Krigel v. Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. (In re Stanley)

249 B.R. 509, 41 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 1234, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8618
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedFebruary 29, 2000
DocketBankruptcy No. 98-40004-1; Adversary No. 98-4153-1; Civ. No. 99-0261-CV-W-1
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 249 B.R. 509 (Krigel v. Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. (In re Stanley)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Krigel v. Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. (In re Stanley), 249 B.R. 509, 41 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 1234, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8618 (W.D. Mo. 2000).

Opinion

ORDER

WHIPPLE, District Judge.

Pending before the Court is Mercedes-Benz Credit Corporations’ (“MBCC”) appeal from a judgment of the bankruptcy court in favor of Trustee Erlene W. Krigel (“the Trustee”). The bankruptcy court held that the Trustee could avoid MBCC’s security interest in Debtor Gary Allen Stanley’s (“Debtor”) 1995 Peterbilt tractor because the security interest was not perfected at the time Debtor filed his bankruptcy petition. MBCC argues that it perfected its security interest by having the security interest noted on the tractor’s certificate of title, which was issued to Debtor by the state of Kansas. The bankruptcy court held that the notation- of MBCC’s security interest on the Kansas certificate of title did not constitute perfection because Kansas had no authority to issue a certificate of title to Debtor’s tractor. At the time Debtor purchased the tractor and applied for his title, he resided in Iowa. Iowa law requires its residents to title their vehicles in Iowa. The Court that the bankruptcy court reached its decision in error. For the reasons stated below, the bankruptcy court’s judgment in favor of the Trustee is REVERSED.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

At all times relevant to this appeal, Debtor worked as an over-the-road truck driver. Prior to May 15, 1997, Debtor was employed by Don Miller Trucking, L.L.C., in Hugoton, Kansas. Because of his itinerant life as a truck driver, Debtor did not “live” in any particular state. He stored his belongings at his boss’ house in Hugo-ton, Kansas; he received mail at his girlfriend’s home in Altoona, Iowa and kept his pickup truck there. Debtor held an Iowa drivers’ license, registered his pickup truck in Iowa, maintained an Iowa bank account, and listed the Altoona, Iowa address on his tax returns.

On May 15, 1997, Debtor quit working for Don Miller Trucking. He purchased a used, 1995 Peterbilt tractor from the Kansas Truck Center (“the Dealer”) in Liberal, Kansas. To obtain financing for his purchase, Debtor completed a retail credit application with MBCC and executed a retail installment contract-security agreement with the Dealer on a form supplied by MBCC. When Debtor’s purchase was complete, the Dealer immediately assigned Debtor’s retail installment contract-security agreement to MBCC. On the same [512]*512day, Debtor executed an agreement with National Carriers, Inc. under which Debt- or leased his new tractor to National Carriers and agreed to operate it as an independent contractor. National Carriers forwarded Debtor’s application for an original certificate of title to the state of Kansas. Debtor’s title application listed MBCC as a secured party. On all relevant documents — the credit application, the installment sales contract-security agreement, the independent contractor agreement and equipment lease, and the application for certificate of title — Debtor listed his address in Altoona, Iowa. On June 27, 1997, the state of Kansas issued a certificate of title for Debtor’s tractor with Debtor’s Altoona, Iowa address listed. MBCC was listed as a secured party.

In June or July of 1997, Debtor split-up with his girlfriend. He changed his mailing address to a friend’s residence in Ray-town, Missouri. Debtor maintained this Raytown, Missouri address through the remainder of 1997. Debtor did not, however, retitle or register his pickup truck or tractor in Missouri. He did not obtain a Missouri drivers’ license. In October 1997, while using his Raytown, Missouri address, Debtor terminated his independent contractor arrangement with National Carriers and entered into a similar arrangement with Sports Associates of Kansas City, Inc. in Kansas City, Missouri. Debtor continued to use the Raytown, Missouri address in January 1998, when he filed his voluntary petition for bankruptcy in the Western District of Missouri. Debt- or testified that sometime after filing for bankruptcy, he opened a bank account in Raytown, Missouri. In March 1998, however, Debtor reconciled with his girlfriend, married her, and resumed his use of her Altoona, Iowa address. Debtor filed 1997 tax returns in April 1998 that listed his home address in Altoona, Iowa. Along with his federal return, Debtor filed returns for Kansas and Iowa but not for Missouri. In May 1998, Debtor terminated his arrangement with Sports Associates of Kansas City and executed a new independent contractor agreement with National Carriers. Debtor listed his Altoona, Iowa address on the new agreement. Debtor testified that he now considers Iowa to be his true “home.”

On August 13, 1998, the Trustee filed a Complaint against MBCC seeking to void MBCC’s security interest in Debtor’s tractor on grounds that it was unperfected at the time Debtor filed his bankruptcy petition. The bankruptcy court issued a judgment and order on December 9, 1998 in favor of the Trustee. On January 11, 1999, the bankruptcy court reaffirmed its decision in favor of the Trustee.

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

A district court reviews a bankruptcy court’s legal conclusions de novo and its findings of fact for clear error. In re Scarborough, 171 F.3d 638, 641 (8th Cir.), rehearing and suggestion for rehearing en banc denied (1999); In re Hen House Interstate, Inc., 150 F.3d 868, 870 (8th Cir.1998); Fed.R.Bankr. 8013 (“Findings of fact, whether based on oral or documentary evidence, shall not be set aside unless clearly erroneous, and due regard shall be given to the opportunity of the bankruptcy court to judge the credibility of the witnesses.”). A finding is clearly erroneous only if the reviewing court is left with a definite conviction that a mistake has been committed. In re Sherman, 67 F.3d 1348, 1353 (8th Cir.1995). Further, after reviewing the bankruptcy court’s decision, a district court may affirm, modify, or reverse the judgment, order, or decree or remand with instructions for further proceedings. Fed.R.Bankr. 8013.

III. DISCUSSION

The bankruptcy court found that Debtor was a resident of Iowa at the time he purchased his tractor and applied for a certificate of title in Kansas. After reviewing the record and the parties’ briefs, the Court does not find this determination to be clearly erroneous. The Court will [513]*513affirm the bankruptcy court’s finding of fact that Debtor was a resident of Iowa at the time he purchased his tractor and applied for a certificate of title in Kansas.

The parties’ dispute focuses upon the bankruptcy court’s choice of law. The bankruptcy court determined that because Debtor was an Iowa resident at the time he purchased the vehicle, Iowa law governed the perfection of MBCC’s lien. The Court will reverse the bankruptcy court’s legal conclusion on a number of grounds. First, the bankruptcy court failed to follow the necessary analytical process for determining which state’s law governs the Trustee’s ability to avoid MBCC’s security interest. Had the bankruptcy court done so, it would have first looked to the law of Missouri, where Debtor filed his voluntary petition for bankruptcy. Second, regardless of whether the bankruptcy court first looked to the law of Missouri, Iowa or Kansas, the court erred in concluding that the Uniform Commercial Code' — Article 9 choice of law provision — which all three states have adopted — did not mandate the use of Kansas law to determine perfection of MBCC’s lien.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
249 B.R. 509, 41 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 1234, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8618, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/krigel-v-mercedes-benz-credit-corp-in-re-stanley-mowd-2000.