Scarbrough v. Purser

This case involves several familial disputes stemming from an employment lawsuit, an alleged extramarital affair, the death of the family patriarch, and secret recordings. On appeal, debtor challenges the district court’s order affirming a bankruptcy court judgment that declared nondischargeable a Texas state court judgment against him. The court concluded that debtor's sanctionable state court conduct relates back to the conduct alleged in the original complaint; the district court did not err in granting partial summary judgment on the issue of sanction orders based on collateral estoppel; the court rejected debtor's contention that the bankruptcy court erred in granting partial summary judgment on Appellees’ claims under 8 U.S.C. 523(a)(2) for fraud, finding no clear error in the district court's ruling and the bankruptcy court's account of the evidence; the bankruptcy court did not err in finding the defamation judgment nondischargeable under section 523(a)(6) for willful and malicious conduct; the bankruptcy court did not err in applying collateral estoppel to the jury's damages findings for both fraud and defamation; and the court dismissed debtor's claims as meritless. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "Scarbrough v. Purser" on Justia Law