Edwins v. Lilly

422 So. 2d 1217
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 12, 1982
Docket15074, 15075
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 422 So. 2d 1217 (Edwins v. Lilly) 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
Edwins v. Lilly, 422 So. 2d 1217 (La. Ct. App. 1982).

Opinion

422 So.2d 1217 (1982)

Janice Campbell EDWINS, et al.
v.
Roy M. LILLY, Jr., et al.
CONSUMER CREDIT CORPORATION, et al.
v.
Roy M. LILLY, Jr., et al.

Nos. 15074, 15075.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

October 12, 1982.
Rehearing Denied December 16, 1982.
Writs Denied February 4, 1983.

*1218 R.C. Edwins, Baton Rouge, for Janice Campbell Edwins.

Henry O'Connor, Jr., New Orleans, for Consumer Credit Corp.

*1219 Roy M. Lilly, Jr., in pro. per.

Anthony J. Clesi, Jr., Baton Rouge, Richard F. Knight, Bogalusa, Lawrence R. Anderson, Baton Rouge, Dale E. Branch, Bogalusa, France W. Watts, III, Franklinton, Kenneth E. Barnette, Baton Rouge, H.F. Foster, New Orleans, for Roy M. Lilly, Jr., et al.

Before CARTER, SAVOIE and SHORTESS, JJ.

CARTER, Judge.

Plaintiff, Consumer Credit Corporation in Liquidation filed suit against Roy M. Lilly, Jr., Jim W. Richardson, Jr., Robert Morton Roche, and Washington Bank & Trust Company, seeking to recover funds allegedly misappropriated during the liquidation of Consumer.[1] Plaintiff appeals from a judgment in its favor against Lilly only and which dismissed its claim against Richardson and the Bank. The judgment also dismissed all third party demands and the claim against Roche as barred by the bankruptcy laws.

Plaintiff was a commercial lending institution operating in Washington Parish, Louisiana, and the State of Mississippi. Hal J. Hendricks, Sr., L. Rowe Davidson, and Roche[2] (one of the defendants) acted as its "executive committee" during all times relevant to the negotiations of the sale of its assets to Allstate Credit Plan, Inc., and during the development of a plan of liquidation. In July, 1972, the shareholders of Consumer voted to place it in non-judicial liquidation contemporaneously with the sale to Allstate.[3] In the resolution authorizing liquidation, Richardson was appointed liquidator of Consumer. Lilly of (Richardson & Lilly) was to act as counsel for Consumer during its liquidation. The sale price of the assets of Consumer was $2,088,335.00 ($2.50 per share for common stock), which was calculated to retire all outstanding long-term debts.[4]

According to the plan of liquidation, the liquidator was to pay the long-term debts immediately upon presentation to him of the notes and bonds representing them and to distribute to the shareholders 90% of the price of each share ($2.25) upon presentation of the certificates. The remaining 10% of the value of the stock ($208,833.50) was *1220 to be retained by the liquidator for a year as a reserve against contingent liabilities. This reserve fund was to be held in the form of a certificate of deposit.[5]

At this time Jim W. Richardson, Jr. and Roy M. Lilly, Jr. practiced law together in Bogalusa under the partnership name of Richardson & Lilly,[6] and for some time prior to the sale and liquidation had represented Consumer, the Bank, Hendricks and Roche in various legal matters. There were no written articles of partnership defining their business relationship, although Richardson and Lilly held themselves out to the public as a professional law partnership, with each of them performing law firm business. They shared equally in the profits and expenses, and for all apparent purposes operated as a traditional small-town two-man law partnership, with each of them more or less devoting his time mainly to clients he considered "his client", but handling matters for each other as the occasion demanded. St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company was the professional liability insurer of the law firm of Richardson & Lilly and each of the partners.

On the night of July 19, 1972, Allstate delivered to Lilly the sale price for the assets of Consumer. Lilly placed the money in the night depository of the Bank's branch office in Bogalusa. The next day, Lilly opened two separate checking accounts and purchased a certificate of deposit from the Bank. First, Lilly opened the Consumer Credit Corporation Liquidator's Account and deposited in this account the sale price received from Allstate. A portion of the funds in this account was then used to buy the certificate of deposit # 4503 in the amount of $208,833.50. Next, Lilly opened the second account, the Richardson & Lilly Special Escrow Account.[7] These accounts were in addition to the existing law firm accounts at the Bank and at another bank in the parish. Authorized signatories on the liquidator's account were Richardson and a secretary of the law firm, Carolyn Cesario. Lilly and Ms. Cesario were authorized to sign on the special escrow account. Both Richardson and Lilly were authorized to sign checks drawn on the firm's operating accounts. The initial deposit in the special escrow account was a check from the law firm in the amount of $1,000.00. On that same day, July 20, 1972, Lilly forged the liquidator's signature to a check in the amount of $100,000.00 drawn on the liquidator's account, and deposited this amount in the special escrow account. Also, on July 20, 1972, two checks were drawn on the special escrow account in the amounts of $13,640.04 and $15,270.29, to the order of the Bank to pay certain mortgages held by the Bank on certain properties which had been transferred by notarial acts passed before Lilly as notary public, but for which he had retained the funds, rather *1221 than paying off the mortgages. These mortgage payoffs were but the first of several such pay-offs to the Bank from the special escrow account, totalling $125,835.45, and for which no corresponding deposits were made into the account.

By September 18, 1972, the liquidator's account had been depleted, and there were still outstanding unsatisfied claims which had to be paid under the plan of liquidation. In order to cover this shortage, Lilly forged Richardson's name to a letter dated September 18, 1972, requesting the transfer of $50,000.00 from the certificate of deposit to the liquidator's account. This payment from the certificate of deposit, having been requested in advance of the stated maturity date, required the authorization of an officer of the Bank. Roche authorized this transfer of funds. The requested amount was transferred into the liquidator's account, and a new certificate of deposit (# 4602) was issued in the amount of $159,216.13. The new certificate was backdated to July 20,1972, for the purpose of allowing Consumer to earn interest from that date.

By December 22, 1972, the special escrow account was overdrawn in the amount of $175,612.52. To cover these overdrafts Lilly forged Richardson's name to a check on the liquidator's account for the sum of $183,537.06. Since the balance of the liquidator's account was insufficient to cover this check, Lilly also forged Richardson's name to a letter dated December 22, 1972, requesting the transfer of the proceeds represented by the certificate of deposit # 4602 to the liquidator's account. These funds were then transferred from the liquidator's account to the special escrow account. Roche authorized payment of certificate of deposit # 4602 in advance of its stated maturity date and handled the deposit of the check from the liquidator's account to the special escrow account.[8]

In this suit plaintiff seeks to recover from Lilly, Richardson, Roche, and the Bank, the money that was misappropriated. The trial court found that Lilly was responsible for the misappropriation and thus liable to the plaintiff.

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Bluebook (online)
422 So. 2d 1217, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/edwins-v-lilly-lactapp-1982.