Hayes v. American National Bank of Powell

784 P.2d 599, 1989 Wyo. LEXIS 251, 1989 WL 154110
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 21, 1989
Docket89-3
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 784 P.2d 599 (Hayes v. American National Bank of Powell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hayes v. American National Bank of Powell, 784 P.2d 599, 1989 Wyo. LEXIS 251, 1989 WL 154110 (Wyo. 1989).

Opinions

[600]*600THOMAS, Justice.

The asserted questions in this case relate to claims of genuine issues of material fact concerning the satisfaction of a guarantor’s responsibility for the debt of another. Those asserted genuine issues of material fact encompass the effect of a stipulation entered into between the debtors and the guaranteed creditor in a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy proceeding; an alleged mutual mistake by the guarantor and the creditor with respect to the extent and amount of the guarantee; and the effect of a satisfaction arising out of the acceptance by the creditor of personal property of the debtor in the absence of an appropriate valuation of that property. The questions are academically interesting, but we agree with the determination by the district court that the money in issue was used, in fact, to satisfy a promissory note secured by a mortgage made independently by the guarantor to the appellee, the American National Bank (Bank). Consequently, the asserted genuine issues do not involve a material fact in this instance. There is no genuine issue as to the material facts relating to the independent debt of the guarantor to the bank. We affirm the summary judgment entered by the district court.

The appellant, Rodney Hayes (R. Hayes), asserts these issues in his brief:

“1. Were there genuine issues of material fact concerning the extent of release of liability intended by Appellee and Chapter 11 debtors concerning the terms of a two-year, post-confirmation written Stipulation entered into between the Chapter 11 debtors and Appellee, and the effect of that written Stipulation on the liability of a guarantor of a promissory note of the Chapter 11 debtors which was to be paid through the Chapter 11 Reorganization Plan such that it was error for the District Court to have ordered Summary Judgment?
“2. Was there sufficient evidence offered by the parties to support a showing that there was mutual mistake by the parties regarding the extent and amount of a guarantor’s guarantee of promissory note due Appellee from non-party Chapter 11 debtors such that it was error for the District Court to grant Summary Judgment against Plaintiff and in so doing refuse to admit evidence of the parties’ intent?
“3. When Appellee accepted delivery of certain items of personal property ‘in full satisfaction of the creditor’s claims against the debtors,’ and where Appellee failed to provide promissory note guarantor, Appellant, with accounting of application of property value and failed to liquidate said personal property and apply the proceeds thereof to indebtedness allegedly due by guarantor, Appellant, were there genuine issues of material fact regarding reduction of indebtedness due from guarantor, Appellant, to Appel-lee by virtue of Appellee’s acceptance of said personal property without sale or application of value to the debt, such that it was error for the District Court to grant Summary Judgment?”

The Bank articulates the issues differently, in this way:

“1. Whether the District Court properly granted Summary Judgment in favor of Appellee and against the Appellant and whether the District Court correctly determined that there were no genuine issues as to any material fact?
“2. Whether the Appellant should be estopped from asserting his claims against Appellee due to Appellant having received any and all benefits resulting from the Hayes/Kuzara Contract as a direct result of Appellee consenting to the terms and conditions outlined in said CONTRACT?”

The circumstances as to which genuine issues of material fact are claimed involve at least three promissory notes; a mortgage by R. Hayes to the Bank; an offer to give a mortgage on the same land; a contract for the sale of the land that had been mortgaged; a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy by the father of R. Hayes, Norman Hayes (N. Hayes), whose debt R. Hayes had guaranteed; and negotiations and compromises that occurred within the bankruptcy proceeding. As a more detailed recitation of these events will demonstrate, all of these [601]*601complex and somewhat convoluted facts had no effect upon the original mortgage by R. Hayes to the bank. That mortgage was still outstanding, and the Bank was entitled to apply the proceeds of the fund in issue to the satisfaction of the note secured by that mortgage. This was the premise upon which the District Court granted summary judgment.

We set the stage for the detailed recitation of facts by recalling that a summary judgment is affirmed on appeal only if this court is persuaded that there are no genuine issues relating to any material fact and that the prevailing party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fiscus v. Atlantic Richfield, 773 P.2d 158 (Wyo.1989); Matter of Larsen, 770 P.2d 1089 (Wyo.1989); Farr v. Link, 746 P.2d 431 (Wyo.1987). Furthermore, we consider only admissible evidence, in exactly the same light as that in which it was presented to the district court, in assessing the existence of any genuine issue of material fact that might foreclose summary judgment. Connaghan v. Eighty-Eight Oil Company, 750 P.2d 1321 (Wyo.1988); England v. Simmons, 728 P.2d 1137 (Wyo.1986). In this instance, this latter rule is significant because the record fails to substantiate some of the assertions presented in the appeal. We cannot consider factual recitations in briefs unless they are supported by the record. Contentions by the parties of what they believe occurred have no materiality unless they are demonstrated in the record considered by the district court in entering its summary judgment.

Therefore, our assessment of this case is premised only upon the facts disclosed by the record. The relationship between the parties was initiated on May 19, 1980 when R. Hayes executed a promissory note for $35,000.00, in favor of the Bank, and secured that note by giving a mortgage on real property. The promissory note was extended twice by promissory notes dated June 26, 1981 and January 11, 1982. The record is silent with respect to any separate treatment of the mortgage and, consequently, the record fact is that the mortgage remained intact and without modification by these extensions.

In September of 1983, R. Hayes entered into a contract to sell the mortgaged land. Conforming with the mortgage executed on May 19, 1980, R. Hayes sought the Bank’s written approval of the conveyance by providing it with a copy of the agreement between himself and the prospective buyer. This compliance with the terms of the mortgage constituted an acknowledgment by R. Hayes that it then was a current encumbrance. The contract for the sale of land provided that all monthly payments by the purchaser, up to the amount of $30,000.00, should be made to an escrow agent and held for the purpose of creating a special fund with which to guarantee the satisfaction of the mortgage held by the bank at the time that the payment required by the contract for the sale of land was made in full. The contract for the sale of land also provided that R. Hayes was to deposit $5,000.00, from the down payment by the purchaser, into this same escrow fund to compensate for a differential in interest rates between those on R.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Duke v. State
2004 WY 120 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 2004)
Lee v. LPP Mortgage Ltd.
2003 WY 92 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 2003)
Hatch v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co.
930 P.2d 382 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1997)
Madrid v. State
910 P.2d 1340 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1996)
Cenex, Inc. v. Arrow Gas Service
896 F. Supp. 1574 (D. Wyoming, 1995)
Martin v. Farmers Insurance Exchange
894 P.2d 618 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1995)
Bowen v. Smith
838 P.2d 186 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1992)
State v. Union Pacific Railroad
823 P.2d 539 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1992)
Nauman v. CIT Group/Equipment Financing, Inc.
816 P.2d 883 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1991)
Century Ready-Mix Co. v. Campbell County School District
816 P.2d 795 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1991)
Cockburn v. Terra Resources, Inc.
794 P.2d 1334 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1990)
Hayes v. American National Bank of Powell
784 P.2d 599 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
784 P.2d 599, 1989 Wyo. LEXIS 251, 1989 WL 154110, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hayes-v-american-national-bank-of-powell-wyo-1989.