OEM Industrial Corp. v. Birmingham Square (In re OEM Industrial Corp.)

148 B.R. 436, 1992 Bankr. LEXIS 2001, 23 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 1415
District Court, W.D. Pennsylvania·Decided December 23, 1992·No. Bankruptcy No. 90-03906 JKF; Adv. No. 91-0148·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

JUDITH K. FITZGERALD, Bankruptcy Judge.

The matter before the court is an. avoidance action by which OEM Industrial Corp. (“OEM”), formerly acting as debtor-in-possession,1 seeks to avoid as a preferential transfer Birmingham Square’s execution lien2 on a judgment it held against OEM. We hold that Birmingham Square’s lien is an avoidable preference.

I. Background

On Feb. 15,1985, OEM, as lessee, executed a lease agreement with Birmingham Square. On or about October 6,1988, after OEM’s default under the lease, Birmingham Square confessed judgment against OEM for $106,094.40 and for possession of the premises. Following unsuccessful attempts to recover the debt under a settlement, Birmingham Square initiated execution proceedings against OEM on July 25, 1990. On November 29, 1990, Birmingham Square caused a writ of execution to be reissued on the aforementioned judgment, naming AEG Westinghouse Transportation, Inc. (“AEG Westinghouse”), as garnishee. On December 4, 1990, Birmingham Square caused the reissued writ of execution and interrogatories to garnishee to be served upon AEG Westinghouse, attaching AEG Westinghouse’s indebtedness to OEM in the amount of $15,785.55. That sum, plus accrued interest, for a total of $16,-319.35, was paid into court and less $1,120.00 paid out as costs and attorneys’ fees to AEG Westinghouse, is now in escrow pursuant to an interpleader action. See In re OEM Industrial Corp., 135 B.R. 247, 251 (Bankr.W.D.Pa.1991).

OEM contends that Birmingham Square’s judgment lien is an avoidable preferential transfer of an interest in OEM’s property to or for the benefit of its creditor, Birmingham Square, for or on account of an antecedent debt, made on or within 90 days before the filing of the chapter 11 petition while OEM was insolvent, and which enables Birmingham Square to receive more than it would receive if the case were a case under chapter 7, the transfer had not been made, and Birmingham Square received payment of such debt to the extent provided by the provisions of Title 11. 11 U.S.C. § 547(b).

11. Discussion.

A. Section 547(b)(3).

Birmingham Square contends that OEM was not insolvent on December 4, 1990, the date of the transfer, and that Birmingham Square would not receive more as a result of the garnishment than it would receive if the case were a case under chapter 7. The parties do not dispute the satisfaction of the other conditions of § 547(b), and they will not be discussed herein.

While the burden of proof in a preference action lies with the trustee or debt- or-in-possession, 11 U.S.C. § 547(g), § 547(f) of the Bankruptcy Code creates a presumption of the debtor’s insolvency for the ninety days preceding the bankruptcy. 11 U.S.C. § 547(f). However, if the transferee against whom the presumption is [438] sought to be invoked comes forward with “some evidence to rebut the presumption,” the burden of proof remains on the trustee or debtor-in-possession in whose favor the presumption exists. Notes of Committee on the Judiciary, S.Rep. No. 95-989, 95th Cong., reprinted at 1978 U.S.Code Cong. & Ad.News at 5787. Therefore, if Birmingham Square met or rebutted the presumption of insolvency by adducing at trial some evidence that OEM was solvent on the date of the alleged voidable transfer, then OEM, bearing the ultimate burden of proof on this issue, would have had to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that it was insolvent on the date of the transfer. See In re Koubourlis, 869 F.2d 1319, 1322 (9th Cir.1989).

Although “proof of insolvency ... contemplates a showing of the fair value of all the debtor’s property, compiled by the use of balance sheets, financial statements, appraisals, expert testimony, and other affirmative evidence and compared to the amount of his debts,” because of the presumption of insolvency, absence of such evidence in OEM’s case in chief is not fatal. In re Phippens, 4 B.R. 155, 159 (Bankr.M.D.Tenn.1980). As evidence of OEM’s insolvency on December 4, 1990, the date of Birmingham Square’s garnishment of AEG Westinghouse, OEM offered the schedules filed with its petition seven days later, on December 11, 1990, and amended schedules, to show that OEM’s debts exceeded its assets by $309,507.00. See Plaintiff’s Exhibits 1, 1A, & IB. Additionally, in order to establish its insolvency on the date of the transfer, OEM offered a certified record of the claims docket (Plaintiff’s Exhibit 2), a certified proof of claim by the Internal Revenue Service which asserts that debtor is indebted to the United States in the sum of $158,966.28 (Plaintiff’s Exhibit 3), and its 1990 federal tax return (Plaintiff’s Exhibit 4). Faye Johnson, president of OEM, was the only witness for OEM. She testified that the schedules and other exhibits were accurate reflections of OEM’s assets and liabilities on the relevant dates of December 4 and December 11, 1990. She also testified as to values of assets.3

OEM presented no documentary evidence other than its schedules which nevertheless provided sufficient evidence to support the statutory presumption of insolvency at the time of Birmingham Square’s garnishment. Birmingham Square sought to rebut the presumption of insolvency by the introduction of two balance sheets showing that OEM was solvent on or near December 4, 1990, and of OEM’s 1990 tax return which showed gross sales for 1990 which, Birmingham Square alleged, were not sufficiently accounted for in the bankruptcy schedules. Birmingham Square’s contention that OEM’s balance sheets were the most reliable evidence of OEM’s financial status is unfounded because witnesses credibly testified that those balance sheets were inaccurate.4

[439] 1.Balance Sheet dated 12/31/90.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

OEM Industrial Corp. v. Birmingham Square (In re OEM Industrial Corp.), 148 B.R. 436, 1992 Bankr. LEXIS 2001, 23 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 1415 (W.D. Pa. 1992).

148 B.R. 436 (OEM Industrial Corp. v. Birmingham Square (In re OEM Industrial Corp.)) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related