Copiah County, Mississippi v. Nancy Oliver

Summary

The Mississippi Supreme Court considered whether Nancy Oliver should be judicially estopped from pursuing a personal-injury claim because she failed to disclose the post-petition, post-confirmation claim in her Chapter 13 bankruptcy schedules. The court declined to decide whether Oliver had a duty to amend her schedules and held that the bankruptcy court should determine that issue first. The court affirmed the denial of summary judgment and remanded with instructions to stay the state-court proceedings.

Holdings

1. The Mississippi Supreme Court declined to determine whether judicial estoppel applies until the bankruptcy court determines whether Oliver had a duty to amend her schedule of assets to disclose the post-petition, post-confirmation claim.
2. The denial of Copiah County's motion for summary judgment was affirmed, and the state-court proceedings were ordered stayed pending the bankruptcy court's determination of Oliver's disclosure duty.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Oliver should be judicially estopped from pursuing a personal-injury claim that accrued after her bankruptcy petition and after confirmation of her Chapter 13 plan because she did not amend her bankruptcy schedules to disclose the claim.
2. Whether the state trial court properly denied Copiah County's motion for summary judgment and deferred the disclosure-duty issue to the bankruptcy court.

Disposition

affirmed_and_remanded