Savers Federal Savings & Loan Ass'n v. Amberley Huntsville, Ltd.

934 F.2d 1201
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedJune 28, 1991
DocketNos. 90-7307, 90-7308
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 934 F.2d 1201 (Savers Federal Savings & Loan Ass'n v. Amberley Huntsville, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Savers Federal Savings & Loan Ass'n v. Amberley Huntsville, Ltd., 934 F.2d 1201 (11th Cir. 1991).

Opinion

ANDERSON, Circuit Judge:

This is an appeal of two related cases1 in which the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the Resolution Trust Corporation (“RTC”), which is acting as conservator for Savers Savings Association (“Savers”), and against appellants Amber-ley Huntsville Joint Venture (“Joint Venture”), Amberley Huntsville, Ltd. (“Limited”), Amberley Associates (“Associates”), and Warner E. Stone (“Stone”). Appellants contend that the summary judgment should be vacated because there remain issues of material fact regarding their respective liabilities on two promissory notes and the accompanying guaranties. We affirm the district court’s judgments in favor of RTC but modify the amounts of the judgments and remand only the issue of the amount due under the Huntsville Guaranty.

I. STATEMENT OF FACTS

This appeal involves two promissory notes, each of which is accompanied by a guaranty, executed by appellants in favor of Savers Federal Savings and Loan Association (“Savers Federal”), the predecessor in interest to the RTC.

1. The Huntsville Note and Guaranty

On or about November 10, 1983, Joint Venture executed a Note (“Huntsville Note”) in which it promised, among other things, to repay to Savers Federal the principal sum of $7,840,000, or so much of the principal as was actually disbursed, plus other amounts required by the note. The Huntsville Note was nonrecourse. It limited Joint Venture’s liability to the assets that Joint Venture had pledged as security for the note and expressly provided that Savers Federal could not seek to enforce [1201]*1201the debt against assets not specifically pledged as security.2 The note expressly provided that Savers Federal was not entitled to recover a deficiency judgment against Joint Venture if the foreclosure and sale of the pledged assets failed to cover the amount due.3 The principal collateral for the note was an improved parcel of real property on which Joint Venture had constructed and was operating a hotel (“mortgaged property”).

In addition to the terms regarding payment of principal and interest, the Huntsville Note stated that Joint Venture promised to pay certain other amounts to Savers Federal as “additional interest.” This provision addressed two contingencies. If Joint Venture sold the mortgaged property prior to maturity of the note, the note required Joint Venture to pay Savers Federal fifteen percent of the “Net Sales Proceeds” as “additional interest.”4 If Joint Venture repaid its obligations in full at maturity or prior to maturity, the note required Joint Venture to pay Savers Federal fifteen percent of the “Fair Market Value” of Savers Federal’s “additional interest.”5

As part of the same transaction, Warner E. Stone, Joe R. Faulk, Jr., Gerald N. Olson and Donald E. Redford, as individuals, executed a Guaranty in which they promised to repay a portion of the amount due under the note if Joint Venture defaulted. For purposes of this appeal, the Guaranty required the guarantors to pay Savers Federal the amount “by which the outstanding principal balance of the Note exceeds $5,880,000.”6

[1202]*12022. The Decatur Note and Guaranty

On or about July 22, 1985, Joint Venture executed another Note (“Decatur Note”) in favor of Savers Federal, promising to pay the principal sum of $5,750,000, or so much of the principal as was actually disbursed, and other amounts required by the terms of the note. The terms of the Decatur Note were quite similar to those of the Huntsville Note but varied in certain details. Like the first note, the Decatur Note was nonrecourse, providing that Savers “shall not seek a personal deficiency judgment against the [Joint Venture] but will pursue any deficiency judgment against the guarantors of the indebtedness.... ” Rl.24.40. The Decatur Note also contained a provision similar to the “additional interest” provision in the Huntsville Note. The Decatur Note granted Savers an “Equity Share” which required Joint Venture to pay Savers fifteen percent of the “Net Sales Proceeds” of the mortgaged property if it was sold during the “Construction Phase” of the loan or twenty-five percent of the proceeds if the mortgaged property was sold during the “Permanent Phase” of the loan.7 The Decatur Note also provided that if Joint Venture paid its obligations at or before maturity, Joint Venture had to pay Savers fifteen percent of the “Fair Market Value of the Mortgaged Property,” but if Joint Venture failed to pay its obligations at maturity, it had to pay Savers' twenty-five percent of the fair market value of the property.8 Finally, the four guarantors of the Huntsville Note also executed a guaranty of Joint Venture's obligations under the Decatur Note on or about July 22, 1985.

II. COURSE OF PROCEEDINGS

On November 16, 1988, Savers Federal filed suit in Alabama state court alleging that Joint Venture had defaulted on both notes. Savers Federal alleged that it was entitled to recover judgment and to foreclose on the mortgaged properties pursuant to the respective Mortgage and Security Agreement for each note. Savers Federal sought to recover the outstanding principal, interest, and other costs associated with the loans as well as all expenditures related to the actions of foreclosure. Savers Federal also alleged that Faulk, Olson, Redford and Stone would be liable under the guaranties for any deficiencies resulting from the foreclosure actions.

The defendants answered and alleged as affirmative defenses that the “additional interest” provision had created a partnership in fact between Savers Federal and the defendants and that Savers Federal had breached its fiduciary duties arising from [1203]*1203that partnership. Specifically, defendants alleged that Savers Federal misled them into believing that it had restructured the loan when in fact, it had not. Defendants also alleged that Savers Federal violated its duty of good faith and fair dealing under the Uniform Commercial Code.

On February 10, 1989, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board appointed the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (“FSLIC”) to serve as conservator for Savers Federal. FSLIC removed the case to federal court under 28 U.S.C.A. § 1331 (Supp.1990) and 12 U.S.C.A. §§ 1730(k)(l)(B) & (C) (1989). On August 9, 1989, the Resolution Trust Corporation (“RTC”) succeeded FSLIC as conservator for Savers Federal upon the enactment of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (“FIRREA”). See 12 U.S.C.A. § 1441a(b)(3) (1989). Subsequently, the Office of Thrift Supervision placed Savers Federal into receivership and appointed RTC as receiver. All of the assets of Savers Federal were then transferred to Savers Savings Association (“Savers”) with RTC remaining as Savers’ conservator. The liabilities of the former Savers Federal remained with RTC in its capacity as receiver for Savers, and the district court entered an order substituting RTC for Savers Federal as the proper plaintiff.

On May 30, 1989, Joint Venture, Limited and Associates filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. The district court issued an order lifting the automatic stay of proceedings under the Code and permitting this case to go forward against Joint Venture, Limited and Associates.

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Bluebook (online)
934 F.2d 1201, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/savers-federal-savings-loan-assn-v-amberley-huntsville-ltd-ca11-1991.