Boug, LLC v. Shenandoah Holdings, LLC

CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedFebruary 28, 2025
Docket2023-CA-1473
StatusPublished

This text of Boug, LLC v. Shenandoah Holdings, LLC (Boug, LLC v. Shenandoah Holdings, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Boug, LLC v. Shenandoah Holdings, LLC, (Ky. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

RENDERED: FEBRUARY 28, 2025; 10:00 A.M. TO BE PUBLISHED

Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals NO. 2023-CA-1473-MR

BOUG, LLC APPELLANT

APPEAL FROM PULASKI CIRCUIT COURT v. HONORABLE TERESA WHITAKER, JUDGE ACTION NO. 21-CI-00718

SHENANDOAH HOLDINGS, LLC AND A.D. VENTURES, LLC APPELLEES

AND

NO. 2024-CA-0285-MR

APPEAL FROM PULASKI CIRCUIT COURT v. HONORABLE TERESA WHITAKER, JUDGE ACTION NO. 21-CI-00718

SHENANDOAH HOLDINGS, LLC AND A.D. VENTURES, LLC APPELLEES OPINION AFFIRMING

** ** ** ** **

BEFORE: EASTON, ECKERLE, AND KAREM, JUDGES.

EASTON, JUDGE: These two appeals stem from an action to sell1 jointly owned

property. The property was sold by judicial sale. By Counterclaim and

Crossclaim, one of the property owners claimed a breach of fiduciary duty by her

co-owners, her brother and sister. The circuit court dismissed these claims by

summary judgment and distributed the proceeds denying any stay by the posting of

a supersedeas bond. The summary judgment (No. 2023-CA-1473-MR) and the

refusal of a supersedeas bond (No. 2024-CA-0285-MR) are the subject of these

appeals. We affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Dr. James Crase practiced medicine for many years. Toward the end

of his career, his office was in the Somerset Medical Center (the “SMC Building”),

a commercial building where he and other doctors practiced. An opportunity arose

to purchase this building, and Dr. Crase wanted to buy it in such a way as to

eventually have the title held jointly by a trust in which he and his wife had an

1 Kentucky Revised Statutes (“KRS”) 389A.030. Because the property involved was a commercial building and lot, no one claimed that the property could be physically partitioned without substantial reduction in its value.

-2- interest and also in the name of his three children: Katherine or “Kit,” Karl, and

Kim. This was accomplished through a series of transactions.

For this purpose, the children set up Limited Liability Companies or

“LLCs.” Each child had a separate, essentially one-asset LLC, owned solely by

the respective child. Kit owns BOUG, LLC. Kim owns Shenandoah Holdings,

LLC, and Karl owns A.D. Ventures, LLC. We will use the first names of the

children in our discussion of this case, as this will make the discussion easier to

follow and because the actions complained of are really those of individuals rather

than their LLCs, although we recognize the separate legal nature of the LLCs.

Dr. Crase’s wife, Janice Y. Crase, died first followed by Dr. Crase.

As a result, the three children’s LLCs became tenants in common with three equal

shares to the property. The children first attempted to lease the SMC Building to

commercial tenants. The local rental market changed, and tenants were hard to

procure to the point that the SMC Building would become essentially vacant. The

children decided to look into selling the SMC Building. Of course, as tenants in

common, they would divide the proceeds of any private sale evenly.

The children were not successful in reaching any final agreement to

sell the SMC Building. Kim no longer wanted to be a part owner of the SMC

Building. She filed the action for sale in circuit court naming her siblings’ LLCs

as necessary parties. Kit filed a Counterclaim and Crossclaim against her siblings’

-3- LLCs claiming breach of a fiduciary duty arising from their joint tenancy and

specifically based on a refusal to proceed with a prior private offer to buy the SMC

Building.

Kim initially moved to dismiss Kit’s Counterclaim under CR2 12.02.

The circuit court denied Kim’s motion to dismiss, and the parties proceeded with

discovery. Pursuant to the circuit court’s Summary Judgment and Order of Sale

entered in September 2022, the SMC Building was ordered to be sold by the

Master Commissioner. The SMC Building was sold by the Master Commissioner

in February 2023, and the $700,000 sale proceeds were held in the Master

Commissioner’s escrow account.

Kim filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on Kit’s Counterclaim.

Kit responded claiming an issue of material fact existed as to whether Kim and

Karl secretly collaborated to attempt to exclude Kit from a profitable transaction

involving the SMC Building. Kit also felt that her siblings should have proceeded

with a contingent offer Kit had procured.

Kit filed an Affidavit of Ken Ford (“Ford”), who is a local real estate

agent. Ford stated that Kit had obtained an offer from investors interested in

purchasing the property in the amount of $2,000,000. Kit believes Kim’s rejection

of this offer was evidence of the alleged conspiracy between Kim and Karl.

2 Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure.

-4- The circuit court issued its Summary Judgment Dismissing Kit’s

Counterclaim in May 2023. The circuit court held that Kit failed to identify

“affirmative evidence in the record of the formation of a fiduciary relationship

between” Kit and Kim obligating Kim to act for Kit’s benefit. In December 2023,

the circuit court entered its Summary Judgment Dismissing Kit’s Crossclaim

against Karl for the same reasons. The circuit court denied Kit’s Motion for

Reconsideration of the prior summary judgment in favor of Kim at the same time.

Kit filed her timely Notice of Appeal of these summary judgment decisions.

Also in late 2023, Kim and Karl moved the circuit court to enter a

final order and distribute the funds held by the Master Commissioner. In response,

Kit filed a Motion to Stay Distribution and Notice of Intent to Give Supersedeas

Bond. Kit objected to the disbursement of the proceeds from the sale of the SMC

Building. She wanted the proceeds belonging to her siblings held to make sure that

funds would be available to pay damages if she were to be ultimately successful on

her breach of fiduciary duty claims. At that point, the circuit court still had to

determine the exact amount held by the Master Commissioner as well as a claim

for attorney’s fees and costs of the sale. The circuit court found Kit’s motion to be

premature and declined to rule on it at that time.

In a February 6, 2024, Amended Order of Distribution, the circuit

court ordered distribution of the sale proceeds and calculated the final allocation of

-5- funds to the parties in the following shares: $257,084.68 to Kim; $219,923.33 to

Kit; and $219,923.33 to Karl. The difference in the amounts is due to a

permissible award of attorney’s fees and costs, which is not an issue on appeal.

This Order was made “final, appealable, and subject to any post-judgment motions

filed by the parties to the above action.” But the Order also stated: “Any party

who has an objection to this Order may file an exception with the Court (and send

a copy of the objection to the Pulaski County Master Commissioner) within ten

(10) days of the entry of this Order. Absent a timely filed post-judgment motion or

objection, the Master Commissioner shall distribute the funds accordingly.”

On February 12, Kit submitted a Notice of Filing of Bond, attaching a

completed AOC3-155 form application for a supersedeas bond, as well as a surety

bond in the amount of $34,509.19. On February 13, Kit filed a Motion to Stay

Distribution, Approval of Bond, and Exceptions to the [Circuit] Court’s Amended

Order requesting the circuit court to approve the supersedeas bond and to approve

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