In re Ortiz

558 B.R. 25, 2016 Bankr. LEXIS 3507, 118 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5951, 2016 WL 5929628
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedSeptember 26, 2016
DocketCASE NO. 15-03076 (ESL)
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 558 B.R. 25 (In re Ortiz) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Ortiz, 558 B.R. 25, 2016 Bankr. LEXIS 3507, 118 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5951, 2016 WL 5929628 (prb 2016).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

Enrique S. Lamoutte, USBJ

This case is before the court upon the Objection to claim, of exemption (Docket No. 63) filed by creditors Susan Skelly-Hand, Patrick Hand and Rachel Hand (hereinafter referred to collectively as the “Hands”) and the Amended Response thereto filed by the Debtor (Docket No. 69). Also before the court is Debtor’s Motion in Compliance with the Court’s Order Regarding the Qualification of Debtor’s Pension Plans Under Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code (Docket No. 124), the Hands’ Opposition thereto (Docket No. 137), the Hands’ Motion in Compliance with Order as to the Objection to Debtor’s Claimed Exemption over the Funds Held at Charles Schwab Accounts (Docket No. 145) and the Debtor’s Memorandum of Law in Reply to the Hand’s Motion in Compliance with Order as to their Objection to Debtor’s Claimed Exemption over the Retirement Funds Held at Charles Schwab Accounts (Docket No. 149). The Hands argue that the Debtor is not entitled to claim the funds in controversy as .exempt pursuant to Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code because the Debtor’s retirement plans were can-celled effective December 31, 2013, and thus at the time of the filing the funds that remained in the Charles Schwab account had lost their qualified status under the applicable Internal Revenue Code sections. The Debtor sustains that the retirement funds are exempt pursuant to Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code since the funds are in a fund or account that is exempt from taxation under Section 401 of [27]*27the Internal Revenue Code. In addition, the Debtor sustains that since the retirement funds are in retirement plans that have a received a favorable determination from the Internal Revenue Service (hereinafter referred to as the “IRS”) those funds are presumed to be exempt pursuant to Section 522(b)(4)(A) of the Bankruptcy-Code and that the Hands have failed to provide any evidence that the retirement plans are not in substantial compliance with the Internal Revenue Code.

For the reasons stated below, the Hands’ Objection to claim of exemption (Docket No. 63) is hereby denied.

Procedural Background

The Debtor filed a bankruptcy petition under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code on April 28, 2015 (Docket No. 1). In Schedule C- Property Claimed as Exempt, the Debtor claimed as exempt $1,500,000.00 held in a Charles Schwab & Co. Trust Company account pursuant to Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code (Docket No. 1, p.17). On June 26, 2015, the Debtor filed an Amended Schedule C revising the amount of funds claimed as exempt claiming $1,501,754.70 as exempt pursuant to Section 622(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code, plus an additional $2,422.22 held in another Charles Schwab & Co, Trust Company account pursuant to Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code attributable to a 401-(k) Plan. (Docket No. 43, p.13).

On August 14, 2015, the Hands filed an Objection to claim of exemption (Docket No. 63) arguing that the funds in questions are the remains of a cancelled 401-(k) plan which are the object of a pending action before a New York State Court which was stayed by the filing of the instant bankruptcy petition. Moreover, the Hands declared that pending before the court is the Hands’ request to modify the automatic stay to allow the New York State Court to determine whether the funds in controversy are protected under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”). Accordingly, the Hands requested that the exemption claimed by the Debtor be held in abeyance pending a final determination by the New York State Court1. In addition, the Hands argued that the Debtor has not proven that the funds were in a retirement plan that received a favorable determination or that no prior determination to the contrary has been made by a court or the IRS and that the retirement fund is in substantial compliance with the Internal Revenue Code pursuant to the provisions of Section 522(b)(4)(A) and (b)(4)(B) of the Bankruptcy Code. Finally, the Hands sustain that Section 522(n) imposes a cap of $1,245,475.00 on the value that an individual debtor may claim as exempt pursuant to Section 522(d)(12).

On August 27, 2015, the Debtor filed a Motion Submitting Debtor’s Amended Response to the Hands’ Objection to Claim of Exemption (Docket No. 69) arguing that: (i) the action pending before the New York State Court is stayed pursuant to Section [28]*28362 of the Bankruptcy Code; (ii) Section 522(d)(12) does not require that the funds claimed as exempt by the Debtor be held in a retirement plans subject to ERISA; (iii) the funds in question are funds set aside for the day the Debtor stopped working; (iv) that the retirement plans in controversy received a favorable determination from the IRS stating that the form of both plans was acceptable under Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code and that as of this date the determination is still in effect and thus the funds shall be presumed to be exempt pursuant to 522(b)(4); (v) that the funds are also protected by ERISA since the third party administrator has determined that other participants are still entitled to distribution; and (vi) the retirement funds are not subject to the cap imposed by Section 522(n) of the Bankruptcy Code since that provision only applies to individual retirement accounts and not to pension plans.

Subsequently, during a hearing held on September 3, 20152, the court ordered the Debtor to file a motion and legal memorandum in further support of the claimed exemption within forty-five (45) days and the Hands were granted twenty-one (21) days to reply (Docket No. 91). On October 14, 2015, the Debtor requested a thirty (30) day extension to file the legal memorandum (Docket No. 96) and the same was granted on October 16, 2015 (Docket No. 103).

On November 16, 2015, the Debtor filed Debtor’s Motion in Compliance with the Court’s Order Regarding the Qualification of Debtor’s Pension Plans Under Section 522(d)(12) of the Bankruptcy Code (Docket No. 124). The Debtor summarized the sequence of events related to the establishment of the Defined Benefits Plan and the 401-(k) Plan. In addition, the Debtor sustained that both plans have received a favorable determination letter from the IRS and that such determination letters are issued once every six to seven years. Accordingly, the Debtor argues that both determination letters were in effect as of the date of the filing of the Debtor’s bankruptcy petition3. Moreover, the Debtor argues that as of the petition date both plans have remained in compliance with the requirements of Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Debtor also sustains that even though resolutions to terminate both plans were signed by the Debtor on December 2013 that the plans continue to be tax exempt until all plan assets are distributed. Finally, the Debtor sustains that there are still funds to be distributed to beneficiaries or plan participants as evidenced by the sworn statements issued by Don Scott, the third-party plan administrator4. Accordingly, the Debtor argues that the funds in the retirement plans are presumed to be exempt pursuant to Section 522(b)(4)(A) since they have received a favorable determination under Section 7805 of the Internal Revenue Code and that determination is still in effect.

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Bluebook (online)
558 B.R. 25, 2016 Bankr. LEXIS 3507, 118 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5951, 2016 WL 5929628, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-ortiz-prb-2016.