In Re Harmon

72 B.R. 458, 1987 Bankr. LEXIS 507
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedApril 16, 1987
Docket19-10695
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 72 B.R. 458 (In Re Harmon) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re Harmon, 72 B.R. 458, 1987 Bankr. LEXIS 507 (Pa. 1987).

Opinion

OPINION

THOMAS M. TWARDOWSKI, Bankruptcy Judge.

The debtor and her primary residential mortgagee have presented matters to this court for resolution: first, is the debtor’s objection to the allowance of a proof of claim filed by Horizon Financial, F.A. (“Horizon”) which seeks interest, costs and attorney’s fees incurred as a result of the debtor’s default on her mortgage; second, is Horizon’s objection to the debtor’s chap *460 ter 13 plan. Horizon contends that the debtor’s plan should not be confirmed because it: (1) does not provide for equal treatment of secured creditors; (2) does not provide for the curing of the default within a reasonable time; and (3) was not proposed in good faith.

This court will sustain in part and deny in part the debtor’s objection to Horizon’s proof of claim. The proof of claim is allowed to the extent that it represents late fees and costs; the balance of the claim is disallowed. This court confirms the debt- or’s chapter 13 plan provided that it is amended to include the payment of late fees and costs to Horizon.

The debtor, a single parent with three children, purchased her home in November of 1977. The home is subject to a first mortgage in favor of Horizon 1 and a second mortgage in favor of Public Finance Consumer Discount Company (“Public”). The debtor defaulted on her obligation to Horizon and Horizon filed a foreclosure action on January 2, 1985, in the Court of Common Pleas of Lancaster County. On February 18, 1985, the Court of Common Pleas entered a final judgment of foreclosure in favor of Horizon and ordered the property to be sold at foreclosure sale. The sale was to be held on May 31, 1985. On May 28, 1985, the debtor filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 13. This filing stayed the sheriff’s sale scheduled for May 31, 1985. The schedules, submitted by the debtor, indicate two secured creditors, a first mortgage in favor of Horizon and a second, in favor of Public, as well as eight unsecured creditors. Horizon contends that the debtor owes arrear-ages, attorney’s fees and costs, in excess of $7,000.00. The mortgage to Public is not in arrears.

The debtor’s chapter 13 plan proposes full payment to the two secured creditors, Horizon and Public, over a five year period. More specifically, the plan provides for payments of $257.00 per month for 52 months, followed by 8 monthly payments of $117.00. $126.00 of each monthly payment for the first 52 months is to be paid to the second mortgagee, 2 thus keeping that obligation current. The balance of the monthly payment, $105.03, 3 being made to the trustee is to be paid to the first mortgagee on account of the arrearages. No payments are proposed for the unsecured creditors.

The debtor contends that she “fell behind” in her mortgage payments to Horizon due to circumstances beyond her control — medical bills for the infant twins, support payments not being made by the children’s father and automobile repair bills. The debtor has made an effort to rehabilitate her financial condition. First, she has provided for all payments to be made under her chapter 13 plan, to be made by way of wage attachment through one of her employers, AMP, Inc. 4 Second, the debtor has obtained a second job, performing cleaning services for Excel Maintenance, in order to meet her obligations under the plan. All discretionary funds available to the debtor, after providing for the basic and necessary living expenses of the family have been committed to the plan. Third, the trustee confirms that the debtor has been current on all obligations under the plan for the past 21 months.

In addressing the issue of the debtor’s objection to Horizon’s proof of claim, this court looks to 11 U.S.C. § 506(b). That section states that in a proof of claim, a secured creditor may legitimately request, not only the principal indebtedness, but also “interest on such claim, and any reasonable fees, costs, or charges provided for *461 under the agreement under which such claim arose” to the extent that the claim is secured by property, the value of which is greater than the principal indebtedness and certain other charges not relevant here. 11 U.S.C. § 506(b).

Section 506 interconnects with 11 U.S.C. § 502(a) of the Code which states that a proof of claim is deemed allowed unless a party in interest objects. After the filing of an objection, Bankruptcy Rule 3001(f) provides that a duly executed and filed proof of claim constitutes “prima facie evidence of the validity and amount of the claim.” Under this rule, a claim has a presumption of validity until a party objecting to the claim has introduced evidence sufficient to rebut the claimant’s prima fa-cie case. In re Baker, No. 83-04237G, slip op. at 3 (Bankr.E.D.Pa. Aug. 1, 1983); In re Breezewood Acres, Inc., 28 B.R. 32, 34 (Bankr.M.D.Pa. 1982). This rule has no effect when the creditor submitting the proof of claim has failed to meet or establish any necessary conditions precedent to the granting of the claim in the face of an objection.

In the case at bench, the debtor has objected to Horizon’s proof of claim on several bases, the first of which is the allowance of attorney’s fees which approach $3,000.00. The debtor does not challenge Horizon’s entitlement to reasonable compensation for work performed in connection with facilitating the progress of this case. The debtor does, however, assert that Horizon’s request is unreasonable. We find that Horizon’s attorney had a duty to keep and submit records of legal work done in connection with this case, including the amount of time spent and the manner in which it was spent. In re Meade Land and Development Co., 527 F.2d 280 (3d Cir.1975). Horizon has improperly “lumped” various services under one price unit, making it impossible to actually determine whether the charge for a particular service was reasonable. Further, Horizon fails to indicate the amount of time expended on any one particular service, thereby making the court’s duty to ensure reasonableness impossible. In re Paolino, 71 B.R. 576, 581 (Bankr.E.D.Pa. 1987); In re Bible Deliverance Evangelistic Church, 39 B.R. 768 (Bankr.E.D.Pa. 1984); In re Horn & Hardart Baking Co., 30 B.R. 938 (Bankr.E.D.Pa.1983). Horizon must comply with the requirements of Meade Land, 527 F.2d at 284. Meade Land stands for the proposition, inter alia, that it is the attorney’s obligation to keep and submit accurate records of the amount of time spent and the manner in which it was spent. Further, Meade Land endorses the proposition that it is the court’s independent obligation to give credit only where there are such supporting documents.

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Bluebook (online)
72 B.R. 458, 1987 Bankr. LEXIS 507, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-harmon-paeb-1987.