shall he assist a

debtor as counsel in filing, any bankruptcy petition

unless Hale commits to such debtor to meet the ethical and professional obligations of a debtor’s attorney and provide the reasonable and necessary

services required to properly represent a debtor in a

bankruptcy case. The required professional obligations include Hale’s appearance at § 341(a) meetings. Other obligations and services were described

in Castorena . . . . Such a commitment must be

reflected in a written engagement or representation

agreement, which the debtor(s) and Hale must sign.

In sanctioning Hale, the bankruptcy court relied primarily

on the sanction authority of Federal Rule of Bankruptcy ProHALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16199
cedure 9011(c). But the court also stated that, “[t]o the extent

the Rules are not up to the task the Court may also rely on its

inherent powers.” (Internal quotation marks omitted.) 

Finally, the bankruptcy court denied the U.S. Trustee’s

motion that Hale be ordered to pay Debtors’ damages and fees

for replacement counsel. The court reasoned that Green’s fees

were not unreasonable given the nature of Debtors’ case and

could not, “in dissecting Mr. Green’s bill, identify some portion that [wa]s so directly and proximately caused by Hale’s

conduct that it should be awarded as damages.” 

Hale timely appealed from the bankruptcy court’s decision,

and the case was transferred to the United States District

Court for the District of Idaho. Before the district court, Hale

argued that he did not violate Rule 9011(a), that the bankruptcy court improperly disgorged his attorney fees and

imposed sanctions, that his right to a jury trial on the reasonableness of his attorney fees was violated, and that the bankruptcy judge should have recused himself. The district court

affirmed the bankruptcy court on all issues, and Hale timely

appealed to this court.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

“We review de novo a district court’s decision on appeal

from a bankruptcy court. That is, we review the bankruptcy

court’s decision independently and give no deference to the

district court’s determinations.” Dawson v. Wash. Mut. Bank

(In re Dawson), 390 F.3d 1139, 1145 (9th Cir. 2004) (citation

omitted).

DISCUSSION

After six years, two bankruptcy court decisions, one district

court decision, and numerous motions and filings, it is important to identify the precise issues raised in this appeal. Hale

does not challenge either the bankruptcy court’s findings of

16200 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
fact—including the finding that he violated Federal Bankruptcy Rule 9011(a)—or its denial of his motion for judicial

recusal. Consequently, those issues are waived. See Smith v.

Marsh, 194 F.3d 1045, 1052 (9th Cir. 1999) (“[O]n appeal,

arguments not raised by a party in its opening brief are

deemed waived.”). 

Instead, Hale limits his appeal to three issues. He argues

that he is entitled to a jury trial on the reasonableness of his

attorney fees. He also asks this court to examine the reasonableness of his attorney fees, which we construe as an objection to the bankruptcy court’s disgorgement of his attorney

fees. Finally, he argues that the bankruptcy court improperly

sanctioned him. 

We review de novo a litigant’s entitlement to a jury trial.

Kulas v. Flores, 255 F.3d 780, 783 (9th Cir. 2001). We

review for abuse of discretion a bankruptcy court’s decision

on attorney fees. Neben & Starrett, Inc. v. Chartwell Fin.

Corp. (In re Park-Helena Corp.), 63 F.3d 877, 880 (9th Cir.

1995). We also review for abuse of discretion a bankruptcy

court’s award of sanctions. Miller v. Cardinale (In re

DeVille), 361 F.3d 539, 547 (9th Cir. 2004).

A. The Seventh Amendment does not include a right to a

jury trial on the reasonableness of attorney fees in bankruptcy proceedings. 

[1] Hale argues that the right to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment of the United States Constitution extends to

determining the reasonableness of attorney fees in a bankruptcy proceeding,3

 notwithstanding 11 U.S.C. § 329(b),

3The Seventh Amendment provides: 

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall

exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved,

and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any

Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the

common law. 

U.S. Const. amend. VII. 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16201
which empowers a bankruptcy judge to make that determination. In Granfinanciera, S.A. v. Nordberg, 492 U.S. 33, 42 n.4

(1989), the Supreme Court held that “[t]he Seventh Amendment protects a litigant’s right to a jury trial only if a cause

of action is legal in nature and it involves a matter of ‘private

right.’ ”

4

To determine when a Seventh Amendment right to a jury

trial exists, the Court established a three-part test. “First, we

compare the statutory action to 18th-century actions brought

in the courts of England prior to the merger of the courts of

law and equity.” Id. at 42 (internal quotation marks omitted).

Although the thrust of the Amendment was to preserve the right to jury trial as it existed in 1791, the

Seventh Amendment also applies to actions brought

to enforce statutory rights that are analogous to

common-law causes of action ordinarily decided in

English law courts in the late 18th century . . . . 

Id. at 41-42 (internal quotation marks omitted). “Second, we

examine the remedy sought and determine whether it is legal

or equitable in nature. The second stage of this analysis is

more important than the first.” Id. at 42 (citation and internal

quotation marks omitted). Third, we examine the nature of the

right asserted. “If a claim that is legal in nature asserts a ‘public right,’ . . . then the Seventh Amendment does not entitle

the parties to a jury trial if Congress assigns its adjudication

to an administrative agency or specialized court of equity.” Id.

at 42 n.4. A case asserts a public right if it “arise[s] between

the Government and persons subject to its authority in con4

In Sigma Micro Corp. v. Healthcentral.com (In re Healthcentral.com),

504 F.3d 775, 788 (9th Cir. 2007), we held that, after a party identifies a

valid right to a Seventh Amendment jury trial in bankruptcy proceedings,

“the bankruptcy court may retain jurisdiction over the action for pre-trial

matters.” The right to a jury trial in that case was not disputed, and the

case did not involve an issue of attorney fees. 

16202 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
nection with the performance of the constitutional functions

of the executive or legislative departments,” id. at 51 n.8

(internal quotation marks omitted), or involves “a seemingly

private right” created by Congress “that is so closely integrated into a public regulatory scheme as to be a matter

appropriate for agency resolution with limited involvement by

the Article III judiciary,” id. at 54 (internal quotation marks

omitted). 

[2] In conformity with those principles, Hale’s argument is

foreclosed by In re Wood, 210 U.S. 246 (1908). In Wood, the

Supreme Court examined whether the Bankruptcy Act of

1898, ch. 541, § 60d, 30 Stat. 544, 562 (codified as amended

at 11 U.S.C. § 96(d)), a statutory predecessor to 11 U.S.C.

§ 329, violated the Seventh Amendment. 210 U.S. at 258.

Section 60d, like § 329, authorized a bankruptcy court to

examine the reasonableness of a debtor’s attorney fees and to

disgorge fees that the court deemed excessive. Wood, 210

U.S. at 250. The Supreme Court expressly held that this provision did “not deprive parties of rights secured under the 7th

Amendment of the Constitution to trials by jury in suits at

common law where the value in controversy exceeds $20.” Id.

at 258. Section 60d is indistinguishable in all relevant respects

from its successor at issue in this case, 11 U.S.C. § 329. 

[3] The Supreme Court has not overruled Wood. In addition, Wood is consistent with, and reaffirmed by, Granfinanciera. Determining the reasonableness of a debtor’s attorney

fees is not analogous to a common-law cause of action ordinarily decided in English law courts in the late 18th century;

instead, it is closely integrated into the public regulatory

scheme of bankruptcy law that Congress created. We hold

that Wood remains binding precedent and forecloses Hale’s

argument that the Seventh Amendment includes a right to a

jury trial on the reasonableness of attorney fees in bankruptcy

proceedings. 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16203
B. The bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion in disgorging Hale of his attorney fees. 

Hale asks us, should we disagree with his Seventh Amendment argument, to examine the reasonableness of his attorney

fees. He argues that the question of reasonableness is an

“issue [that] still has not been decided in this case.” He is mistaken. The bankruptcy court squarely ruled that Hale’s fees

were unreasonable and, pursuant to its authority under 11

U.S.C. § 329(b), ordered that the fees be disgorged. 

[4] Under § 329(b), a bankruptcy court may examine the

reasonableness of a debtor’s attorney fees and, “[i]f such compensation exceeds the reasonable value of any such services,

the court may cancel any such agreement, or order the return

of any such payment, to the extent excessive.” Here, the only

service Hale provided to Debtors was the completion of a

bankruptcy petition that was incomplete and erroneous and

that required extensive amendments. He failed to inform

Debtors about the bankruptcy process, obtain their informed

consent to his limited representation, or notify them about the

impending meeting of creditors. Instead, he attempted to persuade them to dismiss their petition without explaining why

or how it would affect their rights. Debtors ultimately paid

$1000 to correct and supplement the work that Hale performed. The bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion in

disgorging Hale of his attorney fees. 

C. The bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion in

sanctioning Hale.

[5] Finally, Hale argues that he was not given notice of, and

an opportunity to respond to, the U.S. Trustee’s motion for

sanctions against him. This argument is belied by the record.

The U.S. Trustee filed an amended motion for sanctions more

than six weeks in advance of the hearing, and the Trustee

served Hale with the motion at two separate addresses in

accordance with the applicable procedural rules. Hale there16204 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE
fore knew (or should have known) about the motion for sanctions when he filed a motion two days before the hearing, in

which he told the bankruptcy court that “[his] presence [wa]s

not mandated or necessary to the adjudication of the issues.”

Hale also argues that the bankruptcy court improperly

imposed sanctions under Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9011. Under Rule 9011(c), “[i]f . . . the court determines

that [9011](b) has been violated, the court may . . . impose an

appropriate sanction upon the attorneys, law firms, or parties

that have violated subdivision (b) or are responsible for the

violation.” The bankruptcy court sanctioned Hale for violating

9011(a), not 9011(b). Nowhere in its decision does the bankruptcy court even mention Rule 9011(b), although this omission is not surprising. Rule 9011(b) concerns papers signed,

filed, submitted, or advocated to the court in bad faith, while

the bankruptcy court found that Hale took none of those

actions—specifically to avoid liability under the Rule. Hale’s

evasive tactics notwithstanding, the plain text of Rule 9011(c)

does not authorize sanctions for violating Rule 9011(a). 

[6] But “bankruptcy courts have the inherent power to

sanction vexatious conduct presented before the court.” Caldwell v. Unified Capital Corp. (In re Rainbow Magazine, Inc.),

77 F.3d 278, 284 (9th Cir. 1996). “These powers are ‘governed not by rule or statute but by the control necessarily

vested in courts to manage their own affairs so as to achieve

the orderly and expeditious disposition of cases.’ ” Id. at 283

(quoting Chambers v. NASCO, Inc., 501 U.S. 32, 43 (1991)).

The U.S. Trustee included this authority as a ground for

imposing sanctions in its motion, and the bankruptcy court

invoked this authority as an alternative basis for imposing

sanctions. See DeVille, 361 F.3d at 550 n.4 (noting that an

appellate court will not “overturn the bankruptcy court’s decision merely because that court applied the wrong label to the

righteous use of its inherent sanction power” (internal quotation marks omitted)). 

HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE 16205
In an effort to avoid liability, Hale did not sign Debtors’

bankruptcy petition. He had an extensive history—and an

ongoing practice—of similar violations. Despite assertions to

the contrary, he failed to obtain informed consent to his limited representation. He failed to inform his clients about the

meeting of creditors required under 11 U.S.C. § 341 and to

highlight the fact that he did not intend to represent them at

the meeting. He attempted to persuade his clients to dismiss

their bankruptcy petition without explaining why or what

prejudice they might suffer if they did so. When the bankruptcy court inquired into his representation, he failed to

attend hearings, giving little or no advance notice of his

absence, and accused the court, on the basis of unaccredited

hearsay, of bias and impropriety. 

[7] We agree with the bankruptcy court that it should “not

countenance Hale’s exclusion of critical and necessary services, or endorse the pretense of adequately advised and

informed consent in Hale’s bankruptcy cases.” Although the

court effectively barred Hale from assisting pro se debtors in

a limited manner that allows the debtors to remain pro se, the

court ordered those sanctions in response to specific and

repeated acts of incompetent and irresponsible representation.

Under the specific facts of this case, we cannot say that the

bankruptcy court abused its inherent power to impose sanctions. 

AFFIRMED. 

16206 HALE v. U.S. TRUSTEE