Application for Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses for Attorney for the Trustee — Panthera Enterprises, LLC (Dkt. 429, Bankr. N.D. W. Va.)

Summary

A First and Final Application for Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses for Attorney for the Trustee, for work related to civil litigation matters defending the debtor entity and/or related entities, in In re Panthera Enterprises, LLC, Case No. 19-00787, Chapter 7, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, Doc 429, Filed 01/05/24. Aaron C. Amore of Amore Law, PLLC, counsel for the Trustee, asks under 11 U.S.C. §330 for fees and costs totaling $20,636.00 for August 21, 2020 through and including January 20, 2023. The application states that Gust v. Panthera Enterprises, LLC, civil action no 20-C-35, in the Circuit Court of Hardy County, West Virginia, was resolved with a dismissal order entered on November 27, 2023.

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UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF WEST VIRGINIA

IN RE:

PANTHERA ENTERPRISES, LLC

Case No. 19-00787

Debtor.

Chapter 7

FIRST AND FINAL APPLICATION FOR COMPENSATION AND
REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES FOR ATTORNEY FOR THE TRUSTEE FOR
WORK RELATED TO CIVIL LITIGATION MATTERS DEFENDING THE DEBTOR
ENTITY AND/OR RELATED ENTITIES

Comes now Aaron C. Amore, Esquire, of Amore Law, PLLC, counsel for the Trustee in
the above-captioned proceeding, and files this first and final application for compensation and
reimbursement of expenses pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §330 from August 21, 2020 through and
including January 20, 2023 related to his employment defending the Debtor entity and related
entities.
NARRATIVE HISTORY
1.
Counsel for the Trustee was employed by order of this Court in August 21, 2020
(Doc.222) to represent the interests of the Estate related to holly owned related entities.
2.
The Court previously granted a motion to employ counsel, Aaron C. Amore of Amore
Law, PLLC, at an hourly rate of $400.00, and paralegal time at $100.00.
3.
The Court previously permitted the modification of the automatic stay to permit Derrick
J. Gust and Emily Gust to pursue legal claims against the Debtor and its related entities
for the purpose of seeking any insurance that may cover the claimed losses of the Gusts.
The Trustee moved to employ himself to represent the Debtor in several litigation matters
that arose during the course of the bankruptcy, including several adversary proceedings
and state related cases filed against the Debtor. Counsel filed his appearance, filing of
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pleadings and answering of discovery responses before insurance defense counsel
appeared and has performed the majority of the litigation practice necessary in the case.
The pending case is Gust v. Panthera Enterprises, LLC, f/k/a TenX Group, LLC, Panthera
Worldwide, LLC Panthera Training Center, LLC, Historic Arms Corporation and Wilmer
C. Bahr civil action no 20-C-35 pending in the Circuit Court of Hardy County, West
Virginia.
4.

Counsel for the Trustee filed responsive pleadings, including motions to dismiss and
responses to discovery as well as participating in several hearings before insurance
defense counsel appeared to defend the entities. The civil action sought damages for
injuries suffered by Derrick Gust while working for Panthera Training, LLC. Worker’s
Compensation paid Gust pursuant to the claims made against Panthera Training, LLC but
Gust sought to establish liability against other entities, including the Panthera entities.
The lease agreement between Panthera Training, LLC and the Debtor provided Panthera
Training maintain insurance to protect the Debtor. Gust sought to establish claims against
the Debtor and its related entities. The litigation has a complicated history with appeals of
several rulings from the Circuit Court Judge by Historic Arms Corp.
5.
The parties to this action have negotiated settlement agreement. The matter has been
resolved with a dismissal order entered by the Circuit Court on November 27, 2023. This
 is now a final order. No funds are to be paid by the Debtor or its related entities as part of
the settlement.
6.
The time expended by counsel on this case and specifically in certain areas, is usual and
customary based upon the complexity of the case and volume of legal documents and
discovery involved between the parties and related entities.
7.
Counsel for the Trustee pursued insurance defense counsel to represent the Panthera
entities,  which he secured. Legal fees and charges were stopped once insurance defense
counsel was substituted as primary role of litigation counsel. Said substitution of counsel
occurred on January 20, 2023.
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SUMMARY OF FEES REQUESTED
A. TIMEKEEPER SUMMARY
Timekeeper
Hours
Rate
Amount

Aaron C. Amore
51.59
$400.00
$20,636.00
Costs $0.00
Total fees and costs $20,636.00
 B. Project Summary
Your applicant represented the interests of the Debtor in various legal matters of this
estate as they arose. The persons providing services are identified in the itemization of time
attached hereto as Exhibit “A”
C. Evaluation Standards
The services rendered for this fee request under 11 U.S.C. §330 were reasonable and
necessary.  The work was performed within a reasonable period of time considering the nature of
the services rendered. The time spent on these services was reasonable, the rates which were
charged were reasonable, the services were necessary to the administration of the Estate at the
time the services were rendered, the services were performed within a reasonable amount of time
commensurate with the complexity, importance and nature of the issues or tasks involved, and
the compensation is reasonable based on customary compensation charged by skilled
practitioners in cases other than under this title.
D. Certification
The U.S. Trustee’s Office has been furnished with a copy of this Application for
Compensation and reimbursement for expenses.

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ITEMIZATION OF SERVICES RENDERED
Your applicant has attached as Exhibit “A” an itemization of time spent for which
compensation is requested.
All expenses are also set forth in Exhibit “A”, which includes the dates and amounts for
each charge. All expenses noted on Exhibit “A” were reasonable and necessary for the
administration of this Estate, do not constitute any division of overhead expenses, or charges for
clerical work. All expenses included in Exhibit “A” are routinely charged for other non-
bankruptcy matters in which your applicant is involved. All time entries and expense records
were kept contemporaneously and all costs are actual costs which can be designated to this case.
WHEREFORE, your applicant prays for the entry of an Order awarding the fees, costs
and expenses in the total amount of  $20,636.00 as said funds are available from the Debtor’s
Estate.  I, Aaron C. Amore, hereby certify that the statements made in this application are true
and correct to the best of my knowledge, information and belief.

/s/ Aaron C. Amore

Aaron C. Amore, Esquire, WVSB No. 6455
AMORE LAW, PLLC
206 West Liberty Street
P.O. Box 386
Charles Town, WV 25414
Phone:  304-885-4111
Facsimile:  866-417-8796
E-mail:  aaron@amorelaw.com
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, Aaron C. Amore, counsel for the Trustee, hereby certify that the foregoing FIRST
AND FINAL APPLICATION FOR COMPENSATION AND REIMBURSEMENT OF
EXPENSES FOR ATTORNEY FOR THE TRUSTEE FOR WORK RELATED TO CIVIL
LITIGATION MATTERS DEFENDING THE DEBTOR ENTITY AND/OR RELATED
ENTITIES, was served electronically (CM/ECF and/or E-mail) on this 5th day of January 2024
to the following:
Via Email:
Kelly T. Smith ksmith@sek.com
Jack Lantzy jlantzy@sek.com
Mark A. Lindsay mlindsay@bernsteinlaw.com
Rob Duncan tarpon777@yahoo.com
Rob Duncan  as manager of TR&L tkelsey@woodsrogers.com
Bruce & Stacie Hardy bsrhardy@comcast.net
Henry Swergold hswergold@platzerlaw.com

CM/ECF
• Debra Lee Allen     dallen@spilmanlaw.com
• Aaron C. Amore     aaron@amorelaw.com,
jackie@amorelaw.com;c.ar70274@notify.bestcase.com;alaina@amorelaw.com
• Aaron C. Amore     amorewvt@gmail.com,
aca@trustesolutions.net;jackiewvt@gmail.com;annwvt@gmail.com
• Robert S. Bernstein     rbernstein@bernsteinlaw.com,
cwirick@bernsteinlaw.com;cwirick@ecf.courtdrive.com;rbernstein@ecf.courtd
rive.com
• Elizabeth B. Carroll     elizabeth_carroll@vawb.uscourts.gov
• Julia A. Chincheck     jchincheck@bowlesrice.com
• Spencer D. Elliott     selliott@lgcr.com
• Douglas Kahle     dkahle@basnightkinser.com
• Gary O. Kinder     gary.o.kinder@usdoj.gov
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• Travis Alan Knobbe     tknobbe@spilmanlaw.com,
dambrose@spilmanlaw.com
• Sabrina B. Lee     sabrina_lee@vawb.uscourts.gov
• William J. Leon     jayleon@comcast.net
• Salene Rae Mazur Kraemer     skraemer@bernsteinlaw.com,
salene@ecf.courtdrive.com,
• Michael R. Proctor     mproctor@bowlesrice.com, lcrown@bowlesrice.com
• Brandy M. Rapp     brapp@wtplaw.com, twhitt@wtplaw.com
• John J. Richardson     jrichardson@bernsteinlaw.com
• Zachary James Rosencrance     zrosencrance@bowlesrice.com,
ajones@bowlesrice.com
• Robert Sellards     rms@bcyon.com
• James E. Smith     jes2esq@frontiernet.net
• Anita M. Swaton     Anita_Swaton@wvnb.uscourts.gov
• Steven L. Thomas     sthomas@kaycasto.com,
lwalker@kaycasto.com;abrewster@kaycasto.com;nball@kaycasto.com
• Stephen L. Thompson     sthompson@barth-thompson.com, office@barth-
thompson.com;chris@barth-thompson.com
• United States Trustee     ustpregion04.ct.ecf@usdoj.gov
• Eric Michael Wilson     eric.m.wilson@wv.gov, lora.l.rutledge@wv.gov
Manual Notice List
Notice was not mailed to the parties below as no addresses were provided. To the extent the
Trustee has email addresses the below notice parties, they were emailed.
Rob Duncan
Manager/Duncan Development Group, LLC
Rob Duncan
Manager/TR&L, LLC,
a Virginia Limited Liability Company
Successor to SMI, LLC,
a Virginia Limited Liability Company
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Bruce Hardy
Stacie Hardy
Anthony McIntyre
Timothy Miller

/s/ Aaron C. Amore

Aaron C. Amore, Esq.

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