United States v. John H. Allen, Trustee in Bankruptcy of The Estate of Vista Liner Coach& Trailer, Inc., 395 F.2d 752, 10th Cir. (1968)
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Scribd Government DocsUnited States v. John H. Allen, Trustee in Bankruptcy of The Estate of Vista Liner Coach& Trailer, Inc., 395 F.2d 752, 10th Cir. (1968)
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Scribd Government Docs395 F.
2d 752
UNITED STATES of America, Appellant,
v.
John H. ALLEN, Trustee in Bankruptcy of the Estate of Vista
Liner Coach& Trailer, Inc., Appellee.
No. 10014.
United States Court of Appeals Tenth Circuit.
May 29, 1968.
H. J. Saperstein, Salt Lake City, Utah, filed a motion to dismiss for
appellee.
Mitchell Rogovin, Asst. Atty. Gen., and Lee A Jackson, Karl Schmeidler,
Washington, D.C., and Frank X. Grossi, Jr., Arlington, Va., filed a
response for appellant.
Before MURRAH, Chief Judge, and LEWIS, Circuit Judge.
PER CURIAM.
The threshold question presented by this appeal is whether the challenged order
of the Referee in Bankruptcy is reviewable under 11 U.S.C.A. 47. The
appellant filed a claim against the bankrupt estate asserting its priority as a tax
claimant. The trustee filed his objections to the government's claims and also
filed a counter-claim against the United States. The United States moved to
dismiss the counter-claim on the ground that the bankruptcy court lacked
jurisdiction over the subject matter of the counter-claim. The Referee reserved
ruling on the motion to dismiss and ordered the appellant to respond to the
merits of the counterclaim without prejudice to the jurisdictional question
previously presented in the motion to dismiss. Upon petition for review, the
district court affirmed the order of the Referee. The United States had perfected
an appeal to this court from this order.
It is true that virtually all interlocutory orders in proceedings in bankruptcy are
appealable under 11 U.S.C. 47. But this court has held that 'an interlocutory
order which determines nothing adversely to the asserted rights of a party is not
reviewable on direct appeal therefrom.' De Laney v. City Investment Co., 224
F.2d 808, 810 (10th Cir. 1965). The bankruptcy court's administration of the
bankrupt estate should not be hindered 'by appeals from orders which are
indecisively procedural and which do not determine some controversy or decide
some step in the course of the bankruptcy proceedings.' General Electric
Company v. Beehive Telecasting Corporation, 284 F.2d 507, 509 (10th Cir.
1960). The Referee's order did not determine the jurisdictional question
adversely to either party. It was clearly 'indecisively procedural' and not
appealable.
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