Alexandria Consulting Group, LLC v. Alexandria Surveys International LLC , 589 F. App'x 126 ( 2014 )

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 13-2393
ALEXANDRIA CONSULTING GROUP, LLC,
Appellant,
v.
ALEXANDRIA SURVEYS INTERNATIONAL LLC,
Debtor – Appellee,
ALEXANDRIA SURVEYS, LLC,
Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Liam O’Grady, District
Judge. (1:13-cv-891-LO-TCB; 10-11559-BFK)
Argued: December 9, 2014 Decided: December 30, 2014
Before WILKINSON, SHEDD, and THACKER, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Robert Lee Vaughn, Jr., O'CONNOR & VAUGHN LLC, Reston, Virginia,
for Appellant. Richard George Hall, Annandale, Virginia, for
Appellees.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Alexandria Surveys International (ASI), a residential
surveying firm, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2010. After
failing to submit a reorganization plan, ASI converted to a
Chapter 7 proceeding. On May 18, 2012, the Trustee issued a
Report of No Distribution and closed the case. In November 2012,
Alexandria Consulting Group (ACG), another residential surveying
firm, moved to reopen the proceeding under 11 U.S.C. § 350(b),
stating that it desired to purchase unscheduled personal
property remaining in the estate. This property, which included
ASI’s customer lists, survey files, web address, and phone and
facsimile numbers, was in the possession of yet another
residential surveying firm, Alexandria Surveys, LLC (Alexandria
LLC). Over ASI’s objection, the bankruptcy court granted the
motion to reopen and eventually ordered an auction for the sale
of the property in question. Alexandria LLC was not a party to
the motion to reopen, but it did participate in the auction. ACG
won the auction, and Alexandria LLC appealed to the district
court.
On appeal, the district court, conducting its de novo
review, concluded that ACG lacked standing to reopen the
bankruptcy case. Alexandria Surveys Int’l, LLC v. Alexandria
Consulting Grp., LLC, 500 B.R. 817 (E.D. Va. 2013). The district
court began by explaining that Federal Rule of Bankruptcy
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Procedure 5010 “only permits a case to be reopened ‘on motion of
the debtor or other party in interest.’” Id. at 820 (quoting
Fed. R. Bankr. Proc. 5010) (emphasis in original). The district
court concluded that parties in interest include the debtor, the
trustee, or a creditor and that because it was “undisputed” that
ACG was “not a creditor of the debtor” or a “participant in the
original case,” it lacked standing to reopen ASI’s bankruptcy.
Id.
ACG now appeals from the district court’s order. In appeals
from bankruptcy, “[w]e review the decision of the district court
de novo, effectively standing in its shoes to consider directly
the findings of fact and conclusions of law by the bankruptcy
court.” In re Runski, 102 F.3d 744, 745 (4th Cir. 1996). “[W]e
review legal conclusions by the bankruptcy court de novo and may
overturn its factual determinations only upon a showing of clear
error.” Id. Applying this standard of review, we agree with the
district court that ACG lacked standing to reopen ASI’s
bankruptcy case, and we affirm substantially on its reasoning.
See Alexandria Surveys, 500 B.R. at 820-21. *
AFFIRMED
*
The district court also addressed the merits of Alexandria
LLC’s appeal from the bankruptcy court. Because we agree with
the district court that ACG lacked standing to reopen the case,
we do not address these issues.
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