In re 4848, LLC

490 B.R. 343, 2013 WL 1402052, 2013 Bankr. LEXIS 1438, 57 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 230
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Wisconsin
DecidedApril 8, 2013
DocketNo. 12-36114
StatusPublished

This text of 490 B.R. 343 (In re 4848, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re 4848, LLC, 490 B.R. 343, 2013 WL 1402052, 2013 Bankr. LEXIS 1438, 57 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 230 (Wis. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION ON OLIVE PORTFOLIO, LLC, AS AS-SIGNEE TO BMO HARRIS BANK, NA’s MOTION FOR RELIEF FROM THE AUTOMATIC STAY AND ABANDONMENT

MARGARET DEE McGARITY, Bankruptcy Judge.

On November 8, 2012, 4848, LLC, a single asset real estate debtor, filed a chapter 11 bankruptcy petition to stave off foreclosure on its property. Before the Court is the motion for relief from the automatic stay and abandonment filed by BMO Harris Bank, NA,1 as it relates to the real property owned by the debtor. This Court has jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1334 and this is a core proceeding under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(G). The parties briefed the matter, an evidentiary hearing was held on February 14, 2013, and the Court rendered an oral ruling on the motion on March 14, 2013. Based on the same, as well as the pleadings and other documents on file, the Court issues this Memorandum Decision, which constitutes its findings of fact and conclusions of law as required by Fed. R. Bankr.P. 7052.

BACKGROUND

The debtor, 4848, LLC, was formed in 2000 and owns one parcel of real estate located at 4848 S. 76th Street, Greenfield, Wisconsin. The property contains approximately 28,830 square feet of rentable space, 17,407 square feet of which is currently leased to three separate commercial tenants. The debtor retains a third party management company, Siegel-Gallagher, to oversee the books, coordinate renovations and maintenance of the property, and negotiate with and place tenants into the property. Along with the general downturn in the economy, the debtor’s occupancy and operating income decreased during the past few years.

The debtor had first executed a mortgage and General Business Security Agreement securing two promissory notes on December 29, 2000. That credit was subsequently renewed with the movant [345]*345when the debtor executed a variable rate promissory note in the amount of $3,450,667.63 on December 10, 2004, along with another variable rate promissory note in the amount of $250,000.00 on January 1, 2008. Both notes were secured by perfected mortgages on the debtor’s real property.

Although the notes matured on December 10, 2008, the debtor and BMO Harris entered into a forbearance agreement on April 28, 2010, wherein the outstanding obligations on the notes were due and payable on or before December 30, 2010. The forbearance agreement included the following provision:

Relief from the Automatic Stay. As a material inducement to Lender to enter into this Agreement, Borrower hereby stipulates and agrees that Lender shall be entitled to relief from the automatic stay imposed by 11 U.S.C. § 362 or any similar stay or suspension of remedies under any other federal or state law in the event Borrower becomes subject to a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding, to allow Lender to exercise its rights and remedies with respect to the Collateral.

(Agreement Regarding Loans executed April 28, 2010, ¶ 13, p. 16). BMO Harris commenced a foreclosure action against the debtor on October 12, 2012.

A company related to the debtor due to similar ownership, 200 Ryan, LLC, another single asset debtor, is also obligated to BMO Harris pursuant to a mortgage note. The debtor is a guarantor of 200 Ryan’s indebtedness, and BMO Harris filed a contingent claim against the debtor for the deficiency amount owed by 200 Ryan. A foreclosure action regarding 200 Ryan’s real property is currently pending. As of the petition date, BMO Harris was owed $2,869,383.79, including fees and costs, on the 4848 Notes and $3,654,586.61, including fees and costs, on the 200 Ryan Note. The sale of the Ryan property, which will reduce the overall claim, has yet to occur.

The debtor filed a plan and disclosure statement on February 6, 2013, wherein it proposed that its property and equity interests would be sold via a public auction after at least 90 days of marketing2 and within 120 days from the effective date of the plan. The debtor would submit the opening bid at the auction in the amount of $3,000,000, and third parties would be allowed to exceed that bid, with the next bid being at least $3,100,000. BMO Harris would have the option to credit bid at the auction. If the debtor became the winning bidder, the debtor would repay the opening bid amount, over time, to BMO Harris. The debtor would also auction its equity interests, with the equity interest holders opening the bids in the amount of $50,000 if the debtor became the winning bidder for the property or $10,000 if the debtor was not the winning property bidder.

ISSUES

Two legal issues were raised by BMO Harris Bank’s motion for relief from the automatic stay: (1) whether a prepetition stay waiver within a forbearance agreement between the debtor and BMO Harris amounts to “cause” for relief from the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362(d)(1), and (2) whether relief from the automatic stay should be granted because the single asset real estate debtor’s proposed plan does not have “a reasonable possibility of being confirmed within a rea[346]*346sonable time” under 11 U.S.C. § 362(d)(3)(A).

ARGUMENTS

Debtor’s Argument Regarding Prepetition Stay Waiver.

The debtor contends the prepetition stay waiver contained in the forbearance agreement is void as a matter of law and unenforceable as against public policy. To enforce the policies of the Bankruptcy Code, the relief available to a debtor must not be circumvented by contract, and in this case, the prepetition stay waiver. A prepetition stay waiver is an ipso facto clause triggered upon the borrower’s filing of a bankruptcy petition, and because the “purpose of the stay is to protect creditors as well as the debtor, the debtor may not waive the automatic stay.” Ostano Commerzanstalt v. Telewide Sys., Inc., 790 F.2d 206 (2d Cir.1986). The public policy behind the automatic stay outweighs the policies of freedom of contract and encouraging out of court workouts.

BMO Harris Bank’s Argument Regarding Prepetition Stay Waiver.

The public policy goal of encouraging out of court restructuring and settlement supports the enforceability of the prepetition waiver of the automatic stay included in the forbearance agreement. See In re Cheeks, 167 B.R. 817, 818 (Bankr.D.S.C.1994). In this case, the debtor received substantial consideration from the lender in exchange for the prepetition stay waiver, including an additional eight months under the forbearance agreement to pay the obligation, which originally matured in 2008. As stated in the agreement, the stay waiver was a material inducement to the lender entering into said agreement.

Debtor’s Argument Regarding Plan Con-firmability.

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282 B.R. 527 (M.D. Georgia, 2002)
In Re Cheeks
167 B.R. 817 (D. South Carolina, 1994)
In Re DB Capital Holdings, LLC
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
490 B.R. 343, 2013 WL 1402052, 2013 Bankr. LEXIS 1438, 57 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 230, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-4848-llc-wieb-2013.