Bell-Mark Techs. Corp. v. Swift, T.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania·Decided September 27, 2024·No. 1424 MDA 2023·Unpublished

Opinion

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT O.P. 65.37

BELL-MARK TECHNOLOGIES : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF CORPORATION V. TERRY SWIFT, : PENNSYLVANIA ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF :

DALE A. MILLER A/K/A DALE ARTHUR :

MILLER, DECEASED, FORCE :

PRODUCTS, TERRY SWIFT, :

ADMINSTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF :

DALE A. MILLER, A/K/A DALE :

ARTHUR MILLER, DECEASED, T/A : No. 1424 MDA 2023 FORCE PRODUCTS, SANDRA MILLER, :

MILLER EQUESTRIAN FARM, LLC, :

GARRY STINSON, AND JOHN DOES :

2-10 :

:

:

APPEAL OF: SANDRA MILLER AND :

MILLER EQUESTRIAN FARM, LLC :

Appeal from the Order Entered September 8, 2023 In the Court of Common Pleas of York County Civil Division at No(s):

2022-SU-002743

BEFORE: DUBOW, J., BECK, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E.* MEMORANDUM BY BECK, J.: FILED: SEPTEMBER 27, 2024 Sandra Miller and Miller Equestrian Farm, LLC (collectively, “Appellants”)

appeal from the order entered by the York County Court of Common Pleas (“trial court”) granting a preliminary injunction1 in favor of Bell-Mark

* Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.

1 As noted in more detail infra, the trial court entered a preliminary injunction, not a constructive trust. See Trial Court Opinion, 1/31/2024, at 22, 24.

Technologies Corporation (“Bell-Mark”) and against Appellants.2 Appellants argue that the trial court erred in imposing a preliminary injunction without holding a hearing and failing to require Bell-Mark to post a bond. Appellants further argue that the trial court erred in requiring them to produce an accounting over a twenty-year period. Upon careful review, we vacate the trial court’s order and remand for a hearing.

Underlying the instant case is the embezzlement of nearly nine million dollars by Dale A. Miller (“Miller”) from Bell-Mark. Bell-Mark employed Miller from January 2, 1990, until his death on September 7, 2022. During his employment with Bell-Mark, Miller’s salary ranged from $95,973.29 to $153,737.11. While employed by Bell-Mark, Miller formed a partnership with Garry Stinson (“Stinson”), Miller’s brother-in-law, identified as “Force Products.” Notably, Force Products did not have an office and operated from a post office box registered to Miller in York, Pennsylvania.

From 2003 through 2022, Force Products submitted 628 invoices to Bell-

Mark for various items. Bell-Mark paid Force Products a total of $8,608,928.32 for the items. Force Products deposited the Bell-Mark payments into a Citizens Bank account in the name of “Dale A. Miller DBA Dale A. Miller Force Products.”

During this time, Miller was married to Sandra Miller. Miller and Sandra Miller filed joint tax returns and reported income from Force Products on their

2 We note that an order entering a preliminary injunction is an interlocutory order, which is appealable as of right. See Pa.R.A.P. 311(a)(4).

returns. Miller used funds from the Citizens Bank account for his and Sandra Miller’s personal expenditures.

In August 2022, the Chief Financial Officer of Bell-Mark found a suspicious invoice from Force Products. Following an investigation, Bell-Mark discovered that it had no inventory from Force Products. After confronting Miller, he admitted the fraud and later died by suicide at a Bell-Mark facility.

On November 5, 2022, Bell-Mark filed a complaint against Terry Swift (“Swift”), Administrator C.T.A. of the Estate of Dale A. Miller a/k/a Dale Arthur Miller, deceased; Swift, Administrator of the estate of Dale A. Miller, a/k/a Dale Arthur Miller, deceased, t/a Force Products (together, “the estate defendants”); Force Products; and Appellants. The complaint alleged that Miller embezzled more than $8,608,928.32 from Bell-Mark3 and contained causes of action for, inter alia, conversion, fraud, civil conspiracy, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty, aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty, constructive trust, and accounting in equity. On January 26, 2023, Bell- Mark filed an amended complaint adding Stinson as a party.

The estate defendants filed an answer, admitting various factual allegations, including the fraud committed by Miller, that Bell-Mark paid Force Products based on the false invoices from 2003 to 2022, and that the gains

3 The York County District Attorney’s Office filed a motion to freeze the bank

account and any safe deposit boxes held by Miller and Force Products at Citizens Bank. The trial court granted the motion on September 9, 2022.

were used for Miller’s personal benefit and the benefit of Appellants and Stinson. Swift further admitted on behalf of the estate various counts in Bell- Mark’s amended complaint.

Appellants filed an answer with new matter to Bell-Mark’s amended complaint. On April 10, 2023, Bell-Mark filed a reply to Appellants’ new matter. Stinson also filed an answer with new matter to Bell-Mark’s amended complaint. Bell-Mark filed a response. During the pleading phase, Bell-Mark and Appellants exchanged requests for production of documents.

On July 20, 2023, Bell-Mark filed a motion for summary judgment against all the defendants, including Appellants and Stinson. As part of the motion, Bell-Mark sought the entry of a constructive trust. Appellants filed a response in opposition to Bell-Mark’s motion for summary judgment. Stinson also filed an answer in opposition to Bell-Mark’s motion. The estate defendants filed an answer to Bell-Mark’s motion, admitting most of the averments in the motion. In the interim, on September 7, 2023, Bell-Mark filed a petition for injunctive relief, requesting an injunction against Sandra Miller following her alleged sale of real estate.

On September 8, 2023, the trial court entered summary judgment in favor of Bell-Mark for $8,608,924.32 against the estate defendants. As part of this order, the trial court granted Bell-Mark’s request for a constructive trust against these specific defendants. The trial court further noted that the docket indicated there was a pending petition seeking a preliminary injunction against

Appellants and Stinson before a different judge. The trial court did not issue a ruling on Bell-Mark’s motion for summary judgment concerning Appellants and Stinson. Nevertheless, Appellants filed a notice of appeal from the order imposing the constructive trust. Subsequently, on October 12, 2023, the day of the hearing on the preliminary injunction, the trial court denied Bell-Mark’s petition for injunctive relief. The trial court found that the grant of the constructive trust, which, inter alia, prevented the sale of the real estate at issue, rendered the request for injunction moot.

Thereafter, Bell-Mark filed a motion to clarify the September 8, 2023 order. On October 31, 2023, the trial court issued an order clarifying its September 8, 2023 order. Specifically, the trial court found that although summary judgment was entered solely against the estate defendants, the entry of the constructive trust was against all defendants, including Appellants and Stinson. The trial court amended the order as follows:

1. The Court IMPRESSES a constructive trust upon all the right, title, and interest in the funds purloined by Dale A. Miller, Deceased, as an employee of Bell-Mark, during his employment, wherever such funds may be located or with respect to any assets which may have been acquired with such funds, by transmutation or otherwise, in the possession of the Estate, or in the possession of Force Products, or in the possession of Sandra Miller, or in the possession of Miller Equestrian Farm, LLC, or in the possession of Garry Stinson, or in the joint possession with any other named Defendant, or with any unnamed third party.

2. Defendants shall not mortgage, sell, lease, transfer, grant, convey or otherwise encumber or dispose of any such property whatsoever, unless and until payment in full of the monies due

and owing to Bell-Mark, in an amount to be determined, are paid first or upon further order of Court.

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Bell-Mark Techs. Corp. v. Swift, T., (Pa. Ct. App. 2024).

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