Palmer v. Paul Miller Ford, Inc. (In re Lainhart)

566 B.R. 464
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Kentucky
DecidedFebruary 2, 2017
DocketCASE NO. 16-51029; ADV. NO. 16-5039
StatusPublished

This text of 566 B.R. 464 (Palmer v. Paul Miller Ford, Inc. (In re Lainhart)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Palmer v. Paul Miller Ford, Inc. (In re Lainhart), 566 B.R. 464 (Ky. 2017).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Gregory R. Schaaf, Bankruptcy Judge

Stephen Palmer, the Chapter 7 Trustee, filed this adversary proceeding to compel the Defendant Paul Miller Ford, Inc. (“Paul Miller”) to provide a certificate of title to a 2012 Ford F-150 pickup truck purchased by the Debtor prepetition. The Trustee and Paul Miller filed cross-motions for summary judgment [Trustee: ECF Nos. 32, 37, 38, 39, and 40; Paul Miller: EOF Nos. 31, 35, 36, 41, and 52], a hearing was held, and the matter is submitted for decision [ECF Nos. 48 and 49], The Trustee is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND.

Paul Miller obtained the truck, which was titled under Ohio law, as a trade-in on an earlier sale. [See ECF No. 35-1 at 9.] The Debtor agreed to purchase the truck on February 1, 2016, with financing from the University of Kentucky Federal Credit Union (the “Credit Union”). [See id. at 4-5, 39-40; ECF No. 35-2 at 1-4.] The Debtor signed multiple documents on February 1, including papers that allowed Paul Miller to subsequently transfer the title on his behalf. [ECF No. 35-1 at 11, 13, and 14.] The Debtor also presented his driver’s license and proof of insurance and drove away with the truck. [Id. at 47.]

Paul Miller requested a duplicate title for the truck in April from the Hamilton County, Ohio Clerk of Courts, alleging on the papers that the original title was lost. [See ECF No. 35-2 at 11-16.] A duplicate title was issued on April 26, 2016. [ECF No. 35-1 at 8.] A Kentucky motor vehicle dealer is not required to obtain a certificate of title every time it acquires a car for resale. Ky, Rev. Stat, 186A.220(1). Therefore, the duplicate title remained in the name of the prior owner, with Paul Miller’s interest derived from an Assignment of Ownership. [See ECF No. 35-1 at 8-10.]

Kentucky law requires an inspection as a prerequisite to transfer of the title to an out-of-state vehicle. See Ky, Rev. Stat, § 186A.115. Paul Miller presented testimony from three employees that it told the Debtor about the need for the inspection multiple times. [See ECF No. 31-4 at 2; ECF No. 31-5 at 2; and ECF No. 39-3 at 11-15.] The first time was shortly after the February 1 sale. [See ECF No. 31-4 at 2; ECF No. 31-5 at 2; ECF No. 39-3 at 11-12.] The final contact came during telephone calls to the Debtor some time after the new title was received. [ECF No. 31-4 at 2; ECF No. 31-5 at 2.]

The Debtor only admits he received .a call regarding the inspection after he filed his initial chapter 13 bankruptcy petition on May 23, 2016. [ECF No. 39-1 at 24-25.] The Debtor testified he told the caller his lawyer said he was not obligated to obtain the inspection or talk to Paul Miller. [Id. at 21, 23-26.] The Debtor also testified that, although he remembered returning to Paul Miller at least twice to renew the vehicle’s temporary tags, he was never told- about the need for an inspection until the post-petition phone call. [Id. at 21,24.]

The Debtor voluntarily converted his case to one under chapter 7 on June 17, 2016, and surrendered the truck to the Trustee sometime thereafter. The Trustee filed this adversary proceeding on September 9, 2016, when Paul Miller refused to transfer title to the truck. [ECF No. 1.] The Trustee’s Complaint also named the Credit Union as a defendant, but the Credit Union and Paul Miller do not assert a security interest was ever perfected. Therefore, Paul Miller took an assignment [467]*467of any rights of the Credit Union based on their Dealer Agreement [ECF No. 36 at 5] and the Trustee agreed to dismiss the Credit Union [ECF No. 46]. Paul Miller filed its Answer [ECF No. 13], and the matter is now submitted on the cross-motions for summary judgment.

II. JURISDICTION.

This is a core proceeding under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2). The Court has jurisdiction of core proceedings pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 157(a) and 1334, and Joint Local Rule 83.12 of the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky. Venue is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1409.

III. ANALYSIS.

A. The Summary Judgment Standard.

Summary judgment is appropriate if “there is no genuine issue as to any material fact” and “the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” See Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7056 (incorporating by reference Fed. R. Civ. P. 56). The movant bears the burden of showing that no genuine issues of material fact are in dispute, and the evidence, together with all inferences that can permissibly be drawn therefrom, must be read in the light most favorable to the party opposing the motion. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 585-87, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986); Provenzano v. LCI Holdings, Inc., 663 F.3d 806, 811 (6th Cir. 2011). The Court’s task is not “to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of the matter but to determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A genuine issue for trial exists when there is sufficient “evidence on which the [factfin-der] could reasonably find for the plaintiff.” Id. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505.

“[T]he standards upon which the court evaluates the motions for summary judgment do not change simply because the parties present cross-motions.” Taft Broad. Co. v. United States, 929 F.2d 240, 248 (6th Cir. 1991). In such circumstances, “the court must evaluate each party’s motion on its own merits, taking care in each instance to draw all reasonable inferences against the party whose motion is under consideration.” Id. (quoting Mingus Constructors, Inc. v. United States, 812 F.2d 1387, 1391 (Fed. Cir. 1987) (citations omitted)). Still, “ ‘the nonmoving party has an affirmative duty to direct the court’s attention to those specific portions of the record upon which it seeks to rely to create a genuine issue of material fact.’ ” Poss v. Morris (In re Morris), 260 F.3d 654, 665 (6th Cir. 2001) (quoting bankruptcy court decision below with approval).

B. The 2012 Ford F-150 Pickup Truck is Property of the Debtor’s Bankruptcy Estate.

The transaction in this ease is a typical dealer-to-buyer transfer.

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Butner v. United States
440 U.S. 48 (Supreme Court, 1979)
Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
477 U.S. 242 (Supreme Court, 1986)
Mingus Constructors, Inc. v. The United States
812 F.2d 1387 (Federal Circuit, 1987)
Taft Broadcasting Company v. United States
929 F.2d 240 (Sixth Circuit, 1991)
Provenzano v. LCI Holdings, Inc.
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Bluebook (online)
566 B.R. 464, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/palmer-v-paul-miller-ford-inc-in-re-lainhart-kyeb-2017.