Trafalgar Investments, Ltd. v. Westminster Associates, Ltd.

715 S.W.2d 745, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 8600
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 23, 1986
DocketNo. 14629
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 715 S.W.2d 745 (Trafalgar Investments, Ltd. v. Westminster Associates, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Trafalgar Investments, Ltd. v. Westminster Associates, Ltd., 715 S.W.2d 745, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 8600 (Tex. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

SHANNON, Chief Justice.

Appellee Westminster Associates, Ltd., filed a declaratory judgment suit in the district court of Travis County seeking a declaration of its rights and obligations concerning its indebtedness to appellant Trafalgar Investments, Ltd., as evidenced by a promissory note and deed of trust to certain apartment property in Austin. Ancillary to its declaratory judgment suit, Westminster sought a temporary injunction prohibiting Trafalgar from foreclosing on the apartment property pending trial on the merits. After hearing, the district court signed an order granting the temporary injunction.

Trafalgar posted notice to foreclose on the apartment property because Westminster had failed to make a note-payment. Westminster claims that, under the circumstances and the provisions of the Trafalgar note, it was excused from making the payment.

Trafalgar’s promissory note is one part of a complicated “wrap-around” financial arrangement which involves several notes, secured by several deeds of trust on the apartment property, along with several other legal commitments between a number of parties who have been involved with the apartment property over the past two decades.

As this Court understands, “wraparound” financing works as follows. A sells real property to B and receives in return a promissory note secured by a lien on the property. Some time later, B sells the property to C for a greater sum. B receives, in return, a promissory note which “wraps” the outstanding principal on the first note. In other words, the new note is for the outstanding principal on the first note, plus the equity which B has in the property. In conjunction with the new note, B takes a subordinate lien on the property. In the new note, B covenants to continue making payments on the first note out of the payments B now receives from C under the new note. The new note also allows C to step in and make the payments on the first note should B default, for which payments G receives a credit against the debt it owes to B. This provision is crucial to allow C to protect its interest in the property which is still subject to a lien securing the first note.

The following is a summary of the wraparound arrangement financing the property concerned in this appeal. In 1969, Nash Phillips and Clyde Copus executed a promissory note for $2.4 million, secured by a deed of trust on the apartment property. Thereafter, Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. purchased the note. In 1975, Penn Mutual purchased from Phillips and Copus an option to accelerate the due date on the note to November 1, 1985.

In 1978, Phillips and Copus sold the apartment property to another company, receiving a $2.7 million promissory note in [747]*747return. This note wrapped the outstanding principal on the Penn Mutual note. Phillips and Copus received a lien on the apartment property in conjunction with the second note.

In 1980, Trafalgar bought the apartment property, still subject to the two liens. In the same year, Trafalgar sold the complex to another company (TSL), and received in return a promissory note for $4,365 million, which note wrapped the outstanding principal on the prior notes. Trafalgar’s equity in the property, approximately $1.7 million, was defined in the note as the “first principal,” which was due to be paid in full on November 12, 1985. In conjunction with this note, Trafalgar received a lien on the property which is the lien Trafalgar was attempting to foreclose when Westminster filed suit. The provisions of this third note (the “Trafalgar note”) control the resolution of this appeal and will be discussed later in more detail.

In 1983, TSL sold Westminster the property, which remained subject to the three liens. Westminster took several steps to attempt to protect its interest in the property at this point. First, Westminster entered into an escrow agreement with TSL which set aside a sum of money toward payment of the balance on the Penn Mutual note which would come due November 1, 1985. The escrow agreement also gives Westminster all of TSL’s rights under the Trafalgar note. As a second step to protect the property, Westminster obtained two “estoppel letters” from Penn Mutual, whereby Penn, for consideration, promised that it would not alter the terms of the Penn Mutual note without Westminster’s consent. Penn Mutual also represented that it would not change the due date of its note to any date later than November 1, 1985.

As November 1, 1985, approached, the parties began maneuvering about trying to determine who was responsible for payment of the Penn Mutual note. The facts are disputed regarding the extent to which various parties (especially Trafalgar and Phillips and Copus) repudiated the debt or expressed an intent not to make the payment. It should be noted that the Penn Mutual note and the Phillips and Copus note were non-recourse notes which meant that in the event of default the payee could look only to the collateral (the apartment property) for the funds that were due.

On October 21, 1985, Penn Mutual accepted, for consideration, Phillips’ and Co-pus’ offer to extend the due date on the Penn Mutual note for thirty days to November 30, 1985. Penn Mutual’s agreement to extend was clearly in contravention of the estoppel letter agreements it had entered into with Westminster.

Westminster, contending that the thirty-day extension was invalid and that no one intended to pay the nearly $2 million due on the Penn Mutual note, stepped in and paid off the Penn Mutual note on November 1, 1985. Westminster then claimed a credit against Trafalgar under the terms of the Trafalgar note. Westminster claimed that this credit satisfied the November 12 payment it owed Trafalgar under the Trafalgar note, so that Westminster was not obligated to make, and did not make, the payment on November 12,1985. When Trafalgar sent notice of its intention to foreclose on the apartment property, Westminster filed its declaratory judgment suit, requesting ancillary injunctive relief.

In a hearing on an application for temporary injunction, the only question before the trial court is the right of the applicant to the preservation of the status quo of the subject matter of the suit, pending a final trial on the merits. To warrant the issuance of a temporary injunction the applicant need only show a probable right and a probable injury; he is not required to establish that he will finally prevail in the litigation. Where the pleadings and the evidence present a case of probable right and probable injury, the trial court is clothed with broad discretion in determining whether to issue the writ of injunction and its order will be reversed only on a showing of a clear abuse of discretion. Davis v. Huey, 571 S.W.2d 859 (Tex.1978); [748]*748Transport Co. of Texas v. Robertson Transports, 261 S.W.2d 549 (Tex.1953).

The parties’ dispute centers upon Westminster’s claim of a probable right to pay off the Penn Mutual note and claim of right to credit that sum against its obligation to Trafalgar. Undoubtedly, Westminster will suffer injury if Trafalgar is permitted to foreclose on the apartment property.

The crucial provisions of the Trafalgar promissory note are contained in Part 5 of the note, entitled “Obligations of Payee,” which provide as follows:

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Bluebook (online)
715 S.W.2d 745, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 8600, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/trafalgar-investments-ltd-v-westminster-associates-ltd-texapp-1986.