Roberts v. Sender

── Roberts v. Sender ── Case No.: 25-1103 Court: Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit Date: March 31, 2026 Category: General Appellate Case: 25-1103 Document: 42 Date Filed: 03/31/2026 Page: 1 FILED United States Court of Appeals UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT March 31, 2026 _________________________________ Christopher M. Wolpert Clerk of Court In re: MICHAEL JOSEPH ROBERTS, SR., Debtor. ------------------------------ MICHAEL JOSEPH ROBERTS, SR., Appellant, v. No. 25-1103 (BAP No. 24-009-CO) HARVEY SENDER, Chapter 7 Trustee; (Bankruptcy Appellate Panel) PDC, LLC; TIMOTHY FLAHERTY; TIMOTHY KNEEN; RIVERIA COUNTRY CLUB, S. DE R.L. C.V.S., Appellees. _________________________________ ORDER AND JUDGMENT * _________________________________ Before EID and MURPHY, Circuit Judges, and TEETER, District Judge. ** _________________________________ * After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist in the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is therefore ordered submitted without oral argument. This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its persuasive value consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1. ** The Honorable Holly L. Teeter, U.S. District Judge, District of Kansas, sitting by designation.  Appellate Case: 25-1103 Document: 42 Date Filed: 03/31/2026 Page: 2 Michael Joseph Roberts, Sr. appeals from a decision of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP) affirming the bankruptcy court’s order approving a settlement agreement between the trustee and creditors. We exercise jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 158(d)(1) and affirm. Roberts has been battling his former business partners in court over ownership and control of real estate in Mexico for close to ten years. They began in Colorado state court, where Roberts repeatedly faced setbacks and eventually had a $22.8 million award entered against him. He then tried bankruptcy court. Again, Roberts did not fare well. The bankruptcy court found that Roberts “has engaged in a level of pre-petition litigation misconduct not previously seen by this Court,” converted Roberts’s Chapter 11 case to Chapter 7, and appointed a trustee. In re Roberts, 644 B.R. 220, 231 (Bankr. D. Colo. 2022). The trustee successfully crafted a settlement designed to put an end to the state-court fight and the escalation of interest and legal fees. The bankruptcy court conducted an evidentiary hearing and approved the settlement over the objection of Roberts and his counsel. Roberts appealed to the BAP. The BAP affirmed. Roberts now appeals to this court. We find no abuse of discretion in the bankruptcy court’s approval of the settlement agreement and affirm. I. BACKGROUND Both the bankruptcy court and the BAP detailed the factual background of this case. See In re Roberts, 667 B.R. 147 (B.A.P. 10th Cir. 2025); In re Roberts, No. 22- 10521-JGR, 2024 WL 1460287 (Bankr. D. Colo. Mar. 28, 2024). This court need not 2  Appellate Case: 25-1103 Document: 42 Date Filed: 03/31/202