ISN Bank v. Rajaratnam

30 Pa. D. & C.5th 507
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County
DecidedMay 22, 2013
DocketNos. 090800363 and 090503129
StatusPublished

This text of 30 Pa. D. & C.5th 507 (ISN Bank v. Rajaratnam) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
ISN Bank v. Rajaratnam, 30 Pa. D. & C.5th 507 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2013).

Opinion

MCINERNEY, J.,

I. OVERVIEW

Plaintiff ISN Bank, f/k/a Interstate Net Bank, now known as Customers Bank (“plaintiff’) appeals from this court’s January 23, 2013 order which denied plaintiff’s motion to consolidate a judgment entered against Emma Rajaratnam, individually, with a judgment entered against Arasu Rajaratnam, individually. Plaintiff sought consolidation of the judgments to aid in execution on property(ies) held by the Rajaratnams as tenants by the entireties.

On or about December 21, 2005, ISN Bank, f/k/a Interstate Net Bank (“ISN Bank”) made a construction loan to Tower Apartment Partnership, LLP (“Tower”). At that time, Arasu Rajaratnam, the principal of Tower, executed and delivered a guaranty agreement to ISN Bank (the “2005 Guaranty Agreement”). On or about October 26, 2007, ISN Bank and Tower entered into a change [509]*509in terms agreement, which extended the maturity of the loan to June 21, 2008. At that time, Arasu Rajaratnam and his wife Emma Rajaratnam executed and delivered a guaranty agreement to ISN Bank (the “2007 Guaranty Agreement”).

The loan eventually went into default. On August 5, 2009, ISN Bank confessed judgment in its favor and against Arasu Rajaratnam in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at August Term, 2009, No. 0363, pursuant to the 2005 Guaranty Agreement. On May 24, 2010, ISN Bank commenced an action against Emma Rajaratnam in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at May Term, 2010, No. 3129, pursuant to the 2007 Guaranty Agreement and, on April 25, 2012, judgment was. entered in favor of plaintiff and against Emma Rajaratnam.

This court properly denied plaintiff’s motion to consolidate the judgments because plaintiff cited no relevant authority to support its proposition that this court had the power to consolidate judgments entered separately against different persons. Moreover, even assuming authority to consolidate judgments entered against different persons existed, the court properly denied plaintiff’s motion because in this case the judgments were entered pursuant to different guaranties and/or there was not a joint act or clear indication the Rajaratnams intended to waive their rights as tenants by the entirety.

II. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On or about December 21, 2005, ISN Bank, f/k/a Interstate Net Bank (“ISN Bank”) made a loan to Tower [510]*510Apartment Partnership, LLP (“Tower”) in the form of a non-revolving line of credit construction loan in the maximum amount of $6,980,395 (the “Tower Loan” or the “Loan”). The Tower Loan was evidenced by a note, which was executed and delivered to ISN Bank by Tower. The purpose of the Tower Loan was to finance Tower’s renovation of a property located at 5801 Morris Street, Philadelphia, PA into a thirty-six (36) unit condominium development.

In order to secure Tower’s obligations to ISN Bank, on or about December 21, 2005, Tower also executed and delivered to ISN Bank a mortgage, assignment of rents, and security agreement for 5801 Morris Street. At that time, Arasu Rajaratnam, the principal of Tower, also executed and delivered a guaranty agreement to ISN Bank (the “2005 Guaranty Agreement”).

The Tower Loan was originally due and payable in full on December 21, 2007. However, on or about October 26, 2007, ISN Bank and Tower entered into a change in terms agreement, which extended the maturity of the Loan to June 21, 2008. At that time, Arasu Rajaratnam and his wife Emma Rajaratnam also executed and delivered a guaranty agreement to ISN Bank (the “2007 Guaranty Agreement”).

The Tower Loan eventually went into default. As a consequence of Tower’s default, judgment by confession was entered on August 5, 2009 in favor of ISN Bank and against Tower in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at August Term, 2009, No. 0362. On that date, judgment by confession was also entered in favor of ISN Bank and [511]*511against Arasu Rajaratnam in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at August Term, 2009, No. 0363, pursuant to the 2005 Guaranty Agreement. Emma Rajaratnam was not named as a defendant in ISN Bank’s action against Arasu Rajaratnam.

As a consequence the Tower Loan being in default, and based upon her obligations under the 2007 Guaranty Agreement, ISN Bank commenced an action against Emma Rajaratnam by filing a complaint on May 24, 2010 in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at May Term, 2010, No. 3129. Arasu Rajaratnam was not named as a defendant in ISN Bank’s action against Emma Rajaratnam.

On or about September 17, 2010, ISN Bank was closed by the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance and subsequently the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) was named as receiver. At that time, Plaintiff purchased certain ISN Bank’s assets, including the Tower Loan, from the FDIC.

On July 11, 2011, the Morris Street property was sold at a sheriff’s sale and purchased by plaintiff. Thereafter, plaintiff filed a petition to fix fair market value and establish deficiency judgment in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at August Term, 2009, No. 00362, naming Tower, Arasu Rajaratnam, Emma Rajaratnam, Philadelphia Holdings Group, L.P., Phos Holdings, LLC, and Keswick Associates as respondents.

On February 29, 2012, a bench trial was held before this court in the action against Emma Rajaratnam at May Term, 2010, No. 3129. Following the bench trial, this [512]*512court found Emma Rajaratnam was bound by the terms of the guaranty she signed and obligated for the indebtedness due and owing under the 2007 Guaranty Agreement/Tower Loan. On April 25,2012, judgment was entered in favor of plaintiff and against Emma Rajaratnam in an amount to be determined by resolution of the aforementioned deficiency judgment petition that had been filed in the action against Tower at August Term, 2009, No. 0362.

On June 19, 2012, the deficiency judgment petition was disposed of by a court-approved stipulation of the parties, which had been approved by the Honorable Idee C. Fox. Pursuant to the court-approved stipulation, a deficiency judgment was established in favor of plaintiff in the amount of $3,300,764.53, plus additional interest accruing from and after May 23, 2012 at the legal rate of $515,798 per day.

On December 3, 2012, plaintiff moved to consolidate the judgments entered in the above-captioned cases, i.e. the judgment entered against Arasu Rajaratnam, individually, and the judgment entered against Emma Rajaratnam, individually (collectively, “defendants” or “the Rajaratnams”). In its motion, having cited case law to support the position that this court has authority to consolidate judgments, plaintiff argued that as “[bjoth judgments arise from the same indebtedness, the Loan, ... it is therefore appropriate that they be consolidated.” (See PL’s Mot. ¶¶30, 32.) Plaintiff sought an order “consolidating the separate judgments against Arasu Rajaratnam and Emma Rajaratnam into a single judgment in favor of plaintiff and against Emma Rajaratnam and [513]*513Arasu Rajaratnam, [as] husband and wife, jointly and severally, in the amount of the outstanding indebtedness fixed by the [stipulation approved by Judge Fox on June 19,2011.” (Pl.’s Mot.

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30 Pa. D. & C.5th 507, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/isn-bank-v-rajaratnam-pactcomplphilad-2013.