Denham Homes, LLC v. Teche Federal Bank

182 So. 3d 108, 2014 La.App. 1 Cir. 1576, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1750, 2015 WL 5474473
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 18, 2015
DocketNo. 2014 CA 1576
StatusPublished
Cited by36 cases

This text of 182 So. 3d 108 (Denham Homes, LLC v. Teche Federal Bank) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Denham Homes, LLC v. Teche Federal Bank, 182 So. 3d 108, 2014 La.App. 1 Cir. 1576, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1750, 2015 WL 5474473 (La. Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

WELCH, J.

|aThe plamtiffs/appellants, Diversified Strategies Fund, L.L.C. (“Diversified”) and Crystal Lakes Properties, L.L.C. (“CLP”), in its own right and as successor-in-interest to Anderson Associates, L.P. (“Anderson”), appeal a judgment sustaining the peremptory exceptions raising the objections of prescription and no cause of action filed by defendant/appellee, Teche Federal Bank (“Teche”), and the dismissal of their actions against Teche.1 For reasons that follow, we reverse in part and affirm in part.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This matter involves a dispute over the enforcement of rights and obligations under a confirmed Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan. Denham Homes, L.L.C. (“Denham Homes”), an Illinois limited liability company, was the developer and owner of approximately 103.63 acres of property in Denham Springs, Louisiana. Denham Homes’ plan was to develop the property into the subdivision “Crystal Lakes.” The project proceeded as far as subdividing the propérty into approximately 214 individual home sites before Denham Homes filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Northern District of Illinois on January 28, 2010. .

During the initial bankruptcy proceeding, Teche, the principal creditor of Den-ham Homes, objected to the Third Amended Plan of Reorganization. As a result, Teche and Denham Homes entered into a settlement agreement on April 11, 2011, to resolve their disputes. Prior to confirma[111]*111tion of the settlement agreement, the bankruptcy court confirmed the Fourth Amended Plan of Reorganization (“Plan”), which incorporated the terms óf the settlement agreement as well as | addressed the claims of all of the other creditors. The parties’ rights and obligations under the Plan are at the core of this appeal.

The Plan lists various creditors according to class. Teche is listed with a Class 2 secured claim of approximately of $5.5 million and also with a Class 10 unsecured claim for $764,086.39. Other secured creditors included mechanic hen holders listed as Class 3-9 claims. Diversified and Anderson appeared as unsecured creditors holding Class 13 and Class 14 claims, respectively.

The Plan established a schedule of annual benchmarks for home site sales by Den-ham Homes as well as the amount of net proceeds to be collected. The sales benchmarks were set annually for 5 years from the May 6, 2011 effective date of the Plan. If met, sales were projected to generate net proceeds of approximately $7.9 million from the sale of all 214 home sites. Relevant to this appeal was the Plan’s requirement that by the first anniversary of the effective date, Denham • Homes was required to have sold at least 40 home sites and collected net proceeds of not less than $1,080,000.00.

Additionally, the Plan established a schedule for the distribution of net proceeds obtained from the sale of home sites according to each creditor’s particular class in the Plan. Initially, the net proceeds from the home site sales were to be paid to Teche and the Class 3-9 mechanic lien holders, with each creditor receiving 50% of the proceeds.2 Once the Class 3-9 claims were satisfied, Teche’s percentage increased to 70% of the net proceeds and the Class 10 and Class 12 claims would be paid the remaining 30% bf the net proceeds until those claims were paid in full.

Once Teche’s Class 2 claim was paid in full,.the remaining creditors, including Diversified and Anderson, would then receive the net proceeds from |4home site sales in the order established under the Plan until the claims were-paid in full or until the last home site was sold, Teche was granted the right to foreclose on the mortgage without opposition in the event that Denham Homes failed to meet one or more of the benchmarks.,

A dispute between Teche and’ Denham Homes arose after Anderson paid off all Class 3-9 mechanic li¿n holders and said hens were cancelled from the public record over the course of August and September of 2011. Denham Homes and Anderson maintained that Anderson was subrogated to the position of the Class 3-9 lien holders under the Plan’s payment schedule as a result. Over the course of 2011, Denham Homes paid Teche 50% of the net proceeds in connection, with the sale of 19 home sites. In December of 2011, Teche learned of the cancellation of the Class 3-9 liens and notified Denham Homes that it objected to receiving only 50% of the net proceeds from the home site sales on the basis that the Class 3-9 mechanic liens claims were extinguished by their payment and subsequent cancellation in the public record. Teche maintained that it was entitled to 70% of the net proceeds from all past and future home site sales due to the extinguishment of the Class 3-9 claims.

[112]*112As a result of the payment dispute, when Denham Homes attempted to close with a potential - buyer on the sale1 of an additional 21 home, sites prior, to the May 6, 2012 anniversary of the Plan, Teche refused to release its mortgage, which prevented the sale from closing. The plaintiffs additionally allege that Teche similarly refused- to release its mortgage in connection with other proposed sales of home sites in 2012, causing- those - sales to fail. Ultimately; Denham Homes failed to meet the first anniversary benchmark for sales required under the Plan. ...

The Bankruptcy Proceeding

Citing Denham Homes’ failure to meet the first anniversary benchmark, Teche issued a notice of default on July 18, 2012 signaling its intent to foreclose |6on the property. The following day, Denham Homes filed a Motion to Reopen Bankruptcy Plan (“motion to reopen”) with the bankruptcy court in Illinois. After the motion to reopen was granted on August 27, 2012, Denham Homes filed a “Motion to Enforce Payment of Claims Provision of the Confirmed Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization” (“motion to enforce”). There is no evidence in the record that an 11 U.S.C. §"362 stay was granted by the bankruptcy court in connection with either of these pleadings.

On November 29,'2012, the bankruptcy court issued an order denying Denham Homes’ motion to enforce' and closed the bankruptcy pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 360(a). Specifically, the bankruptcy court found that Denham Homes did not follow the terms of the Plan with regard to the percentage of distributions that it made to Anderson from the initial home site sales and that Teche had properly refused to release its mortgage as to the prospective home site sales. Denham Homes appealed the bankruptcy court’s order to the federal district court in Illinois.

Notably, on March 13, 2013, during the pendency of the appeal, Teche seized and sold the property at sheriffs sale for $3.9 million, without opposition or objection, Teche then filed a motion to dismiss the appeal as moot because Denham Homes no longer had any assets to reorganize; therefore, no relief could be provided by a reversal.or modification of the bankruptcy court’s November 29, 2012 order. Den-ham Homes, in turn, requested that the bankruptcy court’s order be reversed or vacated because the order could impact any future disputes between the parties, in particular Teche’s possible attempts to recover the deficiency between the sale price of the property and the sums'remaining due under the mortgage.

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Bluebook (online)
182 So. 3d 108, 2014 La.App. 1 Cir. 1576, 2015 La. App. LEXIS 1750, 2015 WL 5474473, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/denham-homes-llc-v-teche-federal-bank-lactapp-2015.