Sangamon Associates Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership Ltd.

280 S.W.3d 737, 2009 Mo. App. LEXIS 130, 2009 WL 435394
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedFebruary 24, 2009
DocketWD 69280
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 280 S.W.3d 737 (Sangamon Associates Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Sangamon Associates Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership Ltd., 280 S.W.3d 737, 2009 Mo. App. LEXIS 130, 2009 WL 435394 (Mo. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

ALOK AHUJA, Judge.

This appeal involves individuals and entities which jointly own, directly or indirectly, certain real estate in downtown Kansas City. The parties have been embroiled in litigation concerning their respective rights and obligations for more than a decade, in Missouri and elsewhere. In 2003 and 2004, we observed in a closely related case that “[t]he events surrounding this case are rather complex and span several decades,” 1 and that “[t]he history, both factually and procedurally, underlying this appeal is vast.” 2 Unfortunately, the intervening years make those observations only more apt today.

The present appeal, brought pursuant to § 512.020, RSMo, involves the trial court’s judgment refusing to revoke its order appointing a receiver to take control of two pieces of jointly owned property. We reverse, based on our conclusion that in prior litigation the parties fully litigated, or could have litigated, all — or at least a significant portion of — the grounds now asserted to justify appointment of a receiver.

I. Factual Background

The late Allan R. Carpenter and Dale E. Fredericks formed Broadway-Washington Associates (“BWA”), a limited partnership, in 1985. BWA’s partners were The Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership, Ltd., a *740 Missouri limited partnership formerly controlled by Carpenter, and Sangamon Associates, Ltd., a Missouri limited partnership controlled by Fredericks. The Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership, Ltd. is the managing general partner of BWA.

BWA owns a piece of property located at 1210 Broadway in downtown Kansas City, which the parties refer to as the “Mid-Broadway Property.” Carpenter (or his successor(s) in interest) and Fredericks also own directly, as tenants in common, an adjoining piece of property, located at 1200 Broadway, known as the “North Broadway Property.” Both properties are managed by BWA, and operated as surface parking lots.

For purposes of simplicity, unless the context requires otherwise we refer to Allan R. Carpenter, his widow Theodora Carpenter, and related individuals and entities collectively as “Carpenter,” and to Dale Fredericks and related individuals and entities as “Sangamon.”

Over the years, various disputes have arisen between the parties concerning the control and management of BWA, and the management and disposition of the North Broadway and Mid-Broadway Properties. This Court has issued opinions involving these disputes on at least two prior occasions. Sangamon Assocs., Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family P’ship, Ltd., No. WD63485, 2004 WL 2339944, at *1 (Mo.App. W.D. Oct.19, 2004); Sangamon Assocs., Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family P’ship, Ltd., 112 S.W.3d 112, 113 (Mo.App. W.D.2003). The Missouri Supreme Court has also addressed them. See Sangamon Assocs., Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family P’ship, Ltd, 165 S.W.3d 141 (Mo. banc 2005); see also State ex rel. Broadway-Washington Assocs., Ltd. v. Manners, 186 S.W.3d 272 (Mo. banc 2006) (involving Kansas City’s attempt to condemn property owned by BWA). Because these prior opinions detail the history of the parties’ ongoing disputes, we discuss here only those facts necessary for resolution of the discrete issues presented by this appeal.

A. Sangamon I

On March 22, 1996, Sangamon brought suit against Carpenter in Jackson County Circuit Court (“Sangamon I”). The Second Amended Petition in Sangamon I alleges twenty-two direct and derivative claims for appointment of a receiver, an accounting, a mandatory injunction for production of books and records, removal of managing general partner, constructive trust, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, conversion, civil conspr-acy, defamation, and tortious interference with business relations, relating to both the North Broadway and Mid-Broadway Properties. Sangamon I was assigned to Division One of the Jackson County Circuit Court.

Following trial, the circuit court entered a Final Judgment in Sangamon I on January 11, 2002, which rejected the bulk of Sangamon’s claims. In particular, in the Final Judgment the court found, “after a thorough review of the financial records and accounts of [BWA], that no monies are presently due to Sangamon Associates, Ltd. from [BWA].” The Court did, however, enter a money judgment for Dale Fred-ericks individually in connection with his claim for an accounting relating to revenues generated by the North Broadway Property (the property then owned directly by Fredericks and Carpenter as tenants in common). The Court also rejected claims seeking the appointment of a receiver both with respect to BWA, and with respect to the North Broadway Property.

Carpenter had filed a counterclaim in Sangamon I seeking partition of the North Broadway Property. The circuit court ordered a partition sale to be conducted, at which Carpenter was the sole bidder. Sangamon moved to have the sale *741 set aside based on the alleged gross inadequacy of the price offered by Carpenter. Ultimately, the trial court confirmed the public sale, after Carpenter offered to increase his bid by a factor of ten.

Sangamon appealed. After a decision by this Court, see 2004 WL 2389944, the Missouri Supreme Court granted transfer. It rejected the bulk of Sangamon’s arguments seeking reversal, including Sanga-mon’s challenges to the judgment denying its breach of fiduciary duty, conversion, and constructive trust claims. Of significance here, the Supreme Court affirmed the circuit court’s refusal to appoint a receiver:

Sangamon argues that the trial court’s denial of its request for the appointment of a receiver was against the weight of the evidence. It argues that this Court should appoint a receiver pursuant to Rule 68.02 to sell the property because a receiver is necessary to protect the jointly-owned property. Sangamon alleges that Carpenter engaged in several instances of misconduct while acting as managing partner, including “engaging in extensive self-dealing, excluding other general partners from partnership affairs, failing to disclose material partnership information, and secretly suing his own partnership to recover monies which were the subject of this underlying litigation.”
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Sangamon does not state a sufficient basis to justify the appointment of a receiver. The record does not reflect that the appointment of a receiver was necessary, and the trial court exercised its discretion in denying the request for the appointment. This Court affirms the trial court’s denial of Sangamon’s request to appoint a receiver.

165 S.W.3d at 146.

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Related

Sangamon Associates, Ltd. v. Carpenter 1985 Family Partnership, Ltd.
298 S.W.3d 69 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2009)
Neeley v. State
280 S.W.3d 737 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2009)

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280 S.W.3d 737, 2009 Mo. App. LEXIS 130, 2009 WL 435394, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sangamon-associates-ltd-v-carpenter-1985-family-partnership-ltd-moctapp-2009.