DRFP LLC v. Republica Bolivariana, No. 16-3960 (6th Cir. 2018)
Annotate this CaseThis opinion or order relates to an opinion or order originally issued on August 24, 2017.
Download PDF
NOT RECOMMENDED FOR FULL-TEXT PUBLICATION File Name: 18a0038n.06 Case No. 16-3960 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT FILED Jan 22, 2018 DEBORAH S. HUNT, Clerk DRFP L.L.C., dba Skye Ventures, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. REPÚBLICA BOLIVARIANA DE VENEZUELA; THE VENEZUELAN MINISTRY OF FINANCE, Defendants-Appellees. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ON APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO ORDER BEFORE: COOK, KETHLEDGE, and DONALD, Circuit Judges. COOK, Circuit Judge. When we affirmed the district court’s judgment against DRFP L.L.C., dba Skye Ventures (“Skye”), we invited the República Bolivariana de Venezuela and the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance (collectively, “Venezuela”) to seek attorneys’ fees and costs associated with this appeal. DRFP L.L.C. v. República Bolivariana de Venezuela, 706 F. App’x 269, 279–80 (6th Cir. 2017). Venezuela did just that. There followed an opposition from Skye, a submission of unredacted invoices by Venezuela, and one more round of briefing from the parties. We have reviewed the parties’ submissions and conclude that Skye’s appeal was frivolous. As we explained previously, Skye “advanced arguments untethered to valid analysis Case No. 16-3960, DRFP v. República Bolivariana de Venezuela, et al. of either Ohio or Venezuelan law.” Id. at 280. And what’s more, this appeal stemmed from Skye’s “buy[ing] (for pennies on the dollar) notes that were obviously fraudulent, and then for twelve years [taking] a flier on enforcing them in federal court.” Id. (Kethledge, J., concurring). We therefore GRANT Venezuela’s motion for attorneys’ fees. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 38, we may “award just damages and single or double costs to” Venezuela. Venezuela seeks over $750,000 in attorneys’ fees; challenging that calculation, Skye contends that any award should not exceed $35,000. We deem an award of $100,000 to be reasonable in light of Rule 38’s purposes. Accordingly, we ORDER Skye to pay Venezuela $100,000 for attorneys’ fees incurred in this appeal. Skye and its counsel shall be jointly and severally liable to Venezuela for the entire award. See 28 U.S.C. § 1927; see also, e.g., Shaya v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., 489 F. App’x 815, 820 (6th Cir. 2012); Raft v. C.I.R., 147 F. App’x 458, 463 (6th Cir. 2005). ENTERED BY ORDER OF THE COURT Deborah S. Hunt, Clerk -2-
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
