In re Rivera

599 B.R. 335
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, D. Arizona
DecidedMarch 28, 2019
DocketCase No. 2:13-bk-20842-MCW
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 599 B.R. 335 (In re Rivera) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Rivera, 599 B.R. 335 (Ark. 2019).

Opinion

Madeleine C. Wanslee, Bankruptcy Judge

Chapter 13 Trustee Russell Brown ("Trustee Brown") filed a Motion to Dismiss ("Motion") this bankruptcy case under 11 U.S.C. § 1307(c)(6) of the Bankruptcy Code.1 Even though he has received and disbursed all payments that the plan required that his office receive, Trustee Brown argues that Debtors Robert and Margarita Rivera defaulted on a material term of their confirmed plan by not making all their direct post-petition mortgage payments, rendering them ineligible for a discharge under 11 U.S.C. § 1328(a). The Court concludes that Debtors' failure to pay all their direct post-petition mortgage payments is not a failure to complete all payments required under the plan. Having completed all required plan payments and performed all other obligations under the Code and Rules and there are no indicia of wrongdoing, Debtors are now entitled to their Chapter 13 discharge. Accordingly, the Motion is denied.

This matter is a core proceeding which the Court may hear and determine under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A). The Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1334(b) and 157(a) and (b).

I. BACKGROUND

Debtors filed this Chapter 13 case on December 4, 2013. Using the mandatory Arizona Model Form Plan they filed an Amended Chapter 13 Plan on July 18, 2014 that proposed to pay varied amounts per month for 39 months to be distributed to their secured, priority and general unsecured creditors ("Amended Plan"). Dkt. No. 39. Debtors' mortgage lender RoundPoint Mortgage was to be paid pre-petition arrears of $ 15,571.89 on the mortgage on a pro rata basis from payments Debtors made to Trustee Brown. Section (c)(4) of the Amended Plan provided "[u]nless stated below, Debtor is to pay post-petition payments direct to the creditor and pre[-]petition arrearages shall be cured through the Trustee." That same section contains a heading titled "Post-Petition Mortgage Payments" with two alternative boxes from which Debtors may select that read " Debtor will pay direct to creditor;

*337or Included in Plan payment. Trustee will pay creditor." Debtors checked the first box obligating them to make direct payments and stated that their monthly post-petition mortgage payments were $ 851.27.2

The Amended Plan was approved on November 10, 2014 through the Stipulated Order Confirming First Amended Chapter 13 Plan ("Confirmation Order"). Dkt. No. 50. Counsel for RoundPoint Mortgage signed off on the Confirmation Order showing its approval "as to form and content." Section (C)(2) of the Confirmation Order concerned RoundPoint Mortgage's claim secured by real property and stated, "Regular post-petition payments will be made directly by the Debtors to the secured creditor."

Debtors later filed an Amended Modified Chapter 13 Plan on July 28, 2016 ("Amended Modified Plan") again using the mandatory Arizona Model Form Plan. Dkt. No. 62. RoundPoint Mortgage's treatment did not change.

On October 28, 2016, in compliance with Rule 3002.1(f), Trustee Brown filed a Notice of Final Cure Payment for Prepetition Arrears on Mortgage Claim indicating that all pre-petition arrears owing to RoundPoint Mortgage had been paid ("First Cure Notice). Dkt. No. 70. The First Cure Notice supplied a history of payments by Trustee Brown to RoundPoint Mortgage and stated that it was filed to "assist the creditor in reconciling the claim." It also directed RoundPoint Mortgage to file a supplement to its proof of claim indicating its agreement with whether the pre-petition default had been cured and whether the post-petition payments were current, along with an itemized statement of any unpaid amounts.3 RoundPoint Mortgage did not file a response to the First Cure Notice.

The Amended Modified Plan was approved without objection on November 28, 2016 through the Stipulated Order Confirming Amended First Modified Chapter 13 Plan ("Final Confirmation Order"), which, among other things, extended the plan duration to 41 months. Dkt. No. 76. As to RoundPoint Mortgage, Section (C)(2) of the Final Confirmation Order again stated that "Regular post-petition payments will be made directly by the Debtors to the secured creditor."

Trustee Brown filed another Notice of Final Cure Payment for Prepetition Arrears on Mortgage Claim on April 17, 2018 ("Final Cure Notice"). Dkt. No. 81. The Final Cure Notice again supplied a history of payments by Trustee Brown to RoundPoint Mortgage and directed it to file a *338supplement to its proof of claim indicating its agreement with whether the pre-petition default had been cured and whether the post-petition payments were current, along with an itemized statement of any unpaid amount.

On May 1, 2018, the creditor filed the response required by Rule 3002.1(g), Response to Trustee's Notice of Final Cure for Prepetition Arrears on Mortgage Claim , agreeing that the pre-petition default was cured, but stating that the post-petition payments due on and after September 1, 2017 were delinquent. Dkt. No. 82. The Response did not attach the required itemized statement of the unpaid amounts.

According to the Trustee's 2018 Annual Status Report , a mortgage default occurring on September 1, 2017 would be approximately 44 months into the bankruptcy case. Dkt. No. 86. The only payment shown on the 2018 Annual Report was $ 6.22 made on October 13, 2017. However, the plan payments were noted as "current" because Trustee Brown's office had received all scheduled payments.

Thereafter, Trustee Brown filed the Motion, which Debtors did not oppose in writing. However, Debtors' counsel appeared at the hearing and argued that the case should not be dismissed because Debtors made all payments to be made through the Trustee. RoundPoint Mortgage did not file any papers or appear at the hearing, despite receiving notice.

At the hearing, Trustee Brown discussed the recent emergence of decisions in other districts granting similar motions and indicated that his goal was to obtain guidance from the Court on this issue.

II. DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

A Chapter 13 discharge is intended to be a "discharge of all debts," barring a few enumerated exceptions. 11 U.S.C. § 1328(a).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
599 B.R. 335, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-rivera-arb-2019.