Creditors come out winners in court's ruling on stays

The conflict between creditors' motions for deficiency and bankruptcy stays proved to be a win for creditors last week in the Oklahoma Court of Appeals.

In Statewide Funding Corp. v. Reed, No. 85,363, Chief Judge John Reif found that creditors who were required to file a motion for deficiency after a sheriff's sale of the debtor's property did not run out of time by filing after the required 90-day filing period.

Specifically, creditors had instigated a sheriff's sale for Reed's default on a loan. In order to recoup creditors' losses, which were not covered by the sale, they were required to file a motion for deficiency within 90 days after the sale. Three days after the sheriff's sale, Reed filed bankruptcy. Creditors did not file the motion for deficiency within 90 days after the sale, arguing the bankruptcy stay prevented their filing of the motion. Reed argued that despite the filing of bankruptcy, the 90-day filing period continued to run and that by the time creditors had filed, it was too late. The court found the bankruptcy stay suspended the 90-day period. "It is reasonably clear that the 90-day period ... is the type of limitations period for the pursuit of remedies upon which Oklahoma's common law suspension rule was meant to operate." Judge W. Keith Rapp vigorously dissented to the court's decision. "The common law restraint concept now allows the fabric of sound statutory construction and good legal practices to be stretched to include practitioners having the inability to apply the plain meaning of the statutes in question ...." As a result, the trial court's decision was affirmed. People The resignation of District Attorney Miles Zimmerman amid allegations of sexual harassment has prompted Governor Keating to appoint B. Kay Christiansen as the new district attorney for District 23. Christiansen earned her Bachelor's degree from Oklahoma Baptist University and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma. She has been with the Pottowatomie/Lincoln County District Attorney's office for four years. Christiansen has served as an assistant district attorney for District 23 for the past six years. Local attorney Fletcher Dal Handley Jr. has accepted the chairmanship of the Automobile Law Committee, part of the American Bar Association's Tort and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS). The Tort and Insurance Practice Section is one of the largest sections of the ABA with over 30,000 members. Handley says his goals as chairman of the committee are to increase plaintiff lawyer participation in the section and to make ABA members aware of the educational opportunities available through TIPS. Handley is enthusiastic about the appointment but is amazed at the amount of time the new position requires. "It's a lot more work than I thought it would be. I get stacks of mail every day." In addition to having articles published in the ABA's The Brief, Handley was selected as Oklahoma's Outstanding Young Lawyer in 1983 and was appointed by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to a temporary Court of Appeals panel in 1990. Handley is a partner with Fogg, Fogg and Handley and practices out of El Reno. Mediation conference Those interested in learning more about mediation can attend the Oklahoma Academy of Mediators and Arbitrators 4th annual conference from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 27 at the OSU-OKC campus. Bob Helm, president of the academy, says the conference is a good opportunity to learn more about the growing use of mediation to resolve disputes. For more information, call 377-5060. Book for legal guidance Lawyers needing guidance in answering professional responsibility questions can now look to the Annotated Model Rules of Professional Conduct, Third Edition published by the American Bar Association. The new 704-page edition includes annotations which reflect the growing volume of case law, ethics opinions and scholarly analysis of the Rules. Prices range from $44.95 to $74.95 depending on ABA membership status. Leigh Jones welcomes your comments and contributions. Reach her at (405) 278-2846, by fax at 278-2890, or by e-mail address, dpage

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