Sanders v. AllianceOne Receivables Mgmt., Inc. (In re Sanders)

589 B.R. 874
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Washington
DecidedJuly 6, 2018
DocketCase No. 15-15243-MLB; Adversary No. 16-01204-MLB
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 589 B.R. 874 (Sanders v. AllianceOne Receivables Mgmt., Inc. (In re Sanders)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sanders v. AllianceOne Receivables Mgmt., Inc. (In re Sanders), 589 B.R. 874 (Wash. 2018).

Opinion

Marc Barreca, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge

INTRODUCTION

This matter came before me on motions for summary judgment by the Plaintiff, Randy Sanders ("Sanders " or the "Plaintiff "), and the Defendant, AllianceOne Receivables Management, Inc. ("AllianceOne " or the "Defendant ") (Dkt. Nos. 68 and 73). Sanders filed this adversary proceeding after objecting to proofs of claim nos. 1, 2 and 4 (the "Proofs of Claim ") filed by AllianceOne in the main bankruptcy case (the "Bankruptcy Case , " Case No. 15-15243). The objections to claim are consolidated into this proceeding. Additionally, Sanders seeks in his amended complaint (the "Amended Complaint ") to determine the dischargeability and the amount owed on various legal financial obligations in the Proofs of Claim. (Am. Compl., Dkt. No. 57). Sanders asserts that AllianceOne violated the discharge injunction under 11 U.S.C. § 524(a) by attempting to collect debts, which were discharged in a prior bankruptcy. Sanders further asserts that AllianceOne's collection action violated the Washington Consumer Protection Act under RCW § 19.86 and the Washington Collection Agency Act under RCW § 19.16. AllianceOne seeks to dismiss the Amended Complaint with prejudice, asserting that the debts in the Proofs of Claim were nondischargeable pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(7).1

Following oral argument on May 23, 2018, I took the matter under advisement. Having considered the pleadings, evidence, and arguments of counsel, and otherwise being fully advised, I deny Sanders' motion for summary judgment and I grant AllianceOne's motion for summary judgment in part.

JURISDICTION

I have jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of this adversary proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 157 and 1334. Venue is proper in the Western District of Washington pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1409.

FACTS

Prior to Sanders' current Chapter 13 bankruptcy, he filed a Chapter 7 petition (the "Initial Bankruptcy Case ," Case No. 14-15724-KAO) and included AllianceOne in his Schedule F as a collection agent for Bellingham Municipal Court and Whatcom County. Sanders received his discharge in *878the Initial Bankruptcy Case on October 27, 2014. After AllianceOne engaged in post-petition collection activities, including garnishment of Sanders' wages, he filed the current Bankruptcy Case on August 31, 2015.

The Proofs of Claim include amounts for various fines, costs and interest associated with sixteen criminal convictions, six entered in Whatcom County Superior Court (the "Superior Court ") and ten entered in Bellingham Municipal Court (the "Municipal Court "). AllianceOne is the collection agent for each governmental entity. Additionally, there are at least eight judgments in Whatcom County District Court (the "District Court ") as to which AllianceOne was previously the collection agent. AllianceOne asserts that it no longer has a contractual relationship with the District Court. However, AllianceOne did attempt to collect the District Court debts following discharge in the Initial Bankruptcy Case, sending a letter to Sanders dated January 9, 2015 (Dkt. No. 57-16). Neither party offered any proof of the District Court's underlying judgments and/or sentencing documents.

The Superior Court Debts

AllianceOne seeks to collect $22,709.38, consisting of fines, costs and interest derived from six criminal convictions in Superior Court. For each criminal conviction there is a sentencing order (the "Sentencing Order ")2 , a document entitled "Assignment of Judgment and Collection Referral" (the "Collection Referral ," Dec'l of Tim Bolden, Ex. 73-2)3 , and a summary of accounts taken from the Superior Court docket (the "Accounting Summary ," Dkt. No. 69-7).

Each Sentencing Order imposes a different assortment of fines and costs, and each includes some variation of the following:

Victim Fund Assessment $500 Criminal Filing Fee $200 Court Appointed Attorney Fee $300-$600 DNA Collection Fee $100 VUCSA Fine $1000

Consistently, the Sentencing Orders include the following provisions that impose collection costs and interest:

The defendant shall pay the cost of services to collect unpaid legal financial obligations, which include monitoring fees for a monthly time payment plan and/or collection agency fees if the account becomes delinquent. ( RCW 36.18.190 )
The financial obligations imposed in this judgment shall bear interest from the date of Judgment until payment in full, *879at the rate applicable to civil judgments. RCW 10.82.090.

Dkt. No. 69-7. Additionally, all of the Sentencing Orders include a court finding that the defendant has the financial resources to pay all legal financial obligations. Although some, but not all, of the sentencing documents include a provision permitting a later court order that could impose restitution or other legal financial obligations, neither party has offered any proof of additional obligations being imposed by the Superior Court.

The Superior Court debts were referred to AllianceOne for collection on June 15, 2015. The referrals were memorialized in the Collection Referral signed by the county clerk. Each Collection Referral includes a total judgment amount, comprised of the following line items: Principal Penalty, Assigned Interest, Interest and Collection Fee. The amounts in the Collection Referral, specifically the Principal Penalty, do not directly match the Sentencing Order and it is unclear how either the county clerk or AllianceOne arrived at the exact numbers.

For each of the six Superior Court convictions there is an Accounting Summary providing for the following line items: Fine/Fee, Restitution, and Interest.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
589 B.R. 874, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sanders-v-allianceone-receivables-mgmt-inc-in-re-sanders-wawb-2018.