Knock Out of Homestead Exemption — Ediscovery and Skilled Cross Examination Get at the Truth
September 2, 2013
Schwartz v. Rodin / In re Ellen Elvie Sroog Rodin
(United States Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California, 8/23/2013, Case No. 13-40732-RLE; Chapter 7)
We represented Creditor Schwartz
Jay Itkowitz traveled to Oakland California to try a homestead exemption case affecting a four-family house in Yonkers, New York. A partner of Mr. Schwartz, Ellen Rodin, had filed a Chapter 7 proceeding and in a bid to retain her interest in the property declared the Yonker’s property as her “homestead” even though she actually lived in Berkeley, California. Nevertheless, because homestead exemptions are liberally construed in favor of debtors and the burden of proof is on person challenging the exemption, the trial was far from a “slam dunk”. Using documents garnered in E-Discovery, including an image of the debtor’s personal computer, Mr. Itkowitz established that the debtor never intended to live in Yonkers but instead intended to sell the property. Following two days of testimony in Oakland California Bankruptcy Court, Honorable Judge Roger L. Efremsky sustained Mr. Schwartz’ objection to the debtor’s claim of Yonkers being her “homestead.”
