Lightfoot v. Hardaway

751 S.W.2d 844, 1988 Tenn. App. LEXIS 46
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedJanuary 27, 1988
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 751 S.W.2d 844 (Lightfoot v. Hardaway) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lightfoot v. Hardaway, 751 S.W.2d 844, 1988 Tenn. App. LEXIS 46 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1988).

Opinion

OPINION

TODD, Presiding Judge.

The plaintiffs, Alma Marie Lightfoot, executrix, and Robert Baltz, Jr., have appealed from a judgment dismissing their suit against the captioned defendants and ordering a 15 acre tract to be sold for partition.

On October 18, 1974, Theodore H. Light-foot, L. Hall Hardaway, Jr., Robert J. Brewington and Robert J. Baltz entered into a joint venture agreement for the speculative purchase of 190 acres of unimproved real estate to be known as “Elm Hill Properties”. According to the agreement, legal title to the land was to be held in the name of a trustee with full powers to act upon the written instruction of a majority of the investors. The property was encumbered by a mortgage indebtedness of [846]*846$2,600,000.00 for which the partners were jointly and severally liable.

In June, 1980, Robert J. Brewington withdrew from the joint venture, leaving Lightfoot, Baltz and Hardaway as the remaining investors.

On August 14, 1980, 19.5 acres of the land was sold for $458,150.00, or $23,500.00 per acre, leaving 170.5 acres in the joint venture.

On January 16, 1981, Theodore Lightfoot died, and his widow, Alma Marie Lightfoot, qualified as executrix. His estate proved to be insolvent because of heavy investment liabilities.

Efforts of the surviving participants to sell the remaining property were unsuccessful.

The Lightfoot estate was unable to pay its part of the interest payments on the bank loan; Mr. Baltz borrowed money from Mr. Hardaway to pay his part of the interest; and Mr. Hardaway paid the rest (i.e. the share of Lightfoot and Hardaway).

In the Spring of 1982, the mortgage was past due, and it became urgent that some action be taken to avoid foreclosure and resultant loss to the investors. In May, 1982, the mortgage holder threatened foreclosure. Neither Mr. Baltz nor the Light-foot estate was able to pay a proportionate part of the debt.

On June 4, 1982, Mr. Hardaway submitted to Mr. Baltz and the Lightfoot estate a written proposal whereby Hardaway would buy 122 acres of the tract for $3,000,000.00. The offer was conditioned upon availability of financing. Mr. Harda-way was unable to obtain financing for the proposed sale which was not consummated.

Prior to February 22, 1983, Mr. Harda-way organized a limited partnership named Air Corporate Associates for the purpose of buying the subject land.

On February 22, 1983, upon the instructions of Mr. Hardaway and Mr. Baltz (a majority of the investors) the Trustee did convey the 122 acres to Air Corporate Associates for $3,000,000.00. Air Corporate Associates obtained a loan of $7,000,000.00 on the property and the personal signature of Mr. Hardaway. The original mortgage indebtedness of the investors was paid out of the $7,000,000 and remainder of the $7,000,000 was reserved for development of the property.

On November 7, 1983, Air Corporate Associates entered into a contract with the Sheraton Corporation to manage a hotel to be built on the property by Air Corporate Associates. In March, 1985, the hotel was completed and began operation under Sheraton management. On September 25, 1985, Air Corporate Associates conveyed to McGavock Associates the 23.956 acres on which the hotel was built.

The original complaint was filed by Alma Marie Lightfoot, executrix of the estate of Theodore H. Lightfoot against L. Hall Hardaway, Jr., Imperial Associates, Inc., and William D. Castleman, Trustee, and it alleged the partnership as above stated and averred:

On or about February 22,1983 without the knowledge or consent of the remaining partners, L. Hall Hardaway, Jr., instructed William D. Castleman, Trustee to transfer and convey substantially all the partnership property to Air Corporate Associates, Ltd., a Tennessee limited partnership controlled by L. Hall Harda-way, Jr., as general partner. A copy of the Warranty Deed by which that transfer was made is attached hereto as Exhibit C. The conveyance to Air Corporate Associates, Ltd. was in violation of T.C.A. § 61-l-109(d) and T.C.A. § 61-1-120.

The complaint also alleged other business partnership transactions of the deceased and Mr. Hardaway and prayed for an accounting and dissolution of the partnerships.

William D. Castleman, Trustee, was dismissed by voluntary dismissal. Robert Baltz, Jr., was permitted to intervene as a plaintiff, McGavock Associates, Ltd., was added as a party defendant, and the original complaint was amended to add details.

By counter-claim, Mr. Hardaway sought judicial partition of the residue of land owned by the joint venture.

[847]*847Music City Associates was added as a defendant.

By pretrial order, the contentions of the parties and issues were set out as follows:

Plaintiffs’ theory: Hardaway and plaintiffs were partners in the joint venture called Elm Hill Properties. Harda-way breached his fiduciary duty of loyalty to plaintiffs by purchasing partnership property for himself individually, for inadequate consideration, without disclosing to plaintiffs facts which were material to the transaction, and which, if known, would- have enabled plaintiffs to form a reasonably correct opinion and conclusion as to their best interest. Because Hardaway consciously failed to reveal fully all circumstances that might have affected the transaction, he (along with his various business entities) must be declared a constructive trustee — holding the wrongfully acquired property upon a constructive trust for the joint venture. In the alternative, plaintiffs seek to recover a money judgment (including interest) measured by the benefit to defendants resulting from the wrongful acquisition of the property. Plaintiffs insist that they are entitled to an accounting, and to interest on any amount of money which they may be entitled to receive as a result thereof. Because of Hardaway’s conscious disregard for the rights of his partners, an award of punitive damages is appropriate in this case.
Defendants’ theory: The defendants contend that Mr. Hardaway’s purchase of the property was made in good faith for a fair consideration and was based on a full and complete disclosure of all material information. Mr. Hardaway did not breach any fiduciary duty or any other duty to plaintiffs and his purchase of the property was proper and lawful. The defendants further contend that a proper accounting has been made.
For affirmative defense to the complaint and amended complaint filed against them in said cause, the defendants further contend that the plaintiffs breached the joint venture agreement by failing to manage and operate the affairs of the joint venture, by failing to attempt to sell the joint venture property when foreclosure was imminent, and by failing to pay their share of the expenses of the joint venture.
For further affirmative defense to the complaint and amended complaint filed against them in said cause, the defendants contend that the plaintiffs have been guilty of laches in the filing of the complaint and the amended complaint and in failing to prosecute their alleged claims.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
751 S.W.2d 844, 1988 Tenn. App. LEXIS 46, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lightfoot-v-hardaway-tennctapp-1988.