Opinion ID: 3064897
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Bankruptcy trustees.

Text: Biltmore’s bankruptcy law argument has no merit, because 42 Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 12-341.01(A) (2003) (“In any contested action arising out of a contract, express or implied, the court may award the successful party reasonable attorney fees.”). 43 Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 12-341.01(C) (2003) (“The court shall award reasonable attorney fees in any contested action upon clear and convincing evidence that the claim or defense constitutes harassment, is groundless and is not made in good faith.”). 44 488 F.3d 836 (9th Cir. 2007). BILTMORE ASSOCIATES v. TWIN CITY FIRE 8587 Biltmore is not a bankruptcy trustee. A bankruptcy proceeding may be crowded with trustees, perhaps the trustees under deeds of trust on real property seeking relief from the stay so that they can foreclose, trustees for minors and for inter vivos trusts trying to keep assets out of the bankruptcy estate, and trustees for decedents, but they are not all the same. Biltmore was not appointed as trustee of the bankruptcy estate. Visitalk, the bankrupt, remained a debtor in possession. [10] The creditors’ committee hired Biltmore as its trustee. Under 11 U.S.C. § 1102, the United States Trustee appoints a committee of the creditors holding unsecured claims, to provide access to information for unsecured creditors not on the committee and to solicit and receive comments from them.45 The creditors committee can hire attorneys, accountants, and other agents to perform services for it.46 In this case, the creditors’ committee retained Biltmore Associates, L.L.C., as a trustee, with the approval of the bankruptcy court. The committee provided that the trustee would “hold all, right, title and interest in and to the causes of action on behalf of the beneficiaries of the Creditors’ Trust,” and could “sue and be sued in a representative capacity for the trust.” This lawsuit took place outside the bankruptcy court, as an ordinary civil action for breach of contract between a trustee on behalf of a beneficiary against promissors, the insurance companies. No bankruptcy authority of which we are aware provides immunity to a trustee hired by the creditors’ committee, as opposed to the chapter 11 trustee appointed by the court. Metcalf v. Golden (In re Adbox, Inc.)47 and the other authorities cited by Biltmore only speak to chapter 11 trustees appointed by the court. 45 11 U.S.C. § 1102(a)(1), (b)(3) (2006). 46 11 U.S.C. § 1103(a) (2006). 47 488 F.3d 836 (9th Cir. 2007). 8588 BILTMORE ASSOCIATES v. TWIN CITY FIRE