Centennial Bank v. Nabavi (In re Nabavi)

514 B.R. 895
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Florida
DecidedAugust 12, 2014
DocketNo. 6:13-cv-1176-Orl-36
StatusPublished

This text of 514 B.R. 895 (Centennial Bank v. Nabavi (In re Nabavi)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Centennial Bank v. Nabavi (In re Nabavi), 514 B.R. 895 (M.D. Fla. 2014).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

CHARLENE EDWARDS HONEYWELL, District Judge.

This cause comes before the Court úpon Appellant Centennial Bank’s (“Centennial”) appeal (Doc. 1-1) of the Bankruptcy Court’s Order (Doc. 1-2) granting Appel-lees Linda Nabavi and Michael Nabavi’s (the “Nabavi Debtors”) Amended Motion for Entitlement of Attorney Fees (“Motion for Fees”) (Doc. 1-12). Centennial filed a brief in support of its appeal (Doc. 10) (“Brief in Support”) on October 23, 2013, the Nabavi Debtors submitted an answer brief in opposition to the appeal (Doc. 15) (“Brief in Opposition”) on November 27, 2013, and Centennial filed a reply to that answer (Doc. 23) (“Reply Brief’) on December 27, 2013. On May 21, 2014, this Court held oral argument on the appeal. See Doc. 26. This Court has jurisdiction over this appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 158. Upon due consideration of the record, the briefs, and the oral argument, the Court has determined that the Bankruptcy Court’s Order should be affirmed.

I. Background

This case arises out of a Chapter 7 voluntary bankruptcy petition filed by the Nabavi Debtors on March 23, 2012. Doc. 1-4. In November 2007, the Nabavi Debtors’ company, Nabavi Construction, executed a promissory note for $1.8 million to Centennial’s predecessor, Old Southern Bank (“OSB”), and entered into a Second Real Estate Mortgage and Security Agreement (“Mortgage Agreement”) with OSB, pledging realty as collateral for the note. Doc. 10-3 at p. 28. In March 2010, Centennial became the owner and holder of the mortgage. Id. at p. 24, ¶ 4. On March 7, 2010, after the Nabavi Debtors defaulted on the note and Centennial sued Nabavi Construction and its guarantors in state court to foreclose and recover the amount owed under the Mortgage Agreement, Centennial was awarded a Partial Summary Final Judgment of Foreclosure against Nabavi Construction and its guarantors. Id. at p. 24, ¶ 5. Thereafter, the Nabavi Debtors filed their bankruptcy petition.

In the “Disclosure of Compensation of Attorney(s) for Debtors” attached to their bankruptcy petition, the Nabavi Debtors disclosed that they had paid their attorneys $3,000.00 in connection with the petition pursuant to a flat fee attorney agreement. Doc. 10-2 at p. 24. Centennial filed a Motion to Dismiss the petition [898]*898(“Motion to Dismiss”), arguing that it had been filed in bad faith. Doc. 10-1 at p. 15. Centennial also requested attorneys’ fees in its Motion to Dismiss, later claiming that this request was made in error. See Doc. 10-2 at p. 49; Doc. 10-5 at p. 42. The Nabavi Debtors filed a response in opposition to Centennial’s Motion to Dismiss, also requesting attorney’s fees. Doc. 1-8.

The Bankruptcy Court denied the Motion to Dismiss, after an evidentiary hearing was conducted on December 18, 2012. Doc. 1-2. On December 28, 2012, the Nabavi Debtors filed a Motion for Entitlement of Attorney Fees (Doc. 1-11), which they later amended (Doc. 1-12), on the basis that they were the prevailing party in Centennial’s Motion to Dismiss and pursuant to the Mortgage Agreement, which contains a fee provision, and based on Fla. Stat. § 57.105(7), which makes all attorney’s fee provisions reciprocal. See Doc. 10-1 at p. 19; Doc. 1-2. The Nabavi Debtors requested $13,945.00 in fees, plus any additional fees incurred in litigating the fee issues. Doc. 10-3 at p. 21.

Centennial filed a response in opposition to the Motion for Fees, asserting that the Nabavi Debtors were not entitled to attorneys’ fees because: (1) there was no federal law which allowed for entitlement to such fees; (2) there was no contractual basis for entitlement to fees because of the foreclosure of the mortgage, which resulted in a merger of the note and mortgage into the state court judgment; and (3) the Nabavi Debtors failed to follow the procedures in Rule 2016(b) of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and 11 U.S.C. § 329 of the Bankruptcy Code regarding the disclosure rules for the compensation of a debtor’s counsel. Doc. 10-3 at p. 23-27.

An evidentiary hearing was held on the Motion for Fees on March 7, 2013. Doc. 1-13. During the hearing, Centennial argued that the Nabavi Debtors did not disclose their entire retainer agreement until the hearing, and that a new agreement for fees was needed for certain legal services, but no such agreement had ever been executed. Doc. 10-5 at p. 45-46. On May 20, 2013, the Bankruptcy Court granted the Nabavi Debtors’ Motion for Fees, awarding them $15,925.00 for attorney services rendered based on time entries submitted by the Nabavi Debtors, their fees expert who testified that the amount sought by the Nabavi Debtors was reasonable, as well as the attorneys’ hourly rates, and that the prosecution of the Motion to Dismiss fit within the fee entitlement paragraph twenty-one (21) of the Mortgage Agreement, which, pursuant to § 57.105 of the Florida Statutes, applied to the Nabavi Debtors. See Doc. 1-2. The amount awarded did not include any fees for the expert. Id. This matter constitutes an appeal by Centennial of the Bankruptcy Court’s ruling on the Nabavi Debtors’ Motion for Fees. See Doc. 1-2.

II. Standard of Review

The district court functions as an appellate court in reviewing decisions of the bankruptcy court. In re Colortex Indus., Inc., 19 F.3d 1371, 1374 (11th Cir.1994). Legal conclusions of the bankruptcy court are reviewed de novo. In re Globe Mfg. Corp., 567 F.3d 1291, 1296 (11th Cir.2009). Findings of fact are reviewed for clear error. Id. “A factual finding is clearly erroneous when although there is evidence to support it, the reviewing court on the entire evidence is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed.” Morrissette-Brown v. Mobile Infirmary Med. Ctr., 506 F.3d 1317, 1319 (11th Cir.2007) (internal citations and quotations omitted).

[899]*899III. Discussion

On appeal, Centennial argues that the Bankruptcy Court erred in granting the Nabavi Debtors’ Motion for Fees because, first, they willfully violated 11 U.S.C. § 329 and failed to comply with Rule 2016(b) by either failing to supplement their filing or by failing to timely disclose another fee agreement between the Naba-vi Debtors and their counsel, failures that preclude an award of attorney’s fees and costs. Doc. 10 at p. 9. Second, Centennial argues that, even if another fee agreement could be considered, such agreement would not provide a basis for a fee award for responding to Centennial’s Motion to Dismiss because the contingency provision in the fee agreement is inapplicable. Id. Third, Centennial argues that the Bankruptcy Court erred in granting the fees based on section 57.105 of the Florida Statutes because there was no contract or statute by which Centennial could have collected attorneys’ fees. Id.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
514 B.R. 895, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/centennial-bank-v-nabavi-in-re-nabavi-flmd-2014.