United American Life Insurance Company, a Colorado Corporation v. F. J. Perillo and Ruth E. Perillo, Husband and Wife

462 F.2d 254
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedJuly 24, 1972
Docket25676
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 462 F.2d 254 (United American Life Insurance Company, a Colorado Corporation v. F. J. Perillo and Ruth E. Perillo, Husband and Wife) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United American Life Insurance Company, a Colorado Corporation v. F. J. Perillo and Ruth E. Perillo, Husband and Wife, 462 F.2d 254 (9th Cir. 1972).

Opinion

TRASK, Circuit Judge:

This is an appeal from an order of the district court awarding the plaintiff a money judgment. The district court had jurisdiction of the action under 28 U.S.C. § 1332 (Diversity of Citizenship), the action being between the plaintiff, a citizen of Colorado, and the defendants, citizens of states other than Colorado, and involving a sum exceeding $10,000. This court has jurisdiction of the appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1291.

FACTS

In 1961, Mr. and Mrs. F. J. Perillo (Perillos) owned a parcel of land in Tucson, Arizona, which they decided could profitably be used as the site for a bowling alley. Toward that end they formed an Arizona corporation, Diamond Pin Lanes, Inc. (Diamond), acquiring all of the stock in that corporation by conveying all of their interest in the realty to the corporation in exchange for it. Mr. Perillo became president of the corporation and his wife became its secretary.

In return for a loan from the plaintiff, United American Life Insurance Company (United), for construction of improvements, Diamond and the Perillos executed and delivered a promissory note to United in the amount of $260,000. To secure the note, Diamond simultaneously executed and delivered to United a realty mortgage dated May 5, 1961. The Per-illos did sign the mortgage as corporation officers, but not in their individual capacities. At the date of the mortgage, the Perillos did not own the realty described in it; the realty was owned by Diamond. At the date of the commencement of the action, Tucson Athletic Club, Inc. (Tucson), was the owner of the realty.

On or about January 10, 1962, a new note was executed by the Perillos to reflect the fact that a $250,000 United life insurance policy on the life of Mr. Peril-lo, which had been assigned to United as additional security, was converted into two policies of $125,000 each on the respective lives of Mr. and Mrs. Perillo.

The note was a simple form of installment note which did not refer to the specific mortgage or by its terms obligate the makers to perform its covenants and conditions. It contained an acceleration clause, or at the option of the holder, the right to capitalize delinquent interest as principal, and a waiver of presentment for payment, or protest, and an agreement for extension of time of payment and for payment of attorney’s fees.

In May 1963, the Perillos sold all of their stock in Diamond to J. Greenwell for cash and a note. At that time the mortgage loan by plaintiff was current, the balance being $246,930.69. Subsequently, Diamond and Greenwell entered into an assumption agreement under which Greenwell assumed and agreed to pay the indebtedness represented by the *256 note and mortgage. United was not a party to this agreement although it was notified of it.

Later, the stock in Diamond changed hands twice, but payments were not kept current and plaintiff capitalized interest, paid delinquent taxes and insurance premiums, and added the payments to the principal balance due on the promissory note. In February 1966, Diamond filed a voluntary petition for reorganization and United agreed to lend to Tucson, the then owner of the property, an additional sum of money. Those parties entered into an extension agreement on the note on August 4, 1966, and fixed the current amount due at $334,475.52.

Defaults continued, and United brought an action in 1968, to foreclose its mortgage, joining some seventeen defendants, including the Perillos who were personally served. Thereafter, the plaintiff and Perillos entered into a stipulation wherein the issue of the Perillos’ liability on the promissory note would be severed from other issues in the plaintiff's complaint and heard after the execution sale following foreclosure. The judgment in the foreclosure action contained no provision for a deficiency judgment. It granted a recovery to United against Diamond and Tucson, and each of them, in the amount of $450,704.08 plus $25,000 in attorneys’ fees and $516.-50 in costs. 1

At the execution sale on October 30, 1968, the plaintiff bought the property for the sum of $392,300. This amount was applied to the amount of the judgment and the difference, plus additional costs and expenses, is the subject of the present action against the Perillos.

The district court made findings of fact and conclusions of law, concluding that the Perillos, as co-makers of the promissory note, were liable to plaintiff in the sum of $94,577.83, which was the balance unpaid as of November 1, 1968, after crediting the proceeds of the execution sale for the sum of $392,300 against the then balance due on the note. Further adjustments of costs and expenses resulted in a final judgment in favor of United and against the Perillos in the amount of $103,698.81, plus $5,000 attorneys’ fees.

The appellants’ arguments here are basically:

1. The foreclosure judgment, which was based upon the note, extinguished that debt and no further action could be maintained on the note.

2. There was an election of remedies under Arizona statutory law when plaintiff chose to foreclose the mortgage, which precludes additional recovery on the note.

3. The extension agreement between plaintiff and Tucson constituted a material alteration of the note which discharged appellants who were then in the position of sureties.

4. The liability of the Perillos under the note did not extend to the charges contained in the mortgage.

The first contention of appellants is that the court “had no power” to proceed under the stipulation to determine the Perillos’ liability. They argue that once the decree of foreclosure was entered the only authority remaining in the court was to determine the existence of a deficiency judgment. Neither the cases cited nor the statutes referred to support appellants’ argument.

The foreclosure proceeding is one to apply a security to a debt. If it is insufficient, the creditor may pursue any other legal means available to make himself whole. Here, the plaintiff’s complaint asserted a claim against the Peril- *257 los on the promissory note as well as a claim against several parties for foreclosure of the mortgage. The stipulation simply established the time at which this claim of the Perillos’ liability on the note would be tried.

The second contention made by appellants is that the decision of United to foreclose the mortgage constituted an election under Ariz.Rev.Stat. § 33-722, which precluded additional recovery on the note. 2

The policy underlying the statute, and similar statutes elsewhere, appears to be that several actions should not be filed to determine the rights of the creditor where a determination may be made in one. Arizona Title Ins. & Trust Co. v. Kelly, 11 Ariz.App. 254, 463 P.2d 838, 839 (1970).

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Bluebook (online)
462 F.2d 254, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-american-life-insurance-company-a-colorado-corporation-v-f-j-ca9-1972.