Slappey Builders, Inc. v. Federal Deposit Insurance

277 S.E.2d 328, 157 Ga. App. 343, 1981 Ga. App. LEXIS 1815
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedFebruary 4, 1981
Docket60657
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 277 S.E.2d 328 (Slappey Builders, Inc. v. Federal Deposit Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Slappey Builders, Inc. v. Federal Deposit Insurance, 277 S.E.2d 328, 157 Ga. App. 343, 1981 Ga. App. LEXIS 1815 (Ga. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

McMurray, Presiding Judge.

On May 8, 1974, Slappey Builders, Inc. executed a real estate note and a deed to secure debt in favor of Hamilton Mortgage [344]*344Corporation, a Tennessee corporation, as lender, in the amount of $46,400. Certain improved real property therein described as located in DeKalb County was the security for the indebtedness. The note was individually guaranteed by T. G. Slappey and J. W. Slappey. The note was subsequently modified, but that issue is not involved here.

On October 25,1975, Hamilton Mortgage Corporation conveyed an undivided 99 % interest in the note and security deed to Hamilton National Bank of Chattanooga.

On December 31, 1975, Slappey Builders, Inc. had an opportunity to sell the property for $52,500. It contacted Hamilton National Bank with reference to this sale in an attempt to get the bank to accept the net proceeds from the sale as a total payoff; that is, in the amount of $48,278.50, and also to get the bank to agree to make the permanent loan. On January 2, 1976, Hamilton National Bank declined to finance a permanent loan but agreed to accept the total net proceeds from the sale, “but in no event, will it be less than $48,300.00” However, the sale was never consummated. In the meantime the bank was declared insolvent on February 16,1976, by the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was appointed receiver.

On February 20, 1976, Hamilton Mortgage Corporation filed bankruptcy proceedings. The appointed trustee in bankruptcy, in his capacity as trustee, conveyed the remaining 1% to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The 99% interest in the subject note and security deed was later conveyed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as receiver to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in its corporate capacity pursuant to 12 USCA § 1823 (e).

A real estate broker obtained another prospective purchaser for the property. The property was then sold on May 3,1977, and FDIC received $48,112.50 on May 10,1977. FDIC now contends this left a principal balance due of $13,863.81 plus interest. FDIC then informed the Slappeys by a “ten day letter” that the provisions of the note relative to the payment of attorney fees would be enforced unless the total unpaid principal and interest were paid within 10 days of the date of the receipt of the letter.

On February 7,1979, FDIC, a liquidator of Hamilton National Bank, filed this action against Slappey Builders, Inc., T. G. Slappey, and J. W. Slappey, seeking judgment for the balance of the note alleged to be $13,863.81, plus interest thereon in the amount of $3,020.23 as of December 15, 1978, which it contends continues to accrue at a per diem rate. In addition, it sought attorney fees in the amount of 10% of the principal and interest due and owing on said note.

The defendants answered, in general denying the claim, ad[345]*345mitting jurisdiction, the making of the note and the modification of same, although denying that the guarantor defendants unconditionally guaranteed the modified note, admitting, however, the payment of $48,112.50 but denying that there was any balance due on the indebtedness. Defendants also filed affirmative defenses of lack of consideration, failure of consideration, the barring of the claim, usury, estoppel, increasing the risk, fraud on the part of the plaintiff and its predecessors, novation, release, and, in substance, accord and satisfaction. They also sought by counterclaim a judgment for damages, actual and punitive, and reasonable attorney fees by reason of the alleged fraud of the plaintiff.

After discovery, plaintiff moved for summary judgment based upon certain affidavits. By affidavit, in opposition to plaintiffs motion for summary judgment, one of the real estate broker’s agents deposed that Slappey advised it would accept any offer on which the construction lender would agree to accept the proceeds of the sale in full satisfaction of the construction loan. She deposed further that she and her broker discussed the sale by telephone with various persons connected with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and “it was agreed that the FDIC would accept the proceeds of the sale in full satisfaction of the construction loan note.” The motion for summary judgment was granted, and defendants appeal. Held:

1. Defendants ardently urge on appeal that the trial court based its judgment upon a “misinterpretation” and “misapplication” of a federal statute (12 USCA § 1823(e)), which error, it is argued, was induced by “confusing” comments of plaintiff’s counsel. Before the trial court defendants contended (i) that the earlier-noted agreement between Hamilton National Bank and themselves was binding upon plaintiff and (ii) that plaintiff, through certain of its agents purportedly acting on plaintiffs behalf, entered into a separate, binding agreement with defendants to accept the proceeds of a sale of the subject property as full satisfaction of the balance then owing on the construction loan, i.e., that a novation or an accord and satisfaction had occurred.

Defendants, in their supplemental brief on appeal, have expressly abandoned trial contention (i) above and admit that the earlier agreement between Hamilton National Bank and themselves is not binding upon plaintiff. We therefore do not consider that issue here. Defendants do, however, assert error in the trial court’s reliance upon Title 12 USCA § 1823(e) in passing upon argument (ii) above as set forth at the hearing. That statute provides, in pertinent part, as follows: “No agreement which tends to diminish or defeat the right, title or interest of the Corporation [FDIC in its separate corporate capacity] in any asset acquired by it under this section, either as [346]*346security for a loan or by purchase, shall be valid against the Corporation unless such agreement (1) shall be in writing, (2) shall have been executed by the bank and the person or persons claiming an adverse interest thereunder, including the obligor, contemporaneously with the acquisition of the asset by the bank, (3) shall have been approved by the board of directors of the bank or its loan committee, which approval shall be reflected in the minutes of said board or committee, and (4) shall have been, continuously, from the time of its execution, an official record of the bank.”

Specifically, defendants contend that the strictures of 12 USCA § 1823(e) apply only as to agreements between an obligor/debtor and an insolvent bank, and not as to direct agreements between that obligor/debtor and the FDIC such as defendants claim to have been entered here. In support of their argument that the trial court mistakenly relied upon 12 USCA § 1823(e), defendants note the following remarks of the court prior to granting plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment: “Assuming, to take it to a ridiculous extreme, that the FDIC had an employee that got on the phone one morning and called up a list of debtors and said, ‘Look, just forget this obligation you owe the FDIC; just forget about it entirely,’ I think that would put the debtor on notice that he might ought to get something a little more concrete of that in writing, approved by the Board of Directors, a real binding, written novation.

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Bluebook (online)
277 S.E.2d 328, 157 Ga. App. 343, 1981 Ga. App. LEXIS 1815, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/slappey-builders-inc-v-federal-deposit-insurance-gactapp-1981.