BAKER, C.J.
Appellants-defendants/cross-appellees Weigand Construction Co., Inc. (Weigand), and Ohio Farmers Insurance Co. (the Surety), appeal the trial court’s orders denying their motion to dismiss the complaint against them that was filed by appellee-plaintiff/cross-appellant Stephens Fabrication, Inc. (Stephens), denying their summary judgment motion, and granting Stephens’s summary judgment motion. Weigand argues that this lawsuit did not survive Stephens’s voluntary bankruptcy proceedings and that Stephens’s claim for additional compensation was not timely made pursuant to the terms of the parties’ contract. Finding that the lawsuit survived bankruptcy but that the claim was not timely made, we affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand with instructions.
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Stephens’s commencement of bankruptcy proceedings created a separate legal estate. U.S.C. § 541(a). After filing the bankruptcy petition, title to all of Stephens’s property, including its causes of action, passed to the Trustee. After a bankruptcy proceeding is closed, the bankrupt party may not sue unless the Trustee abandoned the cause of action. Dallas Cabana, Inc. v. Hyatt Corp., 441 F.2d 865, 867 (5th Cir. 1971); see also In re Mars Builders, Inc., 397 B.R. 255, 257 (Bankr. W.D. Pa. 2008) (holding that “a bankruptcy trustee . . . cannot abandon a legal claim merely by failing to prosecute it, whatever its reason may be for not doing so”).
Here, Stephens’s Trustee listed the litigation herein as “fully administered” rather than “abandoned” in the final report. Appellants’ App. p. 156-57. “Fully administered” is not defined in the bankruptcy code, but the bankruptcy guidelines explain that the term is broad and expressly includes assets that have been abandoned. Appellee’s App. p. 5. The bankruptcy code provides that after an estate is fully administered and the court has discharged the trustee, the court shall close the case. 11 U.S.C. § 350(a). Thus, the term “fully administered” refers to non-substantive administrative functions, as a bankruptcy case cannot be closed unless all assets have been fully administered.
Here, the form completed by the Trustee offers two boxes to check next to each asset—one that says “abandoned,” and one that says “fully administered.” Appellants’ App. p. 156. Next to the line containing the instant lawsuit, the Trustee checked only the “fully administered” option, leaving the “abandoned” option blank. Id. The better practice, it seems, would be to check both boxes when, as here, the Trustee intends to abandon an asset back to the debtor. There is no dispute herein, however, that the Trustee did, in fact, intend to abandon this lawsuit back to Stephens. The Trustee decided not to pursue this claim for several reasons, including the value of the claim, the procedural posture of the claim, and the Trustee’s inability to retain counsel to prosecute the claim within the bankruptcy. Id. at 169. Under these circumstances, we believe that to find that Stephens no longer possessed these claims following the bankruptcy would be to elevate form over substance to a degree we cannot countenance. Thus, although we are sympathetic to Weigand’s arguments, we find that the trial court properly denied its motion to dismiss.
Given this finding, we note that included in Stephens’s lawsuit against Weigand was a claim under the base contract that is separate and apart from the additional costs requested in the Claim. Specifically, Stephens argued that it was owed $39,408.09 for unpaid sums under the base contract and for certain materials. Weigand does not dispute this claim, it has merely argued that the entire complaint should be dismissed based on this above argument. Inasmuch as we have found that Weigand was not entitled to a dismissal, however, we affirm the portion of the trial court’s order awarding $39,408.09 plus attorney fees, prejudgment interest, postjudgment interest, and costs of collection to Stephens.
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Even so, however, it is undisputed that at the very latest, Stephens was actually aware on April 22, 2003, that it would be making a Claim for additional payment. At that time, Stephens orally notified a Weigand employee of its circumstances. Stephens waited for an additional thirty-four days, until May 28, 2003, to provide the written Claim to Weigand. As noted above, the Claim Provision required Stephens to submit written notice of a Claim to Weigand within twenty-one days “after occurrence of the event giving rise to such Claim” or within twenty-one days “after the claimant first recognizes the condition giving rise to the Claim,” whichever is later. Appellants’ App. p. 232. Giving Stephens every benefit of the doubt, it is undisputed that it recognized the condition giving rise to the Claim by April 22, 2003. It failed to submit written notice of that Claim within twenty-one days. Therefore, pursuant to the terms of the contract, its Claim was untimely.
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In sum, we have found that Stephens’s claims against Weigand, Weigand’s Surety, and BSU survived the bankruptcy proceedings. Given that ruling, Stephens is entitled to the unpaid sums under the base contract: $39,408.09 plus attorney fees, prejudgment interest including the periods of time before and during the bankruptcy proceeding, postjudgment interest, and costs of collection to Stephens. We have also found, however, that Stephens’s Claim for additional compensation was untimely under the terms of the relevant contracts and that Weigand is entitled to enforce the contractual provisions in this regard. Therefore, we reverse the trial court’s summary judgment order.
The judgment of the trial court is affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded with instructions to enter summary judgment in Weigand’s favor and calculate the amount of damages owed to Stephens, which is the total sum of $39,408.09 plus attorney fees, pre- and post-judgment interest, and costs of collection.
DARDEN, J., and CRONE, J., concur.