Harris v. Shayla Stevens & Tozzi Law, LLC (In re Harris)

James R. Sacca, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge

The issue before the Court is whether the exception to the automatic stay in § 362(b)(4) for a governmental unit exercising its police and regulatory powers is broad enough to include the imposition of sanctions by a court, including incarceration, in connection with a motion to compel discovery and for contempt against a non-attorney debtor in a post judgment collection proceeding. This Court concludes it is not so broad and that such proceedings are subject to the automatic stay. Although that conclusion seemed rather obvious to this Court, there…