King v. Johnson

CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Virginia
DecidedNovember 22, 2021
Docket21-01046
StatusUnknown

This text of King v. Johnson (King v. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
King v. Johnson, (Va. 2021).

Opinion

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA Alexandria Division

In re: ) ) JEROME ALAN JOHNSON and ) Case No. 19-12437-BFK MICHELE ANITA JOHNSON, ) Chapter 7 ) Debtor(s). ) ___________________________________ )

) DONALD F. KING, ) Adversary Proceeding as Chapter 7 Trustee, ) No. 21-01046-BFK Plaintiff, ) v. ) ) ) MARY ELLA JOHNSON, ) EMERI M. JOHNSON, ) GABRIELLE A. JOHNSON, and ) LEGACY WEALTH PROPERTIES, LLC, )

) Defendants. )

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART DEFENDANTS’ MOTION TO DISMISS THE COMPLAINT

This matter comes before the Court on the Motion of Defendants, Emeri M. Johnson, Gabrielle A. Johnson, and Legacy Wealth Properties, LLC (“the Defendants,” with Legacy Wealth Properties, LLC, being referred to as “the LLC,” or “Legacy”), to dismiss the Plaintiff’s Complaint pursuant to Bankruptcy Rule 7012 (incorporating Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6)). Docket No. 11. The Plaintiff filed an Opposition to the Motion. Docket No. 16. The Defendants filed a Reply Memorandum. Docket No. 17. The Court heard the parties’ arguments on October 26, 2021. For the reasons stated below, the Court will grant the Motion in part and will deny it in part.1 Facts as Pled in the Complaint The Plaintiff has pled the following facts in the Complaint: 1. Legacy is a Virginia limited liability company. It owns (or owned, as discussed

below) real property located at 8815 Colemans Lake Road, Ford, Virginia, 23850 (“the Property”). Compl. ¶ 2 (Docket No. 1). 2. The Debtors, Jerome Alan Johnson and Michele Anita Johnson, are or were members of the LLC, with 52% and 24% membership interests, respectively. Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss, Ex. A, at 11 (Docket No. 11).2 3. Gabrielle Johnson and Emeri Johnson own or owned the other 24% membership interests, with 12% each. Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss, Ex. A, at 11 (Docket No. 11). Gabrielle Johnson and Emeri Johnson are the Debtors’ daughters and allegedly live at the Property. Compl. ¶¶ 4, 5 (Docket No. 1).

4. In October 2016, the four Members executed a Consent to Action (“the Consent”) in which they agreed to transfer “100% (one hundred percent) of the property” to Mary Ella Johnson. Compl. ¶¶ 14-16 (Docket No. 1). 5. The LLC did not transfer the Property at that time and continued to own the real property up until the Petition Date in this case. Compl. ¶ 17 (Docket No. 1).

1 A fourth Defendant, Mary Ella Johnson, is alleged to reside in the Property at issue in this case. Compl. ¶ 3 (Docket No. 1). She has not yet responded to the Complaint. Ms. Johnson is Jerome Alan Johnson’s mother. Tr.’s Opp’n, at 2-3 (Docket No. 16). 2 The Defendants attached a copy of the Operating Agreement to their Motion to Dismiss. Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss, Ex. A (Docket No. 11). The Trustee does not dispute the authenticity of the Operating Agreement and incorporates portions of it in his Opposition to the Motion to Dismiss. The parties agree that the Operating Agreement does not displace the relevant provisions of the Virginia Limited Liability Company Act. 6. Jerome Alan Johnson and Michele Anita Johnson filed a Voluntary Petition under Chapter 7 with this Court on July 25, 2019. Case No. 19-12437-BFK, Docket No. 1. The Plaintiff, Donald F. King, is the Chapter 7 Trustee in their case. 7. More recently, in July 2021, Legacy, acting by Jerome Alan Johnson as Managing Member, transferred title to the Property to Mary E. Johnson, by a Deed of Gift and a Correction

Deed of Gift. Tr.’s Exs. A, B (Docket No. 20). Conclusions of Law The Court has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1334 and the Order of Reference entered by the District Court for this District on August 15, 1984. This is a core proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 157(b)(2)(A) (matters concerning the administration of the estate), (H) (proceedings to determine, avoid, or recover fraudulent conveyances) and (M) (orders approving the use or lease of property). Under the Supreme Court’s decisions in Twombly and Iqbal, to survive a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), the complaint must state a claim that is plausible on its face. Ashcroft v. Iqbal,

556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009); Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. The Court added: “[W]hether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief will . . . be a context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense.” Id. at 679. While Bankruptcy Rule 7008 (incorporating Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8) only requires “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2), it is also clear that “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. Under Rule 7012(b), the Court is required to accept as true all well-pleaded facts in the Complaint, but is not required to accept allegations that are legal conclusions. Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7012(b) (incorporating Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6)); Walters v. McMahen, 684 F.3d 435, 439 (4th Cir.

2012) (“[A]lthough a court must accept as true all factual allegations contained in a complaint, such deference is not accorded to legal conclusions stated therein. The mere recital of elements of a cause of action, supported only by conclusory statements, is not sufficient to survive a motion made pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6).”) (citations omitted). The Court will address each of the Counts in the Complaint, as well as the Trustee’s request for leave to amend, below. I. The Fraudulent Transfer and Voluntary Conveyance Counts (Counts IV, V, VI, and VII).

The Trustee’s Fraudulent Transfer and Voluntary Conveyance Counts (Counts IV, V, VI, and VII) allege that both the transfer of the Property and the Consent itself were fraudulent transfers or voluntary conveyances under the Bankruptcy Code or under State law. See Compl. ¶¶ 52 (“The Debtors’ purported relinquishment of ‘any and all rights’ to the Colemans Lake Property in favor of Mary Ella Johnson was a transfer of the Debtors’ interest in property”), 54 (“The Debtors’ execution of the Consent and any signing over of the Colemans Lake Property was also a transfer of the Debtors’ interest in property.”), 65 (“The transfers described in Paragraph 52 and Paragraph 54 were conveyances which were not upon consideration[.]”), 72 (“The transfer of the Debtors’ interest in the Colemans Lake Property and/or Legacy Wealth Properties, LLC . . . were made with actual intent to hinder, delay, or defraud creditors[.]”). The Court will address the two transfers separately. A. The Real Property.

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King v. Johnson, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/king-v-johnson-vaeb-2021.