Holland v. United States

75 Fed. Cl. 483, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 40, 2007 WL 548812
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedFebruary 20, 2007
DocketNo. 95-524C
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 75 Fed. Cl. 483 (Holland v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Holland v. United States, 75 Fed. Cl. 483, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 40, 2007 WL 548812 (uscfc 2007).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

GEORGE W. MILLER, Judge.

This Winstar-related case is before the Court on plaintiff First Bank’s motion for partial summary judgment with respect to damages and defendant’s cross-motion for summary judgment with respect to damages. Plaintiff First Bank (hereinafter “plaintiff’ whenever the term is used in the singular) filed its motion for summary judgment on liability and partial summary judgment on damages (“Pl.’s Mot.,” docket entry 277) on September 21, 2005. Defendant filed a response to First Bank’s motion and its cross-motion for summary judgment with respect to liability and damages (“Def.’s Resp.,” docket entry 293) on December 7, 2005. Plaintiff filed a reply in support of its motion and response to defendant’s cross-motion (“Pl.’s Reply,” docket entry 311) on February 6, 2006. Defendant filed a reply in support of its cross-motion (docket entry 314) on February 24, 2006. Following oral argument and supplemental briefing that concluded with briefs filed by plaintiffs on October 6 and by defendant on October 20, 2006, the Court on November 17, 2006, granted in part plaintiffs motion for summary judgment on liability with respect to breach of the express River Valley Savings Bank, F.S.B. (“River Valley I”) and River Valley Savings Bank of Rock Falls, Illinois (“River Valley II”) contracts. The Court also denied in part plaintiffs motion for summary judgment, and granted in part defendant’s cross-motion for summary judgment, with respect to liability for the phase-out from regulatory capital computations of $5,000,000 of River Valley I preferred stock acquired by FSLIC in connection with the acquisition by Messrs. Holland and Ross of all the voting stock of River Valley I. Likewise, the Court denied in part plaintiffs motion for summary judgment on liability and granted in part defendant’s cross-motion with respect to plaintiffs implied-in-fact contract claims, holding that defendant is entitled to summary judgment in its favor on the claims of all plaintiffs alleging breach of implied-in-fact contracts. Holland v. United States, 74 Fed.Cl. 225, 264 (2006). In that opinion, the Court stated that it would deal with the parties’ motions insofar as they related to damages in a subsequent opinion. Id. This is that opinion.

For the reasons set forth below, plaintiffs motion for partial summary judgment on damages is DENIED, and defendant’s cross-motion for summary judgment on damages is also DENIED.

FACTS1

Plaintiffs Holland and Ross filed this action on August 8, 1995. Presently, plaintiffs’ Third Amended Complaint seeks damages arising out of defendant’s alleged breaches of contracts as a result of the enactment of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and [485]*485Enforcement Act of 1989, Pub.L. No. 101-73, 103 Stat. 183 (1989) (“FIRREA”). An account of the factual background of this case is found in Judge Marian Blank Horn’s detailed and thorough Findings of Fact in Holland v. United States, 57 Fed.Cl. 540, 543-49 (2003). For a more comprehensive history of the origins of the thrift industry crisis of the early 1980s, see generally United States v. Winstar Corp., 518 U.S. 839, 116 S.Ct. 2432, 135 L.Ed.2d 964 (1996). The background information and facts pertinent to the Court’s resolution of the parties’ pending motions for summary judgment on damages are set forth herein.

In order to protect the stability of the thrift industry, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board (“FHLBB”) established regulations governing the activities and financial standards of thrift institutions, including a requirement that thrifts maintain specified levels of net worth, generally expressed as a ratio of a thrift’s capital to its liabilities. Joint Stipulation of Fact (docket entry 119) (“JSF”) at 1115. Any merger of thrifts had to be approved by the FHLBB. Id, 1113. Sometimes, when an acquired thrift was experiencing financial difficulties, a merger could affect the ability of the resulting institution to meet the FLHBB’s regulatory requirements. During the thrift crisis of the 1980s, the FHLBB would often forebear for a certain period of time from taking action against such a resulting thrift with regard to certain requirements that the thrift might not be able to meet. Id. 1119.

1. The River Valley I Contract2

On July 28,1988, the FHLBB issued Resolution 88-638, authorizing the merger of two insolvent thrifts, Galva Federal Savings and Loan Association of Galva, Illinois (“Galva”) and Mutual Savings and Loan Association of Canton, Illinois (“Mutual”), with and into Home Federal Savings and Loan Association of Peoria, Illinois (“Home”), a third insolvent thrift, the conversion of Home into River Valley I, and the acquisition of River Valley I by Messrs. Holland and Ross. See Joint App. to Joint Stipulations of Fact (docket entry 119) (“JA”) 4987-5004; Holland, 57 Fed.Cl. at 543-45. The FHLBB therein approved and authorized the execution of an Assistance Agreement on behalf of the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (“FSLIC”). See JA 4995. Resolution 88-638 authorized River Valley I to issue preferred stock to FSLIC, and authorized FSLIC to purchase the preferred stock “in an amount not to exceed $5,000,000.” JA 4996; Holland, 57 Fed.Cl. at 545. The resolution authorized River Valley I to issue a $4,600,000 subordinated debenture and further authorized “the inclusion in [River Valley I’s] regulatory capital of such subordinated debenture in accordance with § 561.13 of the Insurance Regulations,” subject to certain conditions. JA 4997; Holland, 57 Fed.Cl. at 545. The “Accounting” section of the resolution provided, in relevant part, that River Valley I was to account for the mergers and stock acquisitions, and report to the FHLBB and FSLIC, “in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ... as accepted, modified, clarified, or interpreted by applicable regulations of the Bank Board and the FSLIC,” except to the extent of the following departures from generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”):

(a) Eight million dollars of the initial contribution by the FSLIC to River Valley, and four million six hundred thousand dollars of the principal amount of the Subordinated Debenture issued to American National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago, pursuant to § 6 of the Assistance Agreement, shall be credited to the regulatory capital account of River Valley in accordance with the forbearance letter authorized pursuant to this resolution; and
(b) The value of any unidentifiable intangible assets resulting from the application of push-down accounting in accounting for the Mergers and Stock Acquisition may be amortized by River Valley over a period not in excess of twenty-five (25) years by the straight line method.

JA 5000-01; Holland, 57 Fed.Cl. at 545-56.

Also on July 28, 1988, FHLBB sent a letter to plaintiff Holland, as President and [486]*486Chief Executive Officer of River Valley I, granting certain regulatory forbearances regarding the River Valley I transaction. See JA 5005-07; Holland, 57 Fed.Cl. at 546.

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75 Fed. Cl. 483, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 40, 2007 WL 548812, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/holland-v-united-states-uscfc-2007.