Petition Against Postle Demands Payments
Remember Mike Postle? Of course you do. It’s only been a month since our last report.
That last article noted that the court ruled in favor of Veronica Brill, that Postle must pay her for legal costs and fees associated with defending herself against the case he dropped. The court determined that Postle owed $27,745 to her. This followed a similar ruling in favor of Todd Witteles, which ordered a payment to Witteles of $26,982.
Even so, considering the public records of other debts owed by Postle, it was obvious that he had no intention of paying anything.
Good attorneys, however, know how to force payment. They jointly filed an involuntary petition against Mike Postle…to begin an involuntary bankruptcy case.
Petition to US Bankruptcy Court
Today, Brill and Witteles, represented by attorneys Marc Randazza and Eric Bensamochan, respectively, filed their Involuntary Petition Against an Individual…named Michael Postle. They seek to begin a court-mandated Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
The document states that the debts were incurred by Postle through the aforementioned anti-SLAPP judgments in the Superior Court of California Sacramento. When Postle filed his initial defamation case against Brill, Witteles, and numerous other named and unnamed defendants, Brill and Witteles lawyered up to fight the charges against them. Those two chose to fight with anti-SLAPP motions, claiming that their rights to speak of allegations against Postle were protected by California’s free speech laws and as matters of public interest.
Then, Postle abruptly dropped his case against all defendants on April 1. What he didn’t know, as he had no counsel, was that his decision not to fight the anti-SLAPP claims and then drop the case automatically resulted in wins for Brill and Witteles.
Both people filed motions to seek a demand that Postle reimburse them for their costs and legal fees associated with the case. And both won.
If you missed yesterday’s court proceedings from Sacramento regarding @ToddWitteles’ anti-SLAPP attorney fees request from Mike Postle https://t.co/hoQ8h6sycn
— Kevin Mathers (@Kevmath) May 13, 2021
-Witteles sought $43,314.50, and the judge reduced that to $26,982. She ordered Postle to pay it.
-Brill sought $67,677.50, and the judge reduced that to $27,745. She ordered Postle to pay that, too.
Neither Brill nor Witteles believed they would see that money, though. Not only did Postle seem unwilling to accept the judgments, he had more debt. Wells Fargo Bank and Discover Bank both sued him for unpaid debts. The court granted Wells Fargo Bank $8,682. Discover is still going after its $5,018.81.
Thus, the July 21 filing by Brill and Witteles alleged: “The debtor is generally not paying such debtor’s debts as they become due, unless they are the subject of a bona fide dispute as to liability or amount.”
Signed, sealed, and delivered.
Next Steps
The US Bankruptcy Court of the Eastern District of California, Sacramento Division, issued a summons to Postle. If he fails to respond to the petition, the court will order the relief. Postle will enter into an involuntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Bensamochan issued a statement to us regarding the filing:
“Mr. Postle owes valid judgments to both Mr. Witteles and Ms. Brill. He has gone on record about a documentary being made about this whole affair and, upon information and belief, has other assets, such as sports memorabilia, that could be used to satisfy his debts. He continues to evade payment and has made no effort to resolve the outstanding monies owed to my client and to Ms. Brill, even when given the chance to make voluntary arrangements. A Chapter 7 trustee will fully investigate if Mr. Postle has been hiding assets, and, if found, those assets will be liquidated for the benefit of his creditors.”
Disclaimer: This author is not a lawyer and has virtually zero qualifications to analyze legal documents or arguments. Nevertheless, she persists.
