By Jeremy Retherford and Jonathan Grayson (January 24, 2018, 1:22 PM EST) -- Many — if not most — claims for violating the automatic stay are settled before the time comes for the creditor to file a response. In some instances however, the claim is litigated. When that occurs, there often is little dispute over whether the automatic stay was violated. Instead, the dispute is over the extent of damages. The Eleventh Circuit recently addressed a narrow issue that can arise in such disputes. In the case of Mantiply v. Horne, the court addressed the question of "whether the Bankruptcy Code authorizes payment of attorneys' fees and costs incurred by debtors in successfully pursing an action for damages resulting from the violation of the automatic stay and defending the damages award on appeal."[1]...