Solis v. Fidelity Consumer Discount Co.

58 B.R. 983, 1986 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29301
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedFebruary 14, 1986
DocketCiv. A. 84-2421
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 58 B.R. 983 (Solis v. Fidelity Consumer Discount Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Solis v. Fidelity Consumer Discount Co., 58 B.R. 983, 1986 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29301 (E.D. Pa. 1986).

Opinion

OPINION

CAHN, District Judge.

Appellant, George J. Solis (“debtor”), appeals under Bankruptcy Rule 8001(a), 11 U.S.C. § 8001(a) (1984), from a decision of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granting the motion for summary judgment of Fidelity Consumer Discount Company (“Fidelity”). The Bankruptcy Court found that no genuine material issues of fact existed and decided as a matter of law that Fidelity, while making a consumer loan to debtor, did not violate any provision of the Truth In Lending Act (“TILA”) 15 U.S.C. *985 §§ 1601-1667e (1976). 1 I find that summary judgment was inappropriate on the record before the Bankruptcy Court; therefore, I remand.

I.

On May 13, 1980, debtor and his wife negotiated with Kutner Buick, Inc. (“Kut-ner”) for the purchase of a 1975 Buick automobile. Kutner accepted debtor’s cash deposit of $500 toward the price of approximately $3,259 and gave debtor immediate possession of the car. At that time, Kut-ner offered debtor assistance to enable him to obtain financing for the approximate balance of $2,759. Kutner transmitted debtor’s credit information to Fidelity, who informed Kutner that a co-signer would be necessary before the loan could be consummated. Kutner relayed this information to debtor, who advised Kutner that debtor’s mother-in-law would co-sign the loan. Kut-ner relayed the co-signer’s credit information to Fidelity and Kutner then arranged for the interested parties to meet at the Fidelity office on May 21, 1980. At this meeting, loan papers were signed and Fidelity gave a cheek to debtor. Debtor immediately endorsed the check, giving it to the Kutner representative who had driven debtor, debtor’s wife and the co-signer to the meeting. In addition, Fidelity gave the debtor a rescission notice informing him that he had until May 24, 1980, to rescind the entire transaction.

In a disclosure statement also given to debtor on May 21, 1980, Fidelity acknowledged as security for the loan a security interest in debtor’s residence and household goods and in the co-signer’s residence. Fidelity never disclosed to debtor a security interest in debtor’s Buick. Fidelity, however, currently holds a perfected security interest in debtor’s 1975 Buick. An issue in this case is whether TILA, in this factual context, required disclosure of the existence of this encumbrance.

On November 19, 1982, debtor filed a voluntary bankruptcy petition under Chapter 13. Fidelity subsequently filed a proof of claim in the amount of $2,136.02 as a secured creditor. On March 3,1983, debtor notified Fidelity of his intention to rescind the loan transaction, claiming that Fidelity violated the TILA by never notifying him of Fidelity’s security interest in the 1975 Buick. On March 8, 1983, Fidelity notified debtor that the loan transaction would not be rescinded since all requirements of the TILA had been met. The parties filed motions for summary judgment, and on April 6, 1984, the Bankruptcy Court granted defendant Fidelity’s motion.

II.

The TILA is a federal statute that provides terms and conditions for the regulation of consumer credit. The congressional purpose of the Act is “to assure a meaningful disclosure of credit terms so that the consumer will be able to compare more readily the various credit terms available to him and avoid the uninformed use of credit.” 15 U.S.C. § 1601. Congress enacted the TILA to prevent the unsophisticated consumer from being misled as to the cost of financing. See Mourning v. Family Publications Service, Inc., 411 U.S. 356, 363-69, 93 S.Ct. 1652, 1657-61, 36 L.Ed.2d 318 (1973); Griggs v. Provident Consumer Discount Co., 680 F.2d 927, 930 (3d Cir.1982), rev’d on other grounds, 459 U.S. 56, 103 S.Ct. 400, 74 L.Ed.2d 225 (1982); Thomka v. A.Z. Chevrolet, Inc., 619 F.2d 246, 248 (3d Cir.1980). To accomplish its purpose, the TILA mandates that creditors make certain disclosures. The TILA provides for enforcement of these disclosure requirements through “ ‘a system of strict liability in favor of consumers who have secured financing when [the] standard[s] [are] not met.’ ” Griggs, 680 F.2d at 930 (quoting Thomka, 619 F.2d at 248). Under the TILA, the Federal Reserve Board has the authority to promulgate regulations to carry out the disclosure *986 requirements. 15 U.S.C. § 1604. Pursuant to this authority, the Board has issued a series of regulations referred to as Regulation Z. 12 C.F.R. §§ 226.1 et seq. Under the Act and Regulation Z, the specific disclosure requirements differ depending upon whether the transaction in issue is a credit sale or a consumer loan. Disclosure requirements for credit sales are governed by 15 U.S.C. § 1638; 12 C.F.R. § 226.8(b), (c). Disclosure requirements for consumer loans are governed by 15 U.S.C. § 1639; 12 C.F.R. § 226.8(b), (d). A violator of the disclosure requirements is held to a standard of strict liability. Therefore, a plaintiff need not show that the creditor in fact deceived him by making substandard disclosures. See Dzadovsky v. Lyons Ford Sales, Inc., 593 F.2d 538, 539 (3d Cir.1979) (per curiam).

III.

In his motion for summary judgment, debtor alleged several violations of the TILA. Under Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a court may grant summary judgment only “if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Hollinger v. Wagner Mining Equipment Co., 667 F.2d 402, 405 (3d Cir.1981) [quoting Fed.R.Civ.P.

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Bluebook (online)
58 B.R. 983, 1986 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29301, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/solis-v-fidelity-consumer-discount-co-paed-1986.