Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp. v. David Busby, Am. Int'l Dev., LLC (In re Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp.)

584 B.R. 110
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedMay 3, 2018
DocketBankruptcy No. 13–21415–CMB; Adv. Proc. No. 15–2149–CMB
StatusPublished

This text of 584 B.R. 110 (Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp. v. David Busby, Am. Int'l Dev., LLC (In re Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp.)) 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
Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp. v. David Busby, Am. Int'l Dev., LLC (In re Flabeg Solar U.S. Corp.), 584 B.R. 110 (Pa. 2018).

Opinion

Carlota M. Böhm, United States Bankruptcy Judge

The above-captioned adversary proceeding was commenced by Flabeg Solar US Corporation ("Debtor") on July 30, 2015. Within Debtor's Amended Adversary Complaint ("Amended Complaint," Doc. No. 49), Debtor alleges that David Busby and American International Development, LLC ("Defendants") took possession of Debtor's property without payment.1 The Amended Complaint seeks recovery on the basis of unjust enrichment and turnover. The matter presently before the Court is Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Amended Adversary Complaint ("Motion to Dismiss," Doc. No. 55) pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) and (6), made applicable to adversary proceedings by Fed.R.Bankr.P. 7012. Upon consideration of the Amended Complaint, the Motion to Dismiss, the response thereto, the parties' briefs, and for the reasons set forth herein, this Court finds that the Motion to Dismiss must be granted.2

Standard

When faced with a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), the court must determine if the complaint contains "sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to 'state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.' " See Ashcroft v. Iqbal , 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly , 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) ). "A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable *112for the misconduct alleged." Iqbal , 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937. Accordingly, the well-pleaded facts are separated from legal conclusions to determine if the alleged facts demonstrate an entitlement to relief. See Fowler v. UPMC Shadyside , 578 F.3d 203, 210-11 (3d Cir. 2009).

Typically, if matters outside of the pleadings are considered by the Court, a motion to dismiss must be treated as a motion for summary judgment pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(d) ; however, there are exceptions to the general rule:

First, a court is permitted to consider documents "integral to or explicitly relied upon in the complaint" in ruling on a motion to dismiss. "Plaintiffs cannot prevent a court from looking at the texts of the documents on which [their] claim is based by failing to attach or explicitly cite them." Second, the court may rely on "undisputedly authentic document[s] that a defendant attaches as an exhibit to a motion to dismiss if the plaintiff's claims are based on the document." Third, the court may rely on public records (if undisputed) such as criminal case dispositions, letter decisions of government agencies and published reports of administrative bodies. The rationale behind these exceptions is that the plaintiff is already on notice of the documents in these situations, and as such is not prejudiced by their consideration on a motion to dismiss.

See Lewis v. Allegheny Ludlum Corp. , No. 11-1619, 2012 WL 1328360, at *2, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 53620 (W.D.Pa. Apr. 17, 2012) (internal citations omitted). Here, the pending motion is resolved as a motion to dismiss under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b).

In addition, Defendants contend that Debtor lacks standing to bring this action requiring dismissal. As standing is a jurisdictional matter, the motion is properly brought pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1). See Ballentine v. United States , 486 F.3d 806, 810 (3d Cir. 2007). It is Debtor's burden, as plaintiff, to demonstrate the elements of standing. Id. As is the case with the analysis pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P.12(b)(6), the Court accepts as true all material allegations in the Amended Complaint and construes those facts in favor of the Debtor as the non-moving party. Id.

Factual Background

Prior to the filing of the bankruptcy case, Debtor manufactured two coat primary mirror assemblies used for commercial solar power generation. See Amended Complaint, at ¶ 6. As of the commencement of the case, Debtor had 14,881 of these mirrors (the "Mirrors") in stock and ready for shipment at its business facilities, which Debtor leased from The Buncher Company ("Buncher"). Id. at ¶¶ 6-7.

As agreed upon by Debtor, Buncher, UniCredit Luxembourg, S.A. (Debtor's primary secured creditor), and approved by the Court, the Debtor was to vacate the business premises by January 15, 2014 (the "vacation date") and remove its personalty from the premises by that date as well. See id. at ¶ 8; Stipulated and Agreed Order entered November 7, 2013 (the "Vacation Order"), Case No. 13-21415, Doc. No. 222.3 Prior to the vacation date, Debtor was provided the opportunity to conduct an auction of its personal property, equipment, and inventory located at the business premises. See

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Related

Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Ashcroft v. Iqbal
556 U.S. 662 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Krim M. Ballentine v. United States
486 F.3d 806 (Third Circuit, 2007)
Fowler v. UPMC SHADYSIDE
578 F.3d 203 (Third Circuit, 2009)
Wells Fargo Bank N.A. v. Ashley Business Park LLC
548 F. App'x 791 (Third Circuit, 2013)
Seitz v. 6130 West, LLC (In re Joey's Steakhouse, LLC)
474 B.R. 167 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 2012)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
584 B.R. 110, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/flabeg-solar-us-corp-v-david-busby-am-intl-dev-llc-in-re-flabeg-pawb-2018.