Madison Investment Trust v. Covenant at South Hills, Inc. (In Re Covenant at South Hills, Inc.)

410 B.R. 426, 2009 Bankr. LEXIS 2979, 52 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 19, 2009 WL 2837374
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedSeptember 3, 2009
Docket19-20802
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 410 B.R. 426 (Madison Investment Trust v. Covenant at South Hills, Inc. (In Re Covenant at South Hills, Inc.)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Madison Investment Trust v. Covenant at South Hills, Inc. (In Re Covenant at South Hills, Inc.), 410 B.R. 426, 2009 Bankr. LEXIS 2979, 52 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 19, 2009 WL 2837374 (Pa. 2009).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION 1

JUDITH K. FITZGERALD, Bankruptcy Judge.

The matter before the court arose during a pretrial conference on June 19, 2009, with respect to a motion to intervene filed on behalf of four residents of Debtor’s continuing care facility. 2 Madison Investment Trust asserts a perfected first priority lien which it contends is independent of *428 the first perfected lien held by the Indenture Trustee, U.S. Bank National Association. The parties agreed at the June 19, 2009, hearing that it was not necessary to decide the issue of the priority of the lien asserted by Madison, only whether a separate lien exists in Madison’s favor. Because we determine that Madison does not have the security interest that it asserts, the priority issue is resolved as a result.

Debtor operates a continuing care retirement community, the construction of which was funded primarily through the issuance of tax exempt bonds that were partially secured by letters of credit. Debtors defaulted soon after obtaining the financing and the parties have been trying to resolve the debt through a sale process. Debtor filed chapter 11 on January 8, 2009, which stayed actions in foreclosure and to appoint a receiver that were pending in state court.

It is undisputed that the liens held by the Indenture Trustee per the Note, Loan Agreement, Mortgage and Security Agreement, and the Trust Indenture are for the benefit of the Bondholders as well as Madison and that the Indenture Trustee holds valid perfected first priority liens. There likewise is no dispute that Madison has a claim. The dispute is whether it has an independent perfected security interest in and lien on the part of the prepetition collateral that is subject to the Indenture Trustee’s lien.

The parties agree that the documents 3 control. Madison asserts that it obtained a first lien priority through a Reimbursement Agreement, an Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement, a Participation Agreement and an Intercreditor Agreement, as follows:

... Credit Bank [KeyBank National Association — now Madison] and the Debtor entered into a Reimbursement Agreement (the “Reimbursement Agreement”), pursuant to which the Credit Bank agreed to issue the Letters of Credit. The Reimbursement Agreement requires the Debtor to reimburse the Credit Bank, with interest, for all draws honored under the Letters of Credit.... As described above, all rights of Credit Bank under the Reimbursement Agreement were ultimately assigned to Madison, Plaintiff, pursuant to the terms of (and in conjunction with other documents, as more fully described below) the Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement (the “Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement”)....
Prior to the Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement, Credit Bank and Madison had entered into a Participation Agreement dated September 15, 2006 (later amended on October 19, 2007) pursuant to which Madison had purchased certain rights under the Reimbursement Agreement on the terms and conditions set forth therein....
Based upon the Participation Agreement, as amended, and the Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement, Madison has succeeded to all of the rights and benefits of the Credit Bank relating to the Reimbursement Agreement as well as to that certain Intercreditor Agreement dated as of February 1, 2001, by and between the Original Indenture Trustee and Credit Bank, as acknowledged by the Debtor.

Memorandum of Law in Support of Madison Investment Trust’s Independent, Perfected Security Interest and Lien, Adv. Doc. No. 40 at 7. We find that none of the *429 aforesaid documents grants the asserted security interest to Madison. The history of events is as follows.

History and Documents

U.S. Bank National Association is the Indenture Trustee, successor to National City Bank of Pennsylvania, the Original Trustee. U.S. Bank also has succeeded to the interests of the Issuer, as described below. 4 Madison Investment Trust is successor in interest to KeyBank National Association (the “Credit Bank”). Debtor and the Indenture Trustee contest Madison’s claim that it holds an independent, duly perfected first priority security interest and/or mortgage in certain property of the Debtor. 5

The construction and development of the Debtor’s continuing care retirement facility was primarily financed through the issuance of publicly traded tax exempt bonds in the aggregate face amount of $59,010,000 issued by the Allegheny County Hospital Development Authority (the “Issuer”). The bond financing was evidenced by various documents, including a Loan Agreement, Mortgage and Security Agreement (“Loan Agreement”) dated February 15, 2001, between the Issuer and the Debtor. Exhibit B, Loan Agreement. The mortgage was recorded on February 28, 2001. There is also a promissory note dated February 28, 2001, in the original principal amount of $59,010,000 made payable to the Indenture Trustee. Exhibit C, Note. In connection with the issuance of the Bonds, a Trust Indenture dated February 15, 2001, was entered into between the Issuer and National City Bank of Pennsylvania, the Original Trustee. Exhibit A, Indenture. As part of the bond financing, the Debtor applied to Credit Bank for the issuance of two letters of credit 6 which would be used as security for a portion of the Bonds. Accordingly, also on February 15, 2001, Debtor and the Credit Bank entered into a Reimbursement Agreement under which the Credit *430 Bank (now Madison) agreed to issue the Letters of Credit. Exhibit D, Reimbursement Agreement.

To secure its obligations, Debtor granted the Issuer and Original Trustee a first mortgage lien against its real property and a security interest against all of the Debt- or’s personal property relating to the facility including, but not limited to, certain cash collateral. Exhibit B, Loan Agreement, at Sections 4.03, 4.09. 7 Thereafter, Credit Bank and Madison entered into a Participation Agreement dated September 15, 2006, (amended in October of 2007) pursuant to which Madison purchased certain rights under the Reimbursement Agreement. By an Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement dated April 16, 2008, the rights of the Credit Bank under the Reimbursement Agreement were assigned to Madison. Exhibit E, Assignment of Reimbursement Agreement. Thus, Madison is the successor to Credit Bank’s interests in the Reimbursement Agreement. The Reimbursement Agreement itself provides at Section 4.2 as part of the Closing Conditions that “the Loan Agreement ... and UCC financing statements shall have been duly filed in favor of the Trustee.” Exhibit D at 18.

Madison also is the successor to Credit Bank’s interest in the Intercreditor Agreement between the Original Trustee and Credit Bank.

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Bluebook (online)
410 B.R. 426, 2009 Bankr. LEXIS 2979, 52 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 19, 2009 WL 2837374, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/madison-investment-trust-v-covenant-at-south-hills-inc-in-re-covenant-pawb-2009.