National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corp. v. Prosser

467 B.R. 59
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, D. Delaware
DecidedDecember 15, 2011
DocketAdversary Nos. 09-52854-JKF, 10-50744-JKF
StatusPublished

This text of 467 B.R. 59 (National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corp. v. Prosser) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Delaware primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corp. v. Prosser, 467 B.R. 59 (Del. 2011).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION2

Related to Doc. No. 76, Plaintiffs Motion for Preliminary Injunction Related to Doc. No. 34, Motion for Preliminary Injunction3

Related to Doc. No. 1, Complaint

JUDITH K. FITZGERALD, Bankruptcy Judge.

Before the court are two motions brought by the Plaintiffs in Adversary No. 09-52854 seeking a preliminary injunction to enforce the terms of two general releases (the “Prosser Parties’ Release of RTFC” and the “Prosser Parties’ Release of Greenlight,” see Appendices A and B, respectively)4 and to enjoin further action [62]*62against Plaintiffs by the Defendants (“the Prosser Parties”)5 that violates the Releases, including, but not limited to, the action filed at Adversary No. 10-50744 (“the RICO action”).6 The motions seeking a preliminary injunction filed in Adversary No. 09-52854 stem from a RICO action filed by the Prosser Parties against these Plaintiffs and others7 in the District Court of the Virgin Islands (St. Croix Division) (hereafter “VI District Court”), Case No. 08-cv-107. The VI District Court granted the Plaintiffs’ motion to refer the matter to the undersigned, concluding that the RICO action was a collateral attack on four related bankruptcy cases pending before the undersigned in the Bankruptcy Division of the VI District Court.8 The VI District Court found “of particular importance and significance” forum selection clauses in the two general releases at issue applicable to the Prosser Parties. The Releases identified the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware as the forum in which “claims related to the releases must be brought.”9 Case No. 08-cv-107, [63]*63Doc. No. 176, at 2. The VI District Court transferred the RICO action to the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware (Delaware District Court) where it was assigned Case No. 10-201. The Delaware District Court referred the RICO and preliminary injunction actions10 to the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware where they were assigned Adversary Nos. 10-50744 and 09-52854, respectively. The disposition of this motion for preliminary injunction resolves the RICO action as well. References herein to “Adv. Doc. No.” refer to Adversary No. 09-52854 unless otherwise stated.

The Delaware District Court, in referring this injunction matter to the undersigned, summarized the history leading to this adversary proceeding. Our recitation of the facts borrows heavily from the Delaware District Court’s narrative, see National Rural Utilities Co-op. Finance Corp. v. Prosser, 435 B.R. 27, 30-32 (D.Del.2009), (09-cv-111 (D. Del.)), reconsideration denied 2009 WL 4334815 (D.Del. Dec. 01, 2009), as well as from case history recited by the parties, and from proceedings before this court over the past five years.

The current matter arises from two intertwining sets of events. The first set of events stems from a 1998 transaction in which Debtor Innovative Communication Company, LLC, (“ICC”) (VI Bankr.No. 06-30008) took Debtor Emerging Communications, Inc., (“EmCom”) (VI Bankr.No. 06-30007)11 private. ICC, which, at the time, owned 52 percent of EmCom, bought EmCom’s publicly owned shares. After the privatization transaction was complete, the Greenlight Entities12 sued ICC, Debt- or Jeffrey Prosser, John P. Raynor,13 Em-Com, and others in the Delaware Court of Chancery for breach of fiduciary duty. The Greenlight Entities sought, inter alia, appraisal of their shares. In June 2004, the Chancery Court found Prosser and Raynor liable for breach of fiduciary duty and entered judgments against them (“the Greenlight judgments”). The Greenlight judgments, with interest, total more than $160 million. Case No. 09-111 (D. Del.), Doc. No. 55, Memorandum Opinion of August 7, 2009, at 5, published at 435 B.R. 27, 30 (D.Del.2009). In February 2006, after ICC, EmCom, and Prosser failed to pay the Greenlight judgments, the Greenlight Entities filed involuntary chapter 11 petitions against ICC, EmCom, and Prosser in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Venue of the [64]*64proceedings was transferred to the Bankruptcy Division of the VI District Court.

The second set of events stems from loans made by Rural Telephone Finance Cooperative (“RTFC”) to ICC between 1987 and 2001. The Virgin Islands Telephone Corporation (“Vitelco”), a nondebtor and the largest and most significant source of revenue for ICC and related companies, is the sole provider of local wired telephone services for the U.S. Virgin Islands. Additionally, Vitelco provides certain long-distance and related telecommunication services in the U.S. Virgin Islands.14

Vitelco was a member of RTFC. RTFC made several loans to ICC (Vitelco’s parent) totaling in excess of $500 million. In connection with these loans, RTFC obtained various guaranties and security interests from others, including ICC, Em-Com, and Prosser. In April 2003, RTFC and ICC negotiated amended loan agreements and, in connection therewith, RTFC obtained additional guaranties and security interests from, inter alia, EmCom and Prosser.

In 2004, RTFC sued ICC for defaulting under the amended loan agreement. ICC and Vitelco countersued National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation (“CFC”) and RTFC.15 Protracted litigation ensued between CFC/RTFC, on one side, and Prosser, Raynor, and others on the other side. By 2006, there were eight lawsuits pending in the VI District Court between CFC and/or RTFC and Prosser and/or his companies (“RTFC loan default litigation”).16

During the course of the RTFC loan default litigation, Prosser and his companies asserted claims against most of the Plaintiffs. The claims were premised on a core set of allegations: that CFC unlawfully “controls” and “manipulates” RTFC; that CFC and RTFC have engaged in a long-standing “scheme” to subsidize RTFC and to “misappropriate” RTFC’s and its members’ funds while interfering with ICC’s ability to perform its loan obligations to RTFC; and “retaliation” against Prosser and his companies as a result of Prosser’s having discovered this “scheme.” Vitelco and ICC also asserted claims against CFC, RTFC, and the Greenlight Entities premised on some of these same allegations along with allegations that the Greenlight Entities’ commencement of the Delaware bankruptcy proceeding was part of a “joint venture” between the Green-light Entities and RTFC to take over Vi-telco and ICC.

In 2006, the two sets of events became intertwined through a series of settlement agreements. On April 26, 2006, the parties involved in the RTFC loan default litigation and the Delaware bankruptcy proceedings executed the Terms and Conditions of Settlement of Claims of RTFC, CFC, Prosser Parties, and Greenlight Entities (the “Terms and Conditions”). In addition to the 2006 Terms and Conditions, two other agreements were executed: the Release in Full of RTFC, CFC, Lilly and List (the “Prosser Parties’ Release of RTFC”) and a release of the Greenlight Entities (the “Prosser Parties’ Release of Greenlight”).

Pursuant to the Terms and Conditions, Prosser and his companies’ claims in the [65]

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