{"id":"court_ctb_344_0","court":"CTB","case_no":"22-50073","doc_number":344,"sub_number":0,"doc_type":"MOTION","filed_date":"2022-04-06","title":"UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT BRIDGEPORT DIVISION |","summary_zh":null,"summary_en":null,"body_en":"# **UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT BRIDGEPORT DIVISION**\n\n|                                                                    | -----------------------------------------------------------------X |                                                                                          |\n|--------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|\n| In re:                                                             |                                                                    | :<br>:<br>Chapter 11                                                                     |\n| Ho Wan Kwok,                                                       |                                                                    | :<br>:<br>Case No. 22-50073 (JAM)                                                        |\n|                                                                    | Debtor.                                                            | :<br>Ref. Dkt. No. 183<br>:<br>:<br>Response Deadline: May 11, 2022 at 5:00 pm (ET)<br>: |\n| -----------------------------------------------------------------X |                                                                    |                                                                                          |\n\n### **DEBTOR'S CONSENT TO DISMISSAL OF CASE**\n\n## **AND RESPONSE TO PACIFIC ALLIANCE ASIA OPPORTUNITY FUND L.P.'S MOTION TO DISMISS CHAPTER 11 CASE OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, PARTIAL JOINDER TO UNITED STATES TRUSTEE'S MOTION FOR AN ORDER DIRECTING THE APPOINTMENT OF A CHAPTER 11 TRUSTEE**\n\nTO THE HONORABLE JULIE A. MANNING UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY JUDGE:\n\nHo Wan Kwok (the \"Debtor\"), through his below proposed counsel, hereby files this *Consent to Dismissal of Case and Response to Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P.'s Motion To Dismiss Chapter 11 Case Or, In The Alternative, Partial Joinder To United States Trustee's Motion For An Order Directing The Appointment Of A Chapter 11 Trustee*, dated April 6, 2022 [Dkt. No. 183] (the \"Motion\"), filed by Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P. (\"PAX\"). The Debtor respectfully states as follows:\n\n#### **RESPONSE**\n\n1. The Debtor consents to the dismissal of his Chapter 11 case on account of the tremendous costs imposed on the Debtor from unrelenting litigation by Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P. (\"PAX\") and others, and his inability to access funds to meet those costs.\n\n2. Mr. Kwok commenced this case to do exactly what a chapter 11 debtor should do: utilize the Bankruptcy Code to provide creditors with a central forum to assert and resolve claims, allow for an impartial and unbiased examination of the debtor's assets, and negotiate a fair plan.\n\n3. To fund the case and facilitate his restructuring, Mr. Kwok obtained the commitment of his son's family office, Golden Spring (New York) Limited (\"GSNY\"), to provide \\$9 million of subordinated, unsecured debtor-in-possession financing. The financing offered a \"no-strings\" gift of \\$1 million to his estate, and \\$8 million to fund the costs of the case, including principally a full investigation by an examiner or the official committee of unsecured creditors (the \"Committee\") into his assets, liabilities and financial affairs. The proposed financing was supported by the Committee representing Mr. Kwok's creditors, but opposed by PAX and the Office of the United States Trustee.\n\n4. Mr. Kwok also arranged for a very substantial asset owned by his daughter, the Lady May yacht with a likely value in excess of \\$30 million, to be subject to the full jurisdiction of this Court and made available for liquidation for the benefit of his creditors if it were found to be in fact an asset of this estate.\n\n5. With the benefit of the committed financing and the fully agreed arrangements as to the yacht, and having testified fully over three days, and abided by all of the requirements imposed on a chapter 11 debtor, Mr. Kwok anticipated that by now the examination would have been well underway and that there would be serious engagement by creditors on the terms of the\n\n2\n\nplan. Instead, PAX and the Office of the United States Trustee seem committed to relentless and incredibly expensive litigation, with PAX alone having noticed something in the order of twenty or more depositions and demanded extensive document productions from numerous persons and entities. Further, the Court has indicated that it does not intend to approve the committed financing, and the Debtor has been unable to obtain approval to engage a financial advisor to assist in the plan efforts and to otherwise assist in performing his duties as a chapter 11 debtor.\n\n6. As a result, Mr. Kwok's case is buckling under the weight of the professional fees incurred by his professionals (and those of the Committee) responding to PAX's anything-butindependent fishing expeditions and litigation. Golden Spring, for its part, sees no end to this wasteful litigation and refuses to provide an open-ended commitment to fund what has unfortunately devolved into a litigation frenzy, and has accordingly withdrawn its commitment to fund Mr. Kwok's Chapter 11 case. This development has led Mr. Kwok to conclude that this accrual of administrative expense (for which there is no source of funds to pay) should end and this case should be dismissed.\n\n7. The Debtor thanks the Court and appreciates the time and effort the Court dedicated to administering his Chapter 11 case. The Lady May is returning to the United States largely due to the engagement by the Court to help resolve PAX's lift-stay motion and remedy the circumstances that led to the New York Court's findings of contempt. The Court also provided Mr. Kwok the opportunity to testify in support of his chapter 11 case and tell his side of the story in open court for the first time since PAX initiated suit against him nearly five years ago.\n\n8. Mr. Kwok committed to this Court to conduct his case professionally and responsibly. The situation on the ground – due to PAX's unrestrained legal warfare and lack of funding to satisfy the resulting administrative expenses of his estate – no longer makes that\n\n3\n\npossible. Accordingly, the Debtor respectfully consents to the entry an order allowing PAX's motion[1](#page-3-0) to dismiss the case pursuant to Bankruptcy Code section 1112(b). Post-dismissal, the Debtor intends to satisfy his legitimate debts.\n\nDated: May 11, 2022\n\n#### **BROWN RUDNICK LLP**\n\nBy: */s/ William R. Baldiga* Dylan P. Kletter, Esq. 185 Asylum Street Hartford, Connecticut 06103 Telephone: (860) 509-6500 Facsimile: (860) 509-6501 Email: dkletter@brownrudnick.com\n\n-and-\n\nWilliam R. Baldiga, Esq. Jeffrey L. Jonas, Esq. Bennett S. Silverberg, Esq. Seven Times Square New York, New York 10036 Telephone: (212) 209-4800 Facsimile: (212) 209-4801 Email: wbaldiga@brownrudnick.com bsilverberg@brownrudnick.com jjonas@brownrudnick.com\n\n*Counsel for Ho Wan Kwok, Debtor*\n\n<span id=\"page-3-0\"></span><sup>1</sup> For the avoidance of doubt, the Debtor does not join in PAX's motion or agree with the cause(s) for relief asserted therein.","body_zh":"United States Bankruptcy Court District of Connecticut Bridgeport Division（美国康涅狄格区联邦破产法院布里奇波特分部）\n\n关于：\n第 11 章\nHo Wan Kwok（郭文贵），\n案号：22-50073 (JAM)\n债务人。\n参考登记册编号：183\n\n答复截止日期：2022年5月11日下午5:00（美国东部时间）\n\n债务人同意驳回案件\n并对 Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P.（太盟亚洲机会基金有限公司）关于驳回第 11 章案件或备选部分附议联邦破产受托人关于指令指定第 11 章破产受托人的裁定之动议的答复\n\n致尊敬的 Julie A. Manning（朱莉·A·曼宁）美国联邦破产法官：\n\nHo Wan Kwok（郭文贵）（下称“债务人”）通过其下列拟聘律师，特此就 Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P.（太盟亚洲机会基金有限公司）（下称“PAX”）提交的、日期为 2022年4月6日 的《关于驳回第 11 章案件或备选部分附议联邦破产受托人关于指令指定第 11 章破产受托人的裁定之动议》[Dkt. No. 183]（下称“本动议”）提交本《同意驳回案件并对 Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P.（太盟亚洲机会基金有限公司）关于驳回第 11 章案件或备选部分附议联邦破产受托人关于指令指定第 11 章破产受托人的裁定之动议的答复》。债务人谨陈述如下：\n答复\n\n1. 鉴于 Pacific Alliance Asia Opportunity Fund L.P.（太盟亚洲机会基金有限公司）（“PAX”）及其他各方持续不懈的诉讼给债务人造成的巨额费用，以及债务人无法获得资金来支付这些费用，债务人同意驳回其第 11 章案件。\n\n2. 郭先生提起本案正是为了履行第 11 章债务人应当履行的职责：利用《破产法典》为债权人提供一个主张和解决债权的中心平台，允许对债务人的资产进行公正且不带偏见的调查，并协商出一个公平的重组方案。\n\n3. 为资助本案并促进其重组，郭先生获得了其儿子的家族办公室 Golden Spring (New York) Limited（金泉（纽约）有限公司）（“GSNY”）的承诺，提供 $9 million 的次级无担保占有中债务人融资。该融资向其破产财产提供了 $1 million 的“无附加条件”赠款，以及 $8 million 用于支付本案费用，其中主要包括由审查员或无担保债权人官方委员会（下称“委员会”）对其资产、负债和财务状况进行的全面调查。拟议的融资得到了代表郭先生债权人的委员会的支持，但遭到 PAX 和 Office of the United States Trustee（美国联邦破产受托人办公室）的反对。\n\n4. 郭先生还安排将其女儿拥有的一项巨额资产——估值可能超过 $30 million 的 Lady May（梅号）游艇——置于本法院的完全管辖之下，如果该资产被认定确实属于本案破产财产，则可供变现以惠及债权人。\n\n5. 凭借已承诺的融资以及关于该游艇完全达成一致的安排，并在进行了整整三天的充分作证且遵守了对第 11 章债务人施加的所有要求之后，郭先生本以为调查工作目前已经顺利展开，债权人也将就重组方案的条款进行实质性接触。相反，PAX 和美国联邦破产受托人办公室似乎致力于进行不依不饶且极其昂贵的诉讼，仅 PAX 一方就发出了大约二十份或更多的证人录音录像采证通知，并要求众多个人和实体进行广泛的文件披露。此外，法院已表示不打算批准已承诺的融资，且债务人一直未能获批聘请财务顾问以协助重组方案工作及协助履行其作为第 11 章债务人的其他职责。\n\n6. 结果，郭先生的案件正不堪重负于其专业人员（以及委员会的专业人员）因应对 PAX 绝非独立的摸底调查和诉讼而产生的专业费用。就 Golden Spring（金泉）而言，其看不到这种浪费性诉讼的尽头，拒绝为不幸演变成诉讼狂欢的局面提供无底限的资助承诺，并因此撤回了其资助郭先生第 11 章案件的承诺。这一发展使郭先生得出结论，这种破产管理费用的累积（且没有资金来源可供支付）应当结束，本案应当予以驳回。\n\n7. 债务人感谢法院，并对法院为管理其第 11 章案件所付出的时间和努力表示赞赏。Lady May（梅号）正返回美国，这主要归功于法院介入协助解决 PAX 解除自动中止的动议，并补救导致纽约法院作出藐视法庭判定的情形。法院还为郭先生提供了支持其第 11 章案件并自近五年前 PAX 对其提起诉讼以来首次在公开法庭上陈述其自身说法的机会。\n\n8. 郭先生曾向本法院承诺以专业和负责任的方式开展其案件。鉴于 PAX 不加克制的法律战以及缺乏资金来支付其破产财产由此产生的破产管理费用，实际情况使得这一目标已不再可能实现。因此，债务人谨同意根据《破产法典》第 1112(b) 条做出准许 PAX 驳回案件动议[1]的裁定。驳回后，债务人打算偿还其合法债务。\n\n日期：2022年5月11日\nBrown Rudnick LLP\n\n签署人：/s/ William R. Baldiga Dylan P. Kletter, Esq.\n185 Asylum Street\nHartford, Connecticut 06103\n电话：(860) 509-6500\n传真：(860) 509-6501\n电子邮件：dkletter@brownrudnick.com\n\n以及\n\nWilliam R. Baldiga, Esq.\nJeffrey L. Jonas, Esq.\nBennett S. Silverberg, Esq.\nSeven Times Square\nNew York, New York 10036\n电话：(212) 209-4800\n传真：(212) 209-4801\n电子邮件：wbaldiga@brownrudnick.com\nbsilverberg@brownrudnick.com\njjonas@brownrudnick.com\n\n债务人 Ho Wan Kwok（郭文贵）之律师\n\n1 为免生疑义，债务人并未加入 PAX 的动议，亦不同意其中主张的救济理由。","key_entities":["Kwok","Ho Wan Kwok","CIPA"],"ecf_references":[{"doc_number":183,"court":"CTB"}],"word_count":983,"status":"published","published_at":"2022-04-06 00:00:00","created_at":"2022-04-06","updated_at":"2026-08-23 12:45:07"}