Stroh

Concurring.

I concur. I write separately because this is a close case. A good argument could be made for rejecting application of judicial estoppel because it is not apparent to me how Stroh, having conceded the trustee’s claim to proceeds from the lawsuit, received an unfair advantage from his failure to list the partnership interest on his bankruptcy schedule; indeed, applying judicial estoppel here hurts creditors while helping nobody. However, judicial estoppel serves the broader purpose of “protecting] the integrity of the judicial process.” New Hampshire v. Maine, 532 U.S. 742, 749 , 121 S.Ct. 1808 , 149 L.Ed.2d 968 (2001); Hamilton v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 270 F.3d 778, 782 (9th Cir. 2001). Because our review is for abuse of discretion, United States ex rel. Sequoia Orange Co. v. Baird-Neece Packing Corp., 151 F.3d 1139, 1147 (9th Cir.1998), I could not say that application of the doctrine was an abuse of the bankruptcy court’s discretion.

MEMORANDUM **

John Jay Stroh and the trustee of his bankruptcy estate, Carolyn A. Dye, appeal the district court’s order affirming the bankruptcy court’s grant of summary judgment. Appellants argue that the bankruptcy court erred in: (1) denying Stroh’s motion to remand his civil suit against James Grant to the state court; (2) finding that Stroh’s claims were time-barred; and (3) concluding that Stroh is judicially estopped from claiming the existence of a partnership between him and Grant. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 158 (d) and 1291, and affirm.

On September 1,1998, Stroh sued Grant in the Superior Court of California, claiming Grant owed him money from an alleged partnership between them. After discovering that Stroh had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on June 15, 1995, Grant removed the action to bankruptcy court. It awarded summary judgment in favor of Grant, finding that Stroh’s partnership claims were barred by statutes of limitations, judicially estopped, and unsupported by evidence.

We review the district court’s decision on appeal from the bankruptcy court de novo, applying the same standards of review to the bankruptcy court decision as the district…