Rosado v. Banco Popular De Puerto Rico

561 B.R. 598, 2017 WL 56048
CourtBankruptcy Appellate Panel of the First Circuit
DecidedJanuary 4, 2017
DocketBAP NO. PR 16-016; Bankruptcy Case No. 11-02825-BKT
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 561 B.R. 598 (Rosado v. Banco Popular De Puerto Rico) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the First Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosado v. Banco Popular De Puerto Rico, 561 B.R. 598, 2017 WL 56048 (bap1 2017).

Opinion

Fagone, U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel Judge.

Alexis Ramirez Rosado and Elsie E. Berrios Salgado (collectively, the “Debtors”) appeal from the bankruptcy court’s order denying their motion seeking the imposition of sanctions for contempt against Banco Popular de Puerto Rico (“Banco Popular”) under § 105, on account of an alleged violation of the discharge injunction.1 They also seek to appeal from the bankruptcy court’s subsequent refusal to reconsider that order. We AFFIRM both orders.

BACKGROUND

The Debtors filed for chapter 7 relief in March 2011. In their schedules, they indicated they owned two properties, their residence and a duplex, both located in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. They valued the residence at $138,000.00 and the duplex at $125,000.00. On Schedule D, they listed Banco Popular as the holder of a $91,258.00 lien on the residence,, and a $78,055.00 lien on the duplex. In their Statement of Financial Affairs, the Debtors listed Banco Popular as the plaintiff in two foreclosure proceedings pending in the Puerto Rico Court of First Instance, Superior Court of Bayamón (the “local court”) one involving the residence (in which judgment entered in March 2003), and the other concerning the duplex (in which judgment entered in March 2009). Although both judgments entered years before the filing of the Debtors’ chapter 7 petition, neither foreclosure had progressed to a sale as of the petition date.

Banco Popular filed a proof of claim, asserting a secured claim of approximately $84,000.00. Subsequently, Banco Popular filed a motion for relief from stay (the “Stay Relief Motion”), alleging the Debtors had failed to make post-petition payments on a certain note and mortgage. About six months later, the bankruptcy court entered an order granting the Stay Relief Motion. Thereafter, in April 2015, the bankruptcy court issued an order granting the Debtors a discharge under § 727 (the “Discharge Order”).

On January 25, 2016, the Debtors filed a motion for an order of contempt (the “Contempt Motion”) against Banco Popular pursuant to § 105, asserting that the bank continued efforts to foreclose using the “ordinary foreclosure” method, an in per-sonam remedy. This, according to the Debtors, constituted a violation of the § 524(a)(2) discharge injunction. The Debtors elaborated that Puerto Rico’s statutory scheme governing foreclosures provides three ways to foreclose a mortgage: “the summary foreclosure proceeding, the civil action for foreclosure, and the ordinary civil action for collection of money.” According to the Debtors, only the summary foreclosure proceeding is an in rem remedy; the others necessarily involve an at[602]*602tempt to recover a debt as an in personam liability. Thus, the Debtors contended that after the entry of the Discharge Order, Banco Popular should have “filed a summary foreclosure procedure.” In addition, the Debtors maintained that Banco Popular’s foreclosure judgments were void because each contained a determination of the Debtors’ personal liability.

Despite everything it said about various methods of foreclosure under Puerto Rico law, the Contempt Motion did not identify any conduct, other than the continuance of the foreclosure proceeding, by Banco Popular.2 No letter, telephone call, or communication emerged from the allegations of the Contempt Motion which might have given rise to a violation of the discharge injunction. Nonetheless, the Debtors alleged that Banco Popular’s conduct caused them damages, “affected their quality of li[f]e,” and exacerbated their health problems.

Banco Popular countered that after obtaining relief from the automatic stay, it “informed” the local court that it intended to proceed exclusively in rem, that it waived any right to proceed in personam, and that it would not seek to collect a deficiency from the Debtors. It also requested leave to file exhibits to its objection in Spanish. To that end, it attached two Spanish-language documents to the objection.

On February 3, 2016, the bankruptcy court denied the Contempt Motion without conducting a .hearing. The court’s order (the “Order Denying Contempt”) provides: “Upon Banco Popularas] reply filed at docket 129, the motion filed by DEBTOR[S] requesting entry of order of contempt under 11 U.S.C. § 105 (docket # 128) is hereby denied.” The Order Denying Contempt did not address Banco Popular’s request for leave to file Spanish-language documents or indicate to what extent, if any, the court considered those documents.

Twelve days later, the Debtors filed a motion for reconsideration (the “Reconsideration Motion”), without identifying the legal authority upon which they relied for the requested relief. They acknowledged that Banco Popular informed the local court that it was proceeding exclusively in rem and waived any right to collect from the Debtors personally. The Debtors contended, nonetheless, that Banco Popular’s representations in the local court did not operate to “convert” the foreclosure action to an in rem proceeding, and they reiterated that it continued to rely on the wrong foreclosure statute.

On March 16, 2016, the bankruptcy court entered an order denying the Reconsideration Motion (the “Order Denying Reconsideration”), reasoning that such motions “must not be used as a vehicle to re-litigate matters already litigated and decided.” The court added that “Rule 59(e) is not intended to give an unhappy litigant one additional chance to sway the judge.”

This appeal followed.3 Although the Debtors identified only the Order Denying Contempt in their notice of appeal, when they filed the notice electronically they linked the docket entry to both the Order Denying Contempt and the Order Denying Reconsideration. Additionally, they referenced and included the Order Denying Reconsideration in their statement of is[603]*603sues, designation of the record, and opening brief.

On appeal, the Debtors argue that they established a prima facie case for contempt by alleging that Banco Popular knew of the Discharge Order and intentionally engaged in conduct that violated it. The Debtors continue to maintain that Banco Popular should have employed the Puerto Rico statute governing an in rem proceeding post-discharge.4 They also contend that: (1) the acceptance of Spanish-language documents by the bankruptcy court constitutes reversible error; (2) the bankruptcy court improperly characterized the Reconsideration Motion as an attempt to re-litigate matters already decided; and (3) they were entitled to a hearing on the Contempt Motion and the Reconsideration Motion.

Like the Debtors, Banco Popular largely reasserts the arguments it presented in the bankruptcy court proceedings. It adds: (1) contrary to the Debtors’ assertion, under Puerto Rico law, there are three recognized ways for a mortgagee to proceed in rem; (2) its use of Spanish-language documents in the proceedings below was proper; and (3) the Panel lacks jurisdiction to consider the merits of the Order Denying Reconsideration, as the Debtors neglected to identify that order in their notice of appeal.

JURISDICTION

Before addressing the merits of an appeal, we must determine the threshold issue of whether the Panel has jurisdiction, even if the litigants have not raised the issue. Rivera Siaca v. DCC Operating, Inc.

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561 B.R. 598, 2017 WL 56048, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosado-v-banco-popular-de-puerto-rico-bap1-2017.