By of the

Saying Todd Brunner, the one-time king of the local foreclosure market, failed to disclose all of his assets and repeatedly blamed others for the collapse of his empire, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge James Shapiro on Monday threw out Brunner's bankruptcy filing.

As a result, Brunner will have to deal with creditors whom he owes about $19 million without any of the protections given to debtors who reorganize their debts under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code.

"It will be a free-for-all," said Jonathan Goodman, Brunner's attorney. He declined further comment.

Brunner built his business largely by buying hundreds of foreclosed properties at deep discounts. He often flaunted his success by tooling around town in a Bentley - one of numerous pricey cars and boats he owns.

Brunner declined to comment after Shapiro issued his decision.

"I don't want to talk to you," Brunner, 55, said as he left Shapiro's courtroom. The rise of Brunner's empire and his financial woes were profiled in the Journal Sentinel last fall.

As to what happens next, he said "How would I know?"

Shapiro's ruling came after four days of testimony and it is the latest setback facing Brunner. In addition to a $2.2 million judgment won against him last year by First Business Bank - a judgment which Brunner says forced him into bankruptcy court - Brunner is also facing a felony charge in Fond du Lac County on allegations of writing a worthless $13,472 check to retrieve a cigarette boat from a repair shop. His business practices are being investigated by the FBI and the Milwaukee Police Department.

Brunner, who lives in Pewaukee, owns about 200 properties, including 143 in Milwaukee. He owes back property taxes of about $2 million to a variety of municipalities including about $1.5 million to Milwaukee, records show. Brunner has not filed federal income tax returns since 2008 and said he would not be filing for 2011 by the April 15 deadline.

"I'm always a year or two behind in my taxes," Brunner testified.

The IRS says he owes more than $400,000.

Brunner listed assets of $24 million on his bankruptcy filing, though he argued the properties are worth only a fraction of the listed values.

In throwing out Brunner's case, Shapiro cited the number of times Brunner blamed others for his troubles. Brunner accused a former secretary of throwing many of his financial records in a snow bank - an allegation disputed by the woman - and says that his previous lawyer told him to transfer numerous properties to a new corporation to keep them out of reach of creditors.

"Mr. Brunner you have a propensity to blame others . . . (and for) portraying yourself as an innocent victim," Shapiro said, echoing comments in closing arguments by Debra Schneider, the attorney for the U.S. Trustees Office.

Shapiro's order was in response to a Trustees Office motion urging he dismiss the Brunner bankruptcy.

The judge chastised Brunner for failing to disclose all of his holdings and often disclosing assets only when questioned by creditors or the Trustees office. Among the assets Brunner is accused of not initially disclosing were three pieces of property in Oregon, a handful of properties in the Milwaukee area, firearms and heavy equipment, including a forklift, Schneider said.

In addition to tossing the case, Shapiro also took the unusual step of banning Brunner for two years from filing for bankruptcy.