Acme Steel Co. v. Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, Inc. (In Re Acme Metals Inc.)

257 B.R. 714, 2000 Bankr. LEXIS 1305, 2000 WL 33138104
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, D. Delaware
DecidedAugust 28, 2000
Docket17-12803
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 257 B.R. 714 (Acme Steel Co. v. Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, Inc. (In Re Acme Metals Inc.)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Delaware primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Acme Steel Co. v. Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, Inc. (In Re Acme Metals Inc.), 257 B.R. 714, 2000 Bankr. LEXIS 1305, 2000 WL 33138104 (Del. 2000).

Opinion

OPINION 1

MARY F. WALRATH, Bankruptcy Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

This case is before the Court on the Motion of Acme Steel Company (“the Debtor”) for Partial Summary Judgment in an Adversary Complaint filed by it against Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, Inc. (“Raytheon”). After a hearing and briefing by the parties, we grant the Debtor’s Motion.

II. JURISDICTION

This Court has jurisdiction over this Motion, which is a core proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1384 and § 157(b)(1), (b)(2)(A), (B), (K) and (0).

III. PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

In July 1994, the Debtor and Raytheon entered into an engineering, procurement and construction contract for a Compact Strip Production Plant and related facility (“the Contract”) at the Debtor’s Riverdale, Illinois, plant site. The Contract provided that Raytheon would act as general contractor to design, engineer, procure, construct, install, erect, start up, and conduct performance tests of a facility for the thin-slab casting, rolling and finishing of steel products, together with related support and ancillary facilities (“the Plant”) for the Debtor at its Riverdale site for the contract price of $364,229,300. (Contract, § 1.) The Contract provided for a guaranteed completion date no later than thirty-four (34) months after the date on which Raytheon received the initial payment under the Contract. The initial payment was made by wire transfer on August 16, 1994. Therefore, the Contract’s guaranteed completion date was June 16,1997.

On September 28, 1998, Acme Metals, Inc., and its affiliates (including the Debt- or) filed for relief under chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. Thereafter, on November 16, 1998, Raytheon filed its Contractor’s Claim for Lien for amounts it contends are due under the Contract (in the amount of $12,006,799) in the Recorder of Deeds of Cook County, Illinois (“the Original Mechanic’s Lien”). (Raytheon Appendix, Exhibit A.) The Original Mechanic’s Lien asserted a lien against property of the Debtor identified as 13414 Wentworth Avenue, Riverdale, Illinois, with a property index number of 25-33-307-019-0000, and a property description of “Lot 8 in Acme Forest View Subdivision of the North 20 Acres of the East of the Southwest % of Section 33, Township 37 North, Range 14 East of the Third Principal Meridian, South of the Indian Boundary Line, in Cook County, Illinois.” (Id. at p. 3.) The Original Mechanic’s Lien asserted that work on the Contract had been completed.

On July 19, 1999, Raytheon filed a “Clarification to Original Contractor’s First Claim for Lien” with the Recorder of Deeds of Cook County, Illinois (“the Second Mechanic’s Lien”). (Raytheon Appendix, Exhibit B.) The Second Mechanic’s Lien was in the same amount that Ray-theon claimed was due from the Debtor on the Contract but asserted that work had not been completed as of March 26, 1999, and thereafter. The Second Mechanic’s Lien asserted a lien against two different properties owned by the Debtor, with the same street addresses as the Original Mechanic’s Lien but property index numbers of 25-33-306-026 and 25-33-310-012 and property descriptions as follows:

Parcel A
That portion of the North 20 Acres of the East lé of the Southwest % of Section 33, Township 37 North, Range 14, East of the Third Principal Meridian, South of the Indian Boundary Line in Cook County, Illinois Formerly Known as *717 Lots 1 through 44 Plus Vacated Alleys and Streets Adjacent, Also Formerly Known as Lots 104 through 121 in Vacation of Lots 1 through 44 and 104 through 121 in Acme Forest View Subdivision (Vacated by Document No. 97815719 Recorded October 31, 1997). Also, that Part of the North 20 Acres of the East % of the Southwest y4 of Section 33, Township 37 North, Range 14 East of the Third Principal Meridian lying West of the West Line of School Street now Vacated and lying West of the West Line of Former Lot 104 in Acme Forest View Subdivision (Vacated by Document No. 97815719 Recorded October 31, 1997) of the North 20 Acres of the East Half of the Southwest % of Section 33, Township 37 North, Range 14 East of the Third Principal Meridian, South of the Indian Boundary Line in Cook County, Illinois.
Parcel B
The North $ of the Northwest ]4 of the Southwest y4 of Section 33, Township 37 North, Range 14 East of the Third Principal Meridian (Excepting the West 208.00 Feet Therefrom) South of the Indian Boundary Line in Cook County, Illinois.

(Id. at pp. 1 & 2.)

Raytheon filed two secured proofs of claim in this proceeding on March 16 and 31, 1999, each in the amount of $8,820,252. (Acme Memorandum, Exhibit 1.) In those claims Raytheon asserts its claims are secured by the Original Mechanic’s Lien. On August 19, 1999, Raytheon filed an Amended Proof of Claim asserting its claims are secured by both the Original Mechanic’s Lien and the Second Mechanic’s Lien. (Acme Memorandum, Exhibit 9.)

On February 7, 2000, the Debtor filed the instant Adversary Complaint challenging the secured status of the Raytheon claims. On March 20, 2000, the Debtor filed its Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on Counts I, II, and part of III. At the initial pretrial conference in the Adversary, we directed that discovery be limited to the issues raised by the Summary Judgment Motion and set a briefing and argument schedule. Briefs were filed and oral argument was held on June 16, 2000.

IV. STANDARD OF REVIEW

Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9014 incorporates Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in contested matters. Under Rule 56, the court may grant summary judgment if the moving party establishes that “there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The court must assume that undisputed facts set forth in the record are true. In re Trans World Airlines, Inc., 180 B.R. 386, 387 (Bankr.D.Del.1994); Tanzer v. International Gen. Ind., Inc., 402 A.2d 382, 386 (Del.Ch.1979).

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Bluebook (online)
257 B.R. 714, 2000 Bankr. LEXIS 1305, 2000 WL 33138104, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/acme-steel-co-v-raytheon-engineers-constructors-inc-in-re-acme-deb-2000.