United States Nat. Bank of La Grande v. Pole

2 F. Supp. 153, 1932 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1602
CourtDistrict Court, D. Oregon
DecidedOctober 27, 1932
Docket9302
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 2 F. Supp. 153 (United States Nat. Bank of La Grande v. Pole) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States Nat. Bank of La Grande v. Pole, 2 F. Supp. 153, 1932 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1602 (D. Or. 1932).

Opinion

FEE, District Judge.

This is a suit in equity brought by the United States National Bank of La Grande to restrain the Comptroller of the Currency of the United States from placing Hugh A. Bodmer as receiver in charge of the assets of the plaintiff. To the bill of complaint, the defendant filed a motion to dismiss.

The complaint is as follows, omitting the formal portions:

“On the afternoon of Saturday, the 5th of March, 1932, United States National Bank Examiners C. C. Linden and M. C. Wilde, waited upon the Board of Directors of the plaintiff, which was then in session; and said bank examiners then notified said directors *154 that they would not permit plaintiff to open for business on the following Monday morning, March 7, 1932, and requested said directors to take steps either for the consolidation of plaintiff bank with La Grande National Bank of La Grande, Oregon, or to join in the organization of a new national bank in said city of La Grande. Thereupon said Board of Directors passed a resolution suspending business, and directing the president and secretary to turn plaintiff bank over to said national bank examiners; and thereafter, and on the same day, said directors attended a joint meeting with the directors of La Grande National Bank and many citizens of La Grande, and said bank examiners, to consider the banking situation in La Grande, Oregon. At said joint meeting it was understood and agreed that, if plaintiff would procure sufficient waivers of deposits, a new national banking association would be organized to be located at La Grande, Oregon; that such new bank would assume all of the debts and deposit liabilities of the plaintiff, and that the plaintiff, in turn, would convey-all of its assets to said new bank.

“After said joint meeting the directors of plaintiff proceeded to secure waivers from its depositors. Said waivers were signed out of the commercial accounts, savings accounts and certificates of deposit to the amount of $224,313.83. The execution and delivery of said waivers were completed on the 6th day of March, 19’32, and were in an amount sufficient to satisfy said bank examiners. Thereafter additional waivers were signed and delivered which brought the total amount of waived deposits to $229,471.79. A copy of said waivers is attached hereto, marked ‘A,’ and made a part of this bill of complaint to the same extent as if it were extended at' length herein.

“Said proposed new bank was promptly organized and is known as the First National Bank of La Grande, and on said 6th day of March, 1932, a. contract between plaintiff and said new bank was drawn, the terms of which were agreed upon between the parties, and said contract was executed and delivered under date of the 7th day of March, 1932. A copy of said contract is attached hereto, marked ‘B’ and made a part of this bill of complaint to the same extent as if extended at length herein.

“In accordance with the terms of said contract the plaintiff, on said 7th day of March, 1932, and before said new bank opened for business, transfered and conveyed to said new bank all of its assets, and said new bank assumed and agreed to pay all of the debts and deposit liabilities of the plaintiff. Said new bank at once proceeded to pay the debts and to pay the deposit liabilities of the plaintiff in accordance with the terms and provisions of said contract, and thereafter at all times has been and is now continuing to pay such debts and deposit liabilities in due course of business.

“In taking over the assets of plaintiff said new bank divided them into two classes. The class of more liquid assets was selected by it and placed among its other assets and are being liquidated or held, and administered in the regular course of its banking business; the other class, which was regarded by said new bank as less liquid or slower assets, has been placed in a trust fund, which, with certain reserved right of substitution, will in due eourse be liquidated and applied by said trustee, and its co-trustee, to the payment of the waived deposits.

“The plaintiff, by appropriate corporate action, duly appointed T. J. Seroggin its liquidating agent and trustee, to dissolve and liquidate the plaintiff bank and to aet with said new bank as co-trustee in administering the aforesaid trust. Said trustees took possession, and are now in possession and control of all of the assets and interests of said trust and are now administering and executing said trust in accordance with the terms and provisions of said contract between the plaintiff and said new bank.

“After the aforesaid contract between the plaintiff and said new bank was executed and delivered, said bank examiners prepared a promissory note in the sum of $50,000' payable to said new bank, and demanded that said note be signed by the plaintiff. The plaintiff’s directors protested against the signing of said promissory note, but said promissory note was later executed by the officers of the plaintiff, upon the insistence .of said bank examiners. Said promissory note was not executed or delivered in the ordinary course of business of the plaintiff, not authorized as and incident of liquidation of the plaintiff. Said promissory note was executed by the officers of plaintiff, but was not authorized or approved by the stockholders of the plaintiff.

“By virtue of the contract, waivers and transactions aforesaid, all of the debts, liabilities and obligations of the plaintiff have been settled and paid. The depositors of the plaintiff who did not sign waivers are being paid the full amount of their deposits; the depositors who signed waivers are being paid the full amount of their deposits after de *155 ducting the amounts waived, and said waiver depositors voluntarily signed said waivers upon terms entirely satisfactory to tliom as to final settlement and adjustment of the part of their deposite so waived; that all other debts of the plaintiff have been either paid or assumed by the new bank, and the plaintiff now owes no debts, and is not insolvent.

“TI10 defendant J. W. Pole, as Comptroller of the Currency of the United States, has made an order pinpointing to appoint defendant Hugh A. Bodmer receiver of the plaintiff. It is the purpose and intention of the defendant, unless enjoined by this court, to take possession of the assets which were formerly owned by the plaintiff from the possession of said trustees and to liquidate said assets in violation of the terms of said contract, and to otherwise interfere with and prevent the said trustee from administering said trust according to the terms of said contract. That such purported seizure of assets and the liquidation thereof by a receiver will-cause great expense and irreparable loss and damage to the plaintiff, to its former depositors and to its stockholders; that no reason exists for the appointment of a receiver for iho plaintiff, and that the defendant, J. W. Pole. Comptroller of the Currency of the United States, lias, no jurisdiction, power or authority to appoint a receiver for the plaintiff.

“Said defendant, J. W. Pole, assumes to have jurisdiction, power and authority to appoint a receiver for the plaintiff in virtue of the laws of the United States relating to national hanks, and in said attempted appointment he is acting under color of authority of the laws of the United States.

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Bluebook (online)
2 F. Supp. 153, 1932 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1602, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-nat-bank-of-la-grande-v-pole-ord-1932.