Alberto Soler v. Formiami20 Inc.

[DO NOT PUBLISH]
In the
United States Court of Appeals
For the Eleventh Circuit
____________________
No. 22-10974
Non-Argument Calendar
____________________
In re: ALBERTO SOLER-SOMOHANO,
Debtor.
___________________________________________________
___________________
ALBERTO SOLER
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
FORMIAMI20 INC,
Defendant-Appellee.
____________________
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2 Opinion of the Court 22-10974
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Florida
D.C. Docket No. 1:21-cv-24313-BB
____________________
Before G RANT, L AGOA, and B RASHER , Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Alberto Soler1 appeals, pro se, the district court’s order
denying his appeal of a bankruptcy court’s grant of a creditor’s
motion to dismiss his adversary proceeding. Soler argues that the
bankruptcy court lacked the power to grant the motion to dismiss
and asserts that the judge was incompetent due to his advanced
age. Soler has forfeited and abandoned these arguments, and so
we affirm the district court.
As the second court of review of a bankruptcy court’s
decision, we independently examine the factual and legal
determinations of the bankruptcy court and apply the same
standards of review as the district court. In re Int’l Admin. Servs.,
Inc., 408 F.3d 689, 698 (11th Cir. 2005). While we hold the
allegations of pro se litigants to “less stringent standards than
formal pleadings drafted by lawyers,” we may not “serve as de facto
counsel for a party” or “rewrite an otherwise deficient pleading in
order to sustain an action.” Campbell v. Air Jamaica Ltd., 760 F.3d
1 Although Soler’s last name has been listed as “Soler” and “Solar-Somohano”
in certain filings, we will refer to him as Soler for the sake of consistency.
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22-10974 Opinion of the Court 3
1165, 1168–69 (11th Cir. 2014). An appellant abandons any
argument not briefed on appeal, made in passing, or raised briefly
without supporting arguments or authority. Sapuppo v. Allstate
Floridian Ins. Co., 739 F.3d 678, 681–82 (11th Cir. 2014) (collecting
cases). And arguments raised for the first time on appeal are
deemed waived. See Bryant v. Jones, 575 F.3d 1281, 1308 (11th Cir.
2009).
Here, Soler failed to preserve, and has otherwise abandoned,
any challenge to the bankruptcy court’s dismissal of his adversarial
complaint. Besides a brief reference to age in a Notice filed in the
district court, there is no indication that Soler raised any of his
current arguments below. And before this Court, Soler has failed
to adequately brief any argument. See Sapuppo, 739 F.3d at 681–82.
His argument is limited to a few short, unclear sentences, and he
fails to cite any supporting authority. Accordingly, we AFFIRM.
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