Cofield v. Graham

USCA1 Opinion

          October 20, 1994
                                [NOT FOR PUBLICATION]
                               UNITED STATES OF APPEALS
                                FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT


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        No. 94-1673

                               JUAN M. COFIELD, ET AL.,

                                     Appellants,

                                          v.

                                HARRY GRAHAM, ET AL.,

                                      Appellees.


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                     APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

                          FOR THE DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS

                      [Hon. Patti B. Saris, U.S. District Judge]
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                                        Before

                                  Cyr, Circuit Judge.
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                          Bownes, Senior Circuit Judge, and 
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                                Stahl, Circuit Judge.
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            James E. Cofield Jr. and Juan M. Cofield on brief pro se.
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            Robert Owen Resnick, Cullen & Resnick on brief for appellees.
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                 Per  Curiam.   We have  carefully reviewed  the parties'
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            briefs  and the  record  on appeal.    We conclude  that  the

            district  court  correctly  dismissed the  bankruptcy  appeal

            essentially  for the  reasons  stated in  the district  court

            memorandum and  order, In re  Malmart Mortgage Co.,  166 B.R.
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            499  (D. Mass.  1994).   We  add  that the  district  court's

            failure to  address in more particular  detail the bankruptcy

            court's order denying appellants' motion for recusal is of no

            moment  since appellants' complaint  was completely  based on

            their   unhappiness  and  disagreement  with  the  bankruptcy

            court's  rulings.   "[J]udicial  rulings  alone almost  never

            constitute  valid basis  for  a bias  or partiality  motion."

            Liteky v.  United States, 114 S. Ct. 1147, 1157 (1994).  And,
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            mistakes  of law, even assuming  there were any,  are not, of

            themselves,  evidence  of bias.   Panzardi-Alvarez  v. United
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            States,  879 F.2d 975, 984 n.7 (1st Cir. 1989), cert. denied,
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            493 U.S. 1082 (1990).

                 The facts and  legal arguments are  adequately presented

            in the briefs and record and the decisional process would not

            be significantly  aided by  oral argument.   The request  for

            oral argument is, therefore, denied.
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                 Affirmed.
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