McHugh v. Ficor, Inc.

611 P.2d 578, 43 Colo. App. 409, 1979 Colo. App. LEXIS 902
CourtColorado Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 13, 1979
DocketNo. 78-268
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 611 P.2d 578 (McHugh v. Ficor, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Colorado Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
McHugh v. Ficor, Inc., 611 P.2d 578, 43 Colo. App. 409, 1979 Colo. App. LEXIS 902 (Colo. Ct. App. 1979).

Opinion

SMITH, Judge.

In this action by the creditors of a defunct corporation, the defendants appeal from a money judgment entered against them, jointly and severally, and from the trial court’s holding that their counterclaim had been waived. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand with directions.

On November 18,1971, the plaintiffs sold 14.557 acres of land to be used for a condominium complex and a lodge to defendant Ficor, Inc. Ficor was incorporated in the District of Columbia, but was transacting business in Colorado.

The officers, directors, and shareholders of Ficor were as follows: defendant John F. Forstmann, president, director, and owner of 36% of the stock; defendant Vankirk E. Fehr, vice-president, secretary, director, and owner of 27% of the stock; defendant Bruce B. Brundage, treasurer, director, and owner of 32% of the stock; defendant Geoffrey W. Robertson, owner of 5% of the stock; Andrew Isaacson, assistant secretary, attorney, not a stockholder or a defendant in this action.

[581]*581The purchase price of the land was $825,-466.36, and was to be paid $10,000 in cash at the time the purchase contract was executed, $749,103.92 by assuming responsibility for payment of a note previously executed by plaintiffs to Berry & Stark, a partnership, and the balance in cash at closing. The note assumed by Ficor was payable in nine annual installments beginning November 25, 1971, and was secured by a first deed of trust on the subject property in favor of Berry & Stark. Because plaintiffs did not secure a release from Berry & Stark, they too remained liable on the note. Ficor’s obligations under the assumption agreement were secured by a second deed of trust on the subject property in favor of plaintiffs. Ficor was entitled to releases from the deed of trust in favor of plaintiffs on substantially the same terms as plaintiffs were entitled to releases from Berry & Stark. The effect of the release provisions was that for a specified amount of principal paid by Ficor on its obligation to plaintiffs arising from the assumption agreement, plaintiffs would release one square foot from the deed of trust in their favor, and Berry & Stark would release the same square foot from the deed of trust in its favor.

On November 19, 1971, Ficor conveyed a 3.545 acre portion of the land to the public trustee to secure a note for $250,000 from Security National Bank. A major portion of the loan proceeds was used to pay an installment on the Berry & Stark note that Ficor was obligated to pay under the terms of the assumption agreement. Thereafter, on November 29,1971, the 3.545 acre parcel was released from the deed of trust in favor of plaintiffs and from the deed of trust in favor of Berry & Stark.

On January 3, 1972, defendant Recreational Environmental Development Corporation (REDCO), a corporation, was organized by the individual defendants. The officers, directors, and shareholders of RED-CO were as follows: defendant Forstmann, president, director, and owner of 36% of the stock; defendant Fehr, executive vice-president, director, and owner of 27% of the stock; defendant Brundage, vice-president and treasurer, director, and owner of 32% of the stock; defendant Robertson, vice-president, director, and owner of 5% of the stock.

On March 1, 1972, defendant Fourven was organized as a limited partnership by the individual defendants. Defendants Forstmann, Fehr, Brundage, and Robertson, were the general partners. It is unclear, however, if Fourven ever had a limited partner, and thus whether it ever functioned as a limited partnership.

On March 1, 1972, approximately four months after the purchase of the land by Ficor, Ficor was dissolved. Upon dissolution, all the assets of Ficor, $38,728.36 in cash, and the 14.557 acres of land were distributed by Ficor directly to its shareholders, the individual defendants. The distribution was based upon the percentage of stock ownership of the individual defendants. The individual defendants in turn conveyed the assets to REDCO and Four-ven. REDCO received the 3.545 acres subject to the deed of trust in favor of Security National Bank of Denver, and $36,728.36 in cash. Fourven received the remaining 11.-012 acres, subject to deeds of trust in favor of Berry & Stark and plaintiffs, plus $2,000 in cash. No notice of the dissolution was sent to the creditors of Ficor, and no provision was made for payment of any obligations to Ficor’s creditors.

In June 1972, REDCO, and the defendants individually, obligated themselves on a 2.5 million dollar construction loan secured by a deed of trust on the 3.545 acres in favor of Security National Bank, and further secured by certain personalty. On September 8, 1972, plaintiffs and Berry & Stark released a .442 acre portion of the 11.012 acres Fourven had received from Fi-cor. Also, on September 8, 1972, REDCO borrowed $240,000 from Security National Bank. The note representing this debt, in addition to being personally guaranteed by the individual defendants, was secured by a deed of trust, but what land was encumbered is not clearly indicated in the record.

On November 22, 1972, Fourven borrowed $150,000 from Security National [582]*582Bank, securing the note by a deed of trust in favor of the bank on 2.951 acres of the 11.012 acres Fourven had received from Fi-cor. From the loan proceeds, Berry & Stark was paid $136,997.65. Thereafter, Berry & Stark and plaintiffs released the 2.951 acres from their respective deeds of trust.

In late 1972, and in 1973, the project encountered significant financial difficulties. In 1973, there was a default on the Berry & Stark note, and plaintiffs instituted this suit. Plaintiffs foreclosed on the 7.619 acres remaining on their deed of trust which secured Ficor’s obligations under the assumption agreement, and procured the land by bidding $413,000. Security National Bank foreclosed on the remaining portions of the land, that is the 3.545 acre, 2.951 acre, and .442 acre parcels, but accepted deeds from REDCO and Fourven in full satisfaction of their debts prior to the foreclosure sale.

I. The Applicable Law

Although Ficor is a District of Columbia corporation, the parties hereto have tried this case applying the Colorado Corporation Code. We assume that this was the case because Ficor was authorized to transact business in Colorado, and because foreign corporations which are authorized to transact business in Colorado are subject to the Colorado Corporation Code, § 7-9-102, C.R. S.1973. Our review is based upon that theory.

II. Dissolution of Ficor

The Colorado Corporation Code, § 7-8-105, C.R.S.1973, requires a corporation to make adequate provision for the discharge of all corporate obligations upon dissolution. The defendants assert that because the land was secured by a deed of trust in favor of the plaintiffs, the defendants made adequate provision for the corporation’s obligations. We disagree.

The record reveals that Ficor’s obligation under the assumption agreement was not a non-recourse obligation, and therefore, that plaintiffs were entitled to look to all of Ficor’s assets for satisfaction of the obligation. Thus, plaintiffs’ remedy was not limited to foreclosure on the deed of trust. Once Ficor was dissolved and the assets were distributed so as to be beyond the reach of its creditors, Ficor was in violation of § 7-8-105, C.R.S.1973.

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Bluebook (online)
611 P.2d 578, 43 Colo. App. 409, 1979 Colo. App. LEXIS 902, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mchugh-v-ficor-inc-coloctapp-1979.