In Re Certified Corp.

51 B.R. 768, 1985 Bankr. LEXIS 5711
United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Hawaii·Decided July 17, 1985·No. 17-00726·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER RE: ADDITIONAL COLLATERAL

JON J. CHINEN, Bankruptcy Judge.

On July 8, 1985, Certified Corporation (“Debtor”) filed a Voluntary Petition under Chapter Eleven as well as a Motion for Order Authorizing Use of Cash Collateral (hereinafter referred to as “Motion for Use of Cash Collateral”) and an Ex Parte Motion for an Order Shortening Time for Hearing on Motion for Order Authorizing the Use of Cash Collateral and to Limit Notice (hereinafter referred to as “Ex Parte Motion for Order Shortening Time and to Limit Notice”). In its Ex Parte Motion for Order Shortening Time and to Limit Notice, the Debtor requested that the Court grant the motion either on an ex parte basis or by way of a telephone conference or a hearing to be scheduled as soon as possible, preferably on July 9, 1985. In addition, the Debtor requested permission to limit notice to U.S. Bancorp Financial, Inc. (“U.S. Bancorp”), the only creditor with a secured interest in the collateral. On July 9, 1985, the Court entered an Order Granting Ex Parte Motion for an Order Shortening Time for Hearing on Motion for an Order Authorizing the Use of *769 Cash Collateral and to Limit Notice, m which the Court declined to consider the matter on an ex parte basis and set a hearing date of July 10, 1985. The Court granted the Debtor’s request for an expedited hearing and to limit notice based upon the Debtor’s assertion (1) that it is in the business of buying and selling wholesale grocery on a large volume, daily basis, (2) that its business involves daily cash transactions of substantial amounts and (3) that it would be unable to continue its business without an expedited approval of the use of cash collateral.

At the hearing on the Motion for Use of Cash Collateral, the Court noted that one of the purposes of the Bankruptcy Code is the rehabilitation, if possible, of a corporation which has sought relief under Chapter 11. In the case of the Debtor, the Court took into consideration the Debtor’s statement that it employs approximately 125 employees. These employees would be adversely affected by the failure of the Debtor to successfully reorganize. The legislative history explicitly provides that the purpose of business reorganization under Chapter 11 is to permit the debtor “to restructure a business’ finances so that it may continue to operate, provide its employees with jobs, pay its creditors, and produce a return for stockholders.” H.R. Rep. No. 595 at 220, 1978 U.S.Code Cong. & Ad.News 5787 at 6179; In re American Mariner Industries, Inc., 734 F.2d 426, 431 (9th cir. 1984).

On the other hand, the Court must also protect a secured creditor’s collateral, which is being used by the Debtor since it is well established that the “bankruptcy power is subject to the Fifth Amendment’s prohibition against taking of private property without compensation.” United States v. Security Industrial Bank, 459 U.S. 70, 103 S.Ct. 407, 410, 74 L.Ed.2d 235 (1982). For this reason, if a creditor, who claims an interest in the cash collateral, objects to the use of cash collateral, the Court may only allow the debtor to use cash collateral after notice and hearing and upon providing adequate protection of the creditor s interest. In re Sheehan, 38 B.R. 859, 863 (Bankr.S.D.1984). In particular, 11 U.S.C. § 363(e) provides as follows:

Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, at any time, on request of an entity that has an interest in property used, sold, or leased, or proposed to be used, sold, or leased, by the trustee, the court, with or without a hearing, shall prohibit or condition such use, sale, or lease as is necessary to provide adequate protection of such interest.

On July 9, 1985, U.S. Bancorp filed Objections to Motion for Use of Cash Collateral in which it requested an order prohibiting the use of cash collateral pursuant to Section 363.

At the preliminary hearing on the Debt- or’s Motion for Use of Cash Collateral, the Debtor acknowledged that it owed approximately $4,700,000.00 to U.S. Bancorp. In addition, the Debtor and John F. Damore (“Damore”), an officer of the Debtor, at the preliminary hearing offered the following as adequate protection for the use of U.S. Bancorp’s cash collateral: inventory, accounts receivables, equipment, including certain motor vehicles, a lease of the Debt- or’s premises, the personal residence of Damore and interest in a holding company. The Court found that, based upon the evidence presented, the value of these assets was approximately $5,000,000.00, which consists of $1,400,000.00 in inventory, $1,000,000.00 in accounts receivables, $500,-000.00 in the lease for the premises, $700,-000.00 in the interest in the holding company and between $400,000.00 and $600,-000.00 in equipment, including certain motor vehicles. This finding was based upon the Debtor’s arguments at the hearing that the loan of U.S. Bancorp was adequately protected by at least the amounts mentioned above. Based upon these preliminary findings, the Court found a slight equity in the assets which secured the loan of U.S. Bancorp and found that there is a possibility, a reasonable likelihood, that the Debtor will prevail at the final hearing. The Court, therefore, authorized the use of *770 cash collateral until the final hearing, which was scheduled for July 15, 1985.

However, after the Court rendered its ruling, U.S. Bancorp informed the Court that it did not have liens up to the full value of these amounts. The Court, therefore, required the execution of mortgages forthwith to create liens on these properties in favor of U.S. Bancorp as a requirement for the use of cash collateral. The Court sua sponte further ordered that U.S. Bancorp is permitted to inspect the property of the Debtor during normal business hours and in a manner that does not interfere with the business operation of the Debtor. Likewise, the Court sua sponte ordered the Debtor to file with U.S. Ban-corp and with the Court daily detailed reports, which reflect the amount of cash collateral used for inventory and overhead expenses, the amount of money deposited with U.S. Bancorp and details of its business and cash transactions.

At the final hearing on July 15, 1985, the Debtor and U.S. Bancorp represented to the Court that they entered into a stipulation in which the Debtor agreed to the immediate appointment of a trustee. Moreover, the Debtor and U.S. Bancorp agreed that there will be no further use of the cash collateral of U.S. Bancorp as of July 15, 1985. The Debtor, however, represented to the Court that they were unable to arrive at an agreement with respect to the validity, enforeibility and/or advisability of the Court’s July 10, 1985 ruling concerning the additional collateral which was to be given to U.S. Bancorp. It is important to note that the Debtor specifically stated that the Debtor and U.S. Bancorp “are prepared to argue that issue before the Court without the necessity of any kind of evidentiary hearing.” A fortiori,

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In Re Certified Corp., 51 B.R. 768, 1985 Bankr. LEXIS 5711 (Haw. 1985).

51 B.R. 768 (In Re Certified Corp.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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