Metz v. Poughkeepsie Savings Bank, FSB (In re Metz)

231 B.R. 474, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3738
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedMarch 18, 1999
DocketNos. CV 97-5163, CV 96-1263
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 231 B.R. 474 (Metz v. Poughkeepsie Savings Bank, FSB (In re Metz)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Metz v. Poughkeepsie Savings Bank, FSB (In re Metz), 231 B.R. 474, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3738 (E.D.N.Y. 1999).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND ORDER

SPATT, District Judge.

This is an appeal from two separate decisions of the United States Bankruptcy Court. The first is a February 9, 1996 decision by United States Bankruptcy Judge Robert John Hall’s holding PSB and John H. Adams, Esq., in civil contempt. The second is a July 15, 1997 decision by United States Bankruptcy Judge Francis G. Conrad granting Pough-keepsie Savings Bank’s, FSB (“PSB”) motion for summary judgment. The Court will examine the appeal of Judge Conrad’s decision first as it provides the pertinent background for analysis of the appeal of Judge Hall’s decision.

I. THE JUDGE CONRAD APPEAL

The facts and lengthy history of this case have previously been set forth in this Court’s decisions of September 22, 1995 (the “September 1995 Decision”) and February 12, 1996 (the “February 1996 Decision”) in related appeals bearing the docket numbers CV 93-5863 and CV 94-0358, respectively and will not be repeated in the entirety. The Cpurt will, however, review some of the pertinent facts which are relevant to the outcome of this decision.

On February 12, 1988, Maplewood Land Development Company, Inc. (“Maplewood”) borrowed $1,250,000 from Pawling Savings Bank, executing a promissory note and mortgage in favor of the bank. Debtor James T. Metz (“Metz” or the “Debtor”), the president of Maplewood, was named as the “individual guarantor” on that mortgage note, which was subsequently assigned by Pawling Savings Bank to PSB. On April 20, 1988, Metz borrowed $1.6 million from PSB. The loan was guaranteed by Maplewood. In order to secure the loan, Metz gave PSB a collateral assignment of purchase money mortgages and notes. Paragraph seven of the assignment stated that “the bank shall not be obligated to release any collateral furnished hereunder until all obligations of the borrower and/or guarantor to the bank have been paid in full. The bank shall have the right to demand and receive additional collateral for all and any part of the loan or loans.”

In November 1988, Maplewood secured another loan from PSB that was consolidated with the February 1988 loan. These loans were separate from the April 20, 1988 loan. After the April 20, 1988 loan was repaid, Metz attempted to obtain the release of the collateral. PSB refused to return the collateral, however, as Maplewood defaulted on its consolidated loan. After many decisions by numerous courts including State Courts, the Bankruptcy Court, and two decisions by this Court which will be reviewed briefly, the essence of this appeal turns on whether the collateral assignment from Metz with regard to the April 20, 1988 loan agreement with PSB, eross-eollateralizes the consolidated loans of February and November 1988 to Maplewood.

The Court will briefly review its two prior decisions, so that the context of this decision can be placed in its proper light. The Court’s September 1995 Decision was based upon an appeal by PSB of two Orders by the United States Bankruptcy Court, dated October 6,1993 and December 10, 1993 in Metz v. Poughkeepsie Savings Bank, Adv. Pro. No. 893-8295-20. The October 6, 1993 Order was a decision by Judge Hall that (1) granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiff/Debtor Metz and directing turnover of the collateral to Metz; and (2) denied a motion by the defendant PSB seeking abstention by the Bankruptcy Court or dismissal of the adversary proceeding. In the December 10, 1993 Order, Judge Hall adhered [477]*477to his prior decision in response to PSB’s re-argument motion.

On appeal of these orders, PSB argued that the Bankruptcy Court erred in granting summary judgment to Metz as it improperly gave preclusive effect to a State Court decision despite the fact that the Order was being appealed. PSB argued further that Judge Hall’s decision granting summary judgment to Metz ignored the presence of disputed issues of material fact relating to various other loan agreements between the parties. This Court’s September 1995 Decision affirmed Judge Hall’s granting of summary judgment which directed the turnover of the collateral to Metz on the ground that the debtor’s entitlement to the collateral was determined in an earlier state court action.

The Court’s February 1996 Decision was based on PSB’s motion, pursuant to Fed. R.Civ.P. 60(b)(l)(5) and (6), for an order relieving it from the Court’s September 1995 Decision that, as previously described, granted summary judgment in favor of Metz and required that PSB turn over to Metz the collateral at issue. PSB also moved the Court for an order pursuant to Bankruptcy Rule 7062, staying enforcement of a Bankruptcy Court order that holds it in contempt if it failed to turn over the Collateral to the Chapter 7 Trustee. At oral argument on February 9, 1996, the parties informed the Court that PSB had complied with the Bankruptcy Court’s order to turn over the Collateral, thereby rendering moot the portion of PSB’s motion that sought to stay the contempt order.

The essence of PSB’s argument on February 9, 1996, was that it should not be required to turn over the Collateral to the Chapter 7 Trustee, because by the terms of the relevant loan agreements, the Collateral secured Maplewood’s indebtedness to PSB, and PSB was entitled to pursue a deficiency judgment against Maplewood under the Third Department’s ruling. See Poughkeepsie Savings Bank, FSB v. Maplewood Land Development Co., Inc., 210 A.D.2d 606, 620 N.Y.S.2d 161 (3d Dep’t 1994).

PSB argued that in its September 1995 Decision, this Court examined only the PSB/ Metz relationship, and overlooked the issue of Maplewood’s indebtedness to PSB and Maplewood’s relationship to the Collateral. PSB also argued that this Court incorrectly relied on a July 12, 1995 decision of United States Bankruptcy Judge Hall, which indicated that any order regarding turnover of the Collateral should await determination of the amount of the deficiency judgment against Maplewood by the Columbia County Supreme Court. On January 25, 1996, Judge Hall stated that on July 12, 1995 he declined to rule on the Trustee’s motion to compel PSB to turn over the Collateral because at that time he was divested of jurisdiction by virtue of the then undecided appeal pending in this Court. On January 25,1996, in accordance with this Court’s affirmance of his prior grant of summary judgment to Metz, Judge Hall ordered PSB to turn over the collateral to the Trustee or be held in contempt.

The Court’s February 1996 Decision held that:

In the Court’s view it is appropriate, based on the full record now before the Court, to revisit its September 22, 1995 Order, pursuant to Rule 60(b)(6), which permits granting relief from a judgment for “any other reason” than those enumerated in other subsections of the Rule. Common sense and a basic view of the law suggest that the Collateral, which is now in the hands of the Trustee, should not have been taken from Poughkeepsie prior to the determination of whether Poughkeepsie has any right to it based on Maplewood’s obligation to Poughkeepsie. Stated simply, the bank may be entitled to the Collateral to recover a deficiency judgment against Maplewood.
At the present time, however, the Court realizes that there are a series of decisions in this case directing turnover of the Collateral to Metz or the bankrupt estate.

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Bluebook (online)
231 B.R. 474, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3738, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/metz-v-poughkeepsie-savings-bank-fsb-in-re-metz-nyed-1999.