Cantrade Private Bank Lausanne Ltd. v. Torresy

876 F. Supp. 564, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 971, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2279, 1995 WL 85393
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedFebruary 27, 1995
Docket93 Civ. 3526 (PKL)
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 876 F. Supp. 564 (Cantrade Private Bank Lausanne Ltd. v. Torresy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cantrade Private Bank Lausanne Ltd. v. Torresy, 876 F. Supp. 564, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 971, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2279, 1995 WL 85393 (S.D.N.Y. 1995).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

LEISURE, District Judge:

This is an action brought by Cantrade Private Bank Lausanne Ltd. (“Cantrade”) against Maria S. Torresy, a/k/a Mary S. Tor-resy (“Torresy”), seeking payments allegedly due on three loans made to corporations controlled by Torresy. Plaintiff asserts that defendant personally guaranteed repayment and granted a security interest in cooperative apartments owned by her. Plaintiff now moves for summary judgment, pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, for an order holding Torresy liable for payment on the three outstanding loans and dismissing Torresy’s affirmative defenses and counterclaims. Defendant, in turn, moves for summary judgment dismissing all but one of plaintiffs claims for relief and for partial summary judgment on her counterclaim. For the reasons stated below, plaintiffs motion is granted in part and denied in part and defendant’s motion is also granted in part and denied in part.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Cantrade is a Swiss banking corporation with its principal offices in Lau-sanne, Switzerland. Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment (“Plaintiff Mem.”) at 2. Defendant Torresy resides at 322 East 57th Street, New York, New York, a Sutton Place cooperative apartment building where she owned two apartments: a duplex apartment (the *567 “Duplex”) and a triplex apartment (the “Triplex”). Id. Cantrade has asserted several claims against Torresy in connection with several different loan transactions.

In 1984 and 1985, Chemical Bank loaned $1,000,000 to a company called Mafra, Inc. (the “Mafra Loan”). Id. The principals of Mafra, Inc. (“Mafra”), Torresy and her husband Frank Torresy, both signed unconditional guaranties for this loan and gave a first lien against the Duplex. Id. at 3. In 1988, Chemical Bank transferred all of its right, title and interest in and to the Mafra loan and to Torresy’s Mafra guaranty to Cantrade. Id. Mafra failed to pay the remaining principal balance on the Mafra loan, $738,696, when it became due on April 12, 1991. Id. Cantrade sold Torresy’s interest in the ’Duplex at an auction to a corporate affiliate, Cantrade 57th Street, Inc., for $900,000. Id. at 4.

The Mafra Loan funds were used to capitalize a glass company called Empire Glass, Inc. (“Empire Glass”) of which Torresy was president. Plaintiff Mem. at 4. In 1989, Empire Glass became involved in litigation with Tamglass, Inc. (“Tamglass”), and in settlement of that litigation, Tamglass reduced the amount of Empire Glass’s debt to $1,000,-000 and accepted a new note and letter or credit for that amount. Id. at 4-5. The $1,000,000 letter of credit (the “Letter of Credit”) was issued by Cantrade and secured Empire Glass’s debt to Tamglass. Id. at 5. Plaintiff alleges that Torresy promised to file a mortgage against the Triplex as security for the Letter of Credit. Id. at 5-6. On June 16, 1992, upon default by Empire Glass of its obligations under the settlement agreement with Tamglass, Tamglass drew down the- full amount of the Letter of Credit plus interest accrued to that date, $1,010,082. Id. at 6-7.

On February 8,1991, Torresy, as president of Empire Glass, executed a promissory note (the “Promissory Note”) evidencing a loan made by Cantrade to Empire Glass in the amount of $250,000. Plaintiff Mem. at 7. This loan was secured by an endorsement on the Promissory Note, signed by Torresy in favor of Cantrade. Id. It is conceded that Empire Glass failed to pay the principal balance of the Promissory Note when it became due and payable. Id.

DISCUSSION

I. The Standard for Summary Judgment

Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that summary judgment “shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any' material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2522, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986); see also Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2509-10, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); Lang v. Retirement Living Pub. Co., 949 F.2d 576, 580 (2d Cir.1991). Summary judgment “is appropriate only ‘after adequate time for discovery and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.’ ” Thornton v. Syracuse Sav. Bank, 961 F.2d 1042, 1046 (2d Cir.1992) (quoting Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. at 2552); accord Irvin Indus., Inc. v. Goodyear Aerospace Corp., 974 F.2d 241, 245 (2d Cir.1992).

“In deciding whether to grant summary judgment all inferences drawn from the materials submitted to the trial court are viewed in a light most favorable to the party opposing the motion. The nonmovant’s allegations are taken as true and it receives the benefit of the doubt when its assertions conflict with those of the movant.” Cruden v. Bank of Neiv York, 957 F.2d 961, 975 (2d Cir.1992); “Only when no reasonable trier of fact could find in favor of the nonmoving party should summary judgment be granted.” Id.; accord Taggart v. Time, Inc., 924 F.2d 43, 46 (2d Cir.1991); see also Lang, 949 F.2d at 580 (“In determining how a reasonable jury would decide, the court must resolve all ambiguities and draw all inferences against the moving party.”); Binder v. Long Island Lighting Co., 933 F.2d 187, 191 (2d Cir.1991) (“Viewing the evidence produced in the light *568 most favorable to the nonmovant, if a rational trier could not find for the nonmovant, then there is no genuine issue of material fact and entry of summary judgment is appropriate”)-

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876 F. Supp. 564, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 971, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2279, 1995 WL 85393, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cantrade-private-bank-lausanne-ltd-v-torresy-nysd-1995.