Morozov v. Hancock Whitney Bank, 671 B.R. 326

Vladimir Morozov and Lyudmila Morozov filed for bankruptcy in the Middle District of Florida; Hancock Whitney Bank was a creditor.
Hancock sought to annul the automatic stay after learning about undisclosed loans in the Morozovs’ bankruptcy case.
The Bankruptcy Court found that Vladimir Morozov had failed to list significant debts owed to Hancock, thus depriving Hancock of notice and opportunity to participate.
The court concluded Morozov had acted in bad faith and that the loans were nondischargeable; it granted Hancock’s motion to annul the automatic stay and allow foreclosure action.
Vladimir Morozov passed away during the appeal; after procedural disputes, Yevgeny Morozov, as personal representative of the estate, was substituted as appellant.
The District Court reviewed the Bankruptcy Court's order on appeal and also evaluated procedural issues arising from the death and substitution.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Dischargeability under § 523(a)(3)(A)	Loans should be dischargeable	Loans are not dischargeable	Nondischargeable—lack of notice to Hancock
Annulment of the automatic stay	Annulment unwarranted	Annulment justified by bad faith	Annulment upheld—bad faith and undue prejudice
Substitution of party after death	PR should be substituted	Substitution untimely	Substitution allowed; PR now real party
Accepting further briefing post-subst.	Additional brief should be allowed	Briefing is closed	No further briefing permitted

In re JLJ Inc., 988 F.2d 1112 (11th Cir. 1993) (establishes standard for appellate review of bankruptcy court decisions)
United States v. U.S. Gypsum Co., 333 U.S. 364 (U.S. 1948) (defines clearly erroneous standard for factual findings)
In re Spring Valley Farms, Inc., 863 F.2d 832 (11th Cir. 1989) (discusses the necessity of creditor notice for dischargeability)
In re Albany Partners, Ltd., 749 F.2d 670 (11th Cir. 1984) (explains effect of acts taken in violation of the automatic stay)