Peggy E Stevens

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
at Greenbelt
IN RE: 	:
:
PEGGY E. STEVENS 	: 	Case No. 04-34295PM
: 	Chapter 7
Debtor 	:
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MEMORANDUM OF DECISION
The court scheduled a hearing on the First and Final Application for Compensation and
Reimbursement of Expenses for the law firm of Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, P.A.,
attorneys for the Trustee. The attorneys seek compensation of $2,721.50 and reimbursement of
expenses of $57.00 for services rendered the Trustee, a member of the attorney’s law firm. The
Trustee is seeking $2,700.96 for his services. In short, the professionals seek compensation in an
amount equivalent to approximately 40% of the claims filed in this case, that aggregate
$13,859.81. However, it must be noted that the Trustee’s Report reports payment in full to the
scheduled creditors.
The funds to pay the creditors were raised by the Debtor following the filing of an
adversary proceeding to sell the interest of the Debtor in the property that she owned as a tenant
in common with another individual. Debtor originally scheduled this property as being owned as
a tenant by the entireties. Had that erroneous scheduling passed through, the creditors would
have received nothing.
While the combined fees charged appear to be extraordinary in the light of what was paid
to the creditors, the Debtor has no one but herself to blame for this expenditure. The court will
give the Debtor and her counsel the benefit of the doubt that the original scheduling of the real
Date signed September 07, 2005
Entered: September 08, 2005 Case 04-34295 Doc 39 Filed 09/08/05 Page 1 of 2

property in the form of a tenancy by the entireties was carelessness and nothing more. If the
Debtor and her counsel had focused on the ownership of the property and the existence of equity
in the property that was subject to the action of the Trustee, it would have been obvious to them
that filing a bankruptcy case under Chapter 7 was the most expensive means of escaping from
the burden of unsecured debt. The court questions the advisability of filing this bankruptcy case
in the first instance.
After careful consideration of the record herein, including the fact that the Trustee is
seeking the very maximum commission allowable in this case and is seeking as well commission
on sums turned over to himself and the law firm and the billing for internal conversations, the
court will allow compensation in the sum of $2,450.00 and reimbursement of out of pocket
expenses of $57.00 to counsel for the Trustee.
An appropriate order will be entered.
cc:
Kasey L. Edwards, Esq., 8201 Corporate Drive, Suite 1140, Landover, MD 20785
Peggy E. Stevens, 5009 Woodland Blvd., Oxon Hill, MD 20745
Scott D. Field, Trustee, 11921 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852
James M. Hoffman, Esq., Suite 300, 11921 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852
End of Memorandum
Case 04-34295 Doc 39 Filed 09/08/05 Page 2 of 2