Cardiello v. Arbogast (In re Arbogast)

466 B.R. 287
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedFebruary 7, 2012
DocketBankruptcy No. 10-20237-TPA; Adversary No. 10-2092-BM
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 466 B.R. 287 (Cardiello v. Arbogast (In re Arbogast)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cardiello v. Arbogast (In re Arbogast), 466 B.R. 287 (Pa. 2012).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

BERNARD MARKOVITZ, Bankruptcy Judge.

This adversary proceeding and related matters in several other bankruptcy eases have been brought against some of the most talented attorneys practicing within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The genesis for such actions is the breach of a lease agreement by such attorneys prior to the dissolution of their law firm (Titus & McConomy). Such actions are brought pursuant to the “fraudulent transfer statutes” that have been promulgated in Pennsylvania.

Although the term “fraud” has been utilized throughout the litigation involving each of the attorneys, this Court concludes, without equivocation, that no basis exists to make any finding against any of them regarding actual fraud. To the contrary, the Court found there to be no question of credibility on their part in any of the adversary proceedings. Therefore, the decision that follows, as well as those that will follow, is directed primarily to the issue of constructive fraud without any implication of moral turpitude on the part of the attorneys.

INTRODUCTION

Natalie Lutz Cardiello, the Chapter 7 Trustee (hereafter “the Trustee”) for Thomas Dare Arbogast, the instant debtor (hereafter “the Debtor”), prosecutes the instant adversary proceeding (Adversary No. 10-2092-BM) so as to pursue a fraudulent transfer action against the Debtor and Mary Claire Arbogast, his non-debtor spouse (hereafter “Mrs. Arbogast”). The fraudulent transfer action includes three counts and is pursued pursuant to Pennsylvania state fraudulent transfer law via 11 U.S.C. § 544(b)(1).

The Trustee and Trizechahn Gateway, LLC (hereafter “Trizec”), who is a pre-petition creditor of the Debtor, also object to many of the bankruptcy exemptions that the Debtor has taken. Such objection to exemptions is filed at Document No. 20 in the main case docket (i.e., Bankruptcy No. 10-20237-BM).

Both of the instant matters were actually tried twice. The first trial was conducted on October 14 and 15, 2010, by the Honorable M. Bruce McCullough, to whom these matters were originally assigned. Before Judge McCullough could enter a final opinion and order disposing of the matters, he died. Subsequent to his death, the matters were reassigned to this Court. This Court concluded that, in order to satisfy the requirements of Fed.R.Civ.P. 63, which is made applicable to the instant matters by way of Fed.R.Bankr.P. 9028, it needed to retry the instant matters. Such retrial has since been held.

The instant opinion and accompanying order also dispose of a motion for sanctions that the Debtor and Mrs. Arbogast brought prior to the first trial for the apparent failure by the Trastee and Trizec to comply with a consent case management Order of Court that was entered on April 21, 2010.

[294]*294For the reasons set forth below, the Court will grant judgment in favor of the Trustee, and against the Debtor and Mrs. Arbogast jointly and severally, on the Trustee’s fraudulent transfer action in the amount of $143,389.10. The Court will also overrule that exemption objection of the Trustee and Trizec that it adjudicates herein. Finally, the Court will deny the sanctions motion that has been brought by the Debtor and Mrs. Arbogast.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The Debtor is an attorney who at one time was a partner at Titus and McCono-my (hereafter “T & M”), a now-disbanded law partnership. In July 2000 Trizec, who was the owner of the building in which T & M had rented space, filed a lawsuit against T & M in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas for Allegheny County (hereafter “the Common Pleas Court”). Trizec filed such lawsuit on the basis that T & M had breached its lease agreement with Trizec (hereafter “the Lease Litigation”). Trizec named as defendants in the Lease Litigation approximately 20 individual partners of T & M including the Debtor.

On June 7, 2006, the Common Pleas Court entered judgment in the Lease Litigation in favor of Trizec, which judgment was jointly and severally entered against, inter alia, the Debtor. The amount of such judgment was for roughly $2.7 million, which amount is alleged to have subsequently grown to more than $3 million by virtue of interest and legal fees. In an attempt to collect on such judgment from the Debtor, Trizec commenced a fraudulent transfer action on April 23, 2007, against the Debtor and Mrs. Arbogast in the Common Pleas Court (hereafter “the Arbogast Fraudulent Transfer Action”).

The Lease Litigation judgment was subsequently appealed to the Pennsylvania Superior Court, which affirmed the Common Pleas Court’s decision on July 3, 2007, as to most of the named defendants. However, the Pennsylvania Superior Court reversed the Common Pleas Court’s decision as to the Debtor in particular. As a result of such decision, Trizec discontinued the Arbogast Fraudulent Transfer Action without prejudice on July 27, 2007.

Trizec then appealed the aforesaid Pennsylvania Superior Court decision as it impacted the Debtor’s personal liability only to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ultimately reversed the Pennsylvania Superior Court’s decision vis-a-vis the Debtor on July 23, 2009, thereby reimposing personal liability against the Debtor on the Lease Litigation judgment.

On February 3, 2010, Trizec obtained an order from the Common Pleas Court granting Trizec’s motion to strike the aforesaid discontinuance of the Arbogast Fraudulent Transfer Action (hereafter “the February 3, 2010 State Court Order”). Before obtaining such court order, Trizec, on January 20, 2010, sent a letter to the Common Pleas Court requesting that the aforesaid motion to strike discontinuance be granted (hereafter “the January 20, 2010 Letter”).

On January 15, 2010, or just several days before Trizec sent the January 20, 2010 Letter (and just weeks before Trizec obtained the February 3, 2010 State Court Order), the Debtor filed a voluntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. Trizec neither moved for, nor thus obtained an order from a bankruptcy court that granted, relief from the automatic stay before it either sent the January 20, 2010 Letter or obtained the February 3, 2010 State Court Order.

On February 23, 2010, the Debtor removed the Arbogast Fraudulent Transfer Action to this Court. Such removal served [295]*295to initiate the instant adversary proceeding. On June 10, 2010, this Court entered an order that substituted the Trustee for Trizec as the plaintiff in the instant adversary proceeding, thereby placing such action in its present context.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

The complaint that sets forth the Arbo-gast Fraudulent Transfer Action contains three counts. The first count pleads an actual fraudulent transfer action under Pennsylvania’s version of the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (i.e., 12 Pa.C.S.A. § 5104(a)(1)), and the latter two counts plead constructive fraudulent transfer actions under such statute (i.e., 12 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 5104(a)(2)(ii) and 5105).

12 Pa.C.S.A. § 5104(a)(1) & (2)(ii) provides, in pertinent part, that:

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
466 B.R. 287, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cardiello-v-arbogast-in-re-arbogast-pawb-2012.