Bingham v. Martensen (In re Martensen)
UNPUBLISHED
Shortly before filing his chapter 13 petition, debtor and plaintiff entered into a contract in which debtor agreed to serve as plaintiff's sales manager as an independent contractor. Plaintiff filed an adversary proceeding in debtor's bankruptcy asserting various claims arising out of their contract. Debtor moved to dismiss, claiming lack of subject matter jurisdiction. In the alternative, debtor requested that the court abstain from hearing the dispute. The court ruled that resolution of the jurisdiction issue was unnecessary because abstention was appropriate, as debtor had already made the final payment on his plan. Since the outcome of plaintiff's claims would therefore have no effect on the administration of debtor's plan, the motion to dismiss was granted.