Cerrato v. BAC Home Loans Servicing (In re Cerrato)

504 B.R. 23
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 24, 2014
DocketCase No. 12-47995-CEC; Adv. Proc. No. 13-01138-CEC
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 504 B.R. 23 (Cerrato v. BAC Home Loans Servicing (In re Cerrato)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cerrato v. BAC Home Loans Servicing (In re Cerrato), 504 B.R. 23 (N.Y. 2014).

Opinion

Chapter 13

DECISION

CARLA E. CRAIG, Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge

This adversary proceeding was commenced by Antonio Cerrato (“Cerrato”, or “Plaintiff’), the debtor in the above captioned chapter 13 proceeding, to avoid a pre-petition foreclosure sale and to quiet title to real property. The defendants, BAC Home Loan Servicing and Bank of America N.A. (together, “BAC” or “Defendants”), filed a motion to dismiss the adversary proceeding, contending that Cer-rato’s rights in the real property were extinguished as of the conclusion of the foreclosure sale and that the foreclosure sale cannot be avoided. Because Cerrato has not pleaded any fact that could be a basis for avoiding the foreclosure sale, the motion to dismiss is granted.

Jurisdiction

This Court has jurisdiction of this core proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 157(b)(2)(A)(B), (E), (H), (K) and (0), 28 U.S.C. § 1334, and the Eastern District of New York standing order of reference dated August 28, 1986, as amended by order dated December 5, 2012. This decision constitutes the Court’s findings of fact and conclusions of law to the extent required by Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 7052.

Background

The following facts are not in dispute.

On November 20, 2012, Cerrato filed a voluntary petition under chapter 7 of title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”). The case was converted from chapter 7 to chapter 13, pursuant to § 706(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, on March 22, 2013. On April 30, 2013 Cerra-to filed this adversary proceeding against BAC.

[28]*28Prior to the filing of the bankruptcy-petition, on September 20, 2002, Cerrato executed a note in the amount of $232,435 (the “Note”) in favor of BAC. (BAC’s Mot. to Dismiss Ex. A, Adv. Pro. No 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 10). The Note was secured by a mortgage (the “Mortgage”), executed the same day, which granted a lien on property located at 80-68 89th Avenue in Woodhaven, New York (the “Property”). Id. Ex. B. The Mortgage was recorded in the Office of the City Register of the City of New York on July 29, 2003. Id.

Cerrato defaulted on the Note, and on March 29, 2009, BAC commenced a foreclosure action against Cerrato in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Queens County (the “Foreclosure Action”). (Compl. at ¶ 11, Adv. Pro. No 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 1). BAC obtained a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale from the New York State Supreme Court on November 27, 2009 (the “Foreclosure Judgment”). Id. at ¶ 12. The Foreclosure Judgment was recorded with the Queen’s County Clerk on December 11, 2009. (BAC’s Mot. to Dismiss Ex. G, Adv. Pro. No. 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 10).

The Foreclosure Sale was conducted on April 9, 2010 and resulted in BAC purchasing the Property. (Compl. at ¶ 12, Adv. Pro. No 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 1; BAC’s Mot. to Dismiss Ex. J, Adv. Pro. No 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 10). On November 3, 2010, the Referee’s Report of Sale was filed with the Queens’s County Clerk. (BAC’s Mot. to Dismiss Ex. J, Adv. Pro. No 13-01138-CEC, ECF No. 10). Following the Foreclosure Sale, the referee issued a deed to BAC (the “Referee’s Deed”), although the New York State Real Estate Transfer Tax was never paid. Id. at ¶ 12-13. As of the Cerrato’s petition date, the Referee’s Deed was still not recorded and Cerrato was still the owner of record. Id. at ¶ 14,18.

Arguments

The Plaintiffs complaint alleges that the Defendants wrongfully obtained the Referee’s Deed in contravention of the Foreclosure Judgment, New York State Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law § 1354, and New York State Tax Law § 1410, and that the deed was delivered prematurely and without authority. The Plaintiff also asserts that he is entitled to step into the shoes of the chapter 13 trustee and to avoid the transfer of the Property pursuant to Bankruptcy Code §§ 544, 547, 548, and 549.

The Defendants assert that the Cerra-to’s legal and equitable interests in the Property terminated upon conclusion of the foreclosure sale, and the fact that the Referee’s Deed has not been recorded does not revive the Cerrato’s interest in the Property. The Defendants maintain that the failure to pay transfer taxes under applicable New York State law does not provide a basis to avoid the Foreclosure Judgment, the Foreclosure Sale, or the Referee’s Deed. The Defendants also contend that, as a matter of law, Plaintiff is not entitled to relief pursuant to §§ 544, 547, or 548 of the Bankruptcy Code, and that Cerrato lacks standing to pursue an avoidance action.

Legal Standard

Rule 12(b)(6) provides that a complaint may be dismissed “for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted[.]” Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6); see Fed. R. Bankr.P. 7012(b). The purpose of Rule 12(b)(6) “ ‘is to test, in a streamlined fashion, the formal sufficiency of the plaintiffs statement of a claim for relief without resolving a contest regarding its substantive merits.’ ” Halebian v. Berv, 644 F.3d 122, 130 (2d Cir.2011) (quoting Global Network Commc’ns, Inc. v. City of New York, 458 F.3d 150, 155 (2d Cir.2006)).

“To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint must contain sufficient factual mat[29]*29ter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’ ” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955). In making this determination, a court must liberally construe the complaint, accept the factual allegations as true, and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiff. See Goldstein v. Pataki, 516 F.3d 50, 56 (2d Cir.2008). However, courts “are not bound to accept as true a legal conclusion couched as a factual allegation.” Papasan v. Allain, 478 U.S. 265, 286, 106 S.Ct. 2932, 92 L.Ed.2d 209 (1986); see Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (“Threadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere eonclu-sory statements, do not suffice.”). “Determining whether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief’ is “a context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679, 129 S.Ct. 1937. In other words, plausibility “ ‘depends on a host of considerations: the full factual picture presented by the complaint, the particular cause of action and its elements, and the existence of alternative explanations so obvious that they render plaintiffs inferences unreasonable.’ ” Fink v. Time Warner Cable, 714 F.3d 739, 741 (2d Cir.2013) (quoting L-7 Designs, Inc. v.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
504 B.R. 23, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cerrato-v-bac-home-loans-servicing-in-re-cerrato-nyeb-2014.