Rajala v. US Bank (In re Christenson)
Rajala v. US Bank (In re Christenson)
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT’S CROSS MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Plaintiff Eric C. Rajala, Chapter 7 Trustee, and defendant U.S. Bank both seek summary judgment in this proceeding to determine whether the debtor’s return of the cash advance on February 2, 2010, is avoidable under 11 U.S.C. § 547(b). Plaintiffs motion is denied. Defendant’s motion is granted. This adversary proceeding is core and the Court has jurisdiction.
Findings of Fact
The material facts are not disputed. On January 15, 2010, Carmella O’Dwyer-Christenson (Christenson or debtor) took a cash advance of $8,000 on her U.S. Bank Visa card. The cash advance was in the form of a check written to herself. Chris-tenson took the cash advance “out of desperation” because she could not pay all of her expenses. Christenson admitted that she “felt like it was stealing” to take the funds. She attempted to correct this lapse of judgment by returning the money to U.S. Bank 18 days later. There is no indication Christenson used the money to pay any other creditors or for any other purpose while it was in her possession. On February 22, 2010, debtor filed her Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. On May 18, 2011, trustee Eric C. Raj ala initiated this adversary proceeding to avoid the transfer to U.S. Bank under 11 U.S.C. § 547(b).
A. Summary Judgment Standard
Summary Judgment is appropriate if the moving party demonstrates there is no genuine issue as to any material fact, and he is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
B. Preferential Transfer
Prepetition payments are avoidable as preferential transfers under 11 U.S.C. § 547(b) if: (1) they are of an interest of the debtor in property; (2) they are to or for the benefit of a creditor; (3) they are made for or on account of an antecedent debt owed by the debtor before such transfer was made; (4) they are made while the debtor was insolvent; (5) they are made on or within 90 days before the date of the filing of the petition; and (6) they allow such creditor to receive more than such creditor would otherwise receive in a chapter 7 liquidation proceeding.
The only issue in this case is whether the transfer was of an interest of the debtor in property. The Bankruptcy Code does not define “an interest of the debtor in property.”
In Marshall, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals held that when a debtor transfers money from one credit card to another, and elements (2) through (6) of § 547(b) are met, then the first element is also satisfied and the transfer is avoidable.
C. Constructive Trust
The case sub judice is distinguishable from In re Marshall because the debtor returned the funds to U.S. Bank and did not use them to pay other creditors. If debtor had used the cash advance to pay other debt, the transfer would be avoidable under § 547(b) and Marshall. Here, the debtor borrowed the funds without any intent to pay them back, but instead of using the money for her own benefit, she quickly realized the wrongful nature of her actions and returned the money. In these unique and limited circumstances, the Court determines that the debtor never acquired an equitable interest in the funds.
In Leitner
A person who holds property in trust for another does not have an equitable interest in the property.
A constructive trust can be imposed in cases where “a person by fraud, actual or constructive, or by any form of unconscionable conduct, or questionable
A constructive trust requires specific property “on which the constructive trust can be fastened, and such property is held by the person to be charged as constructive trustee.”
The only issue remaining is whether, under these unique circumstances, a constructive trust existed such that U.S. Bank retained its equitable interest in the funds. The Court finds that a constructive trust arose at the time of the cash advance and, consequently, the equitable interest in the funds never transferred to debtor.
The debtor misrepresented her intentions to U.S. Bank. When debtor wrote the U.S. Bank check to herself, she did not intend to repay the debt. Her initial intentions were to use the money for her own gain by paying other creditors and then declaring bankruptcy. Under these facts, the elements of unjust enrichment are satisfied. First, debtor obtained the benefit of the funds. Second, she retained the benefit for nearly three weeks. Third, under these circumstances, and according to her own conscience, the retention of the benefit was unjust. The retention of the benefit was unjust because she did not intend to return the funds and presumably thought that the debt would be discharged in bankruptcy. Because the elements of unjust enrichment are satisfied, the Court finds that equity imposed a constructive trust on the funds originating from the time debtor wrote the check to herself and continuing until the money was repaid. Other facts establish a constructive trust. The debtor engaged in wrongful conduct by procuring the cash advance from U.S. Bank to whom she did not intend to repay the debt. It can be argued with some vigor that debtor engaged in fraud when she first procured the cash advance, and there is a statutory presumption of fraud in the Bankruptcy Code. A finding of a constructive trust is also supported by the manner in which debtor incurred the debt
B. Policy
This outcome not only conforms with the Bankruptcy Code and the law in Kansas, it also best serves the underpinnings of the Bankruptcy Code. A central purpose of the Code is “to provide a procedure by which certain insolvent debtors can reorder their affairs, make peace with their creditors, and enjoy ‘a new opportunity in life with a clear field for future effort, unhampered by the pressure and discouragement of preexisting debt.’ ”
With this policy in mind, a review of §§ 547(b) and 523(a)(2)(C)(i)(II) demonstrates that the Code does not support a finding for the trustee. The purposes of § 547(b) are “to discourage actions by creditors that might prematurely compel the filing of a petition and to secure an equal distribution of assets among creditors of like class.”
Section 523(a)(2)(C)(i)(II) of the Code is intended to prevent dishonest consumer debtors from receiving the benefit of a discharge in bankruptcy for a particular category of debt.
A finding for the trustee in this case does not serve the goals of § 523. Exceptions to discharge reflect public policy. If the trustee prevails, it would bring the debt and the funds into the estate, essentially causing the “loading up” that the Bankruptcy Code discourages. By bringing the cash advance into the estate, the trustee would increase the total debt and only provide a small increase in payments to the other creditors. Furthermore, this slight benefit to the creditors would come at a cost. A finding for the trustee could punish the debtor by making the $8,000, from which she never benefitted, nondischargeable. This result prevents Christenson, the “honest but unfortunate debtor” who corrected her pre-petition misjudgment, from obtaining a “fresh start” upon completion of her bankruptcy. Despite the initial cash advance, this debtor subsequently acted ethically and morally by repaying the funds.
E. Conclusion
For the reasons stated above, the Court finds for the defendant and holds that the return of the cash advance is not avoidable under § 547(b) because the debtor never obtained an equitable interest in the funds. Debtor did not transfer property of the estate to U.S. Bank. The recognition by this Court that the U.S. Bank monies were held in constructive trust is limited to the narrow facts of the case sub judice and will seldom apply to other avoidance or recovery actions. The policy considerations only augment and do not stand alone as a basis for this Court’s holding.
It is therefore ordered that defendant’s Cross Motion for Summary Judgment is granted and that plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment is denied and judgment will issue in defendant’s favor on plaintiffs Complaint.
It is further ordered that the foregoing constitutes findings of fact and conclusions of law under Rule 7052 of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and Rule 52(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. A separate judgment based on this ruling will be entered on a separate document as required by Fed. R. Bankr.P. 9021 and Fed.R.Civ.P. 58.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
. 28 U.S.C. § 157; 28 U.S.C. § 1334.
. Fed. R. Bankr.P. 7056.
. Atlantic Richfield Co. v. Farm Credit Bank of Wichita, 226 F.3d 1138, 1148 (10th Cir. 2000).
. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).
. Brown v. Kitchenmaster, et al. (In re Hertzler Halstead Hosp.), 334 B.R. 276, 286 (Bankr.D.Kan. 2005).
. 11 U.S.C. § 547(g).
. 11 U.S.C. § 550(a).
. Begier v. I.R.S., 496 U.S. 53, 58, 110 S.Ct. 2258, 110 L.Ed.2d 46 (1990).
. Id.; Mitsui Mfrs. Bank v. Unicom Computer Corp., 13 F.3d 321, 324 (9th Cir. 1994); Parks v. FIA Card Services, N.A. (In re Marshall), 550 F.3d 1251, 1255 (10th Cir. 2008).
. 11 U.S.C. § 541(a)(1).
. Bailey v. Big Sky Motors, Ltd. (In re Ogden), 314 F.3d 1190, 1197 (10th Cir. 2002).
. Begier, 496 U.S. at 59, 110 S.Ct. 2258; see also Restatement (First) of Restitution § 160 cmt. e (1937) (where a person holds property upon a constructive trust for another, the latter has the beneficial interest therein).
. Young v. United States (In re Young), 535 U.S. 43, 50, 122 S.Ct. 1036, 152 L.Ed.2d 79 (2002) (Scalia, J., stating that bankruptcy courts “are courts of equity and 'applfy] the principles and rules of equity jurisprudence.’ ") (quoting Pepper v. Litton, 308 U.S. 295, 304, 60 S.Ct. 238, 84 L.Ed. 281 (1939)).
. 550 F.3d 1251, 1255.
. Id. at 1256.
. Id. at 1253.
. Id. at 1256 (citing Meoli v. MBNA America Bank, N.A. (In re Wells), 382 B.R. 355, 360 (6th Cir. BAP 2008); Yoppolo v. Greenwood Trust Co. (In re Spitler), 213 B.R. 995, 999 (Bankr.N.D.Ohio 1997)).
. At most, debtor held bare legal title to the funds as the constructive trust trustee; regardless, the funds were not an asset of the debtor’s estate, even for a nanosecond. Marshall, 550 F.3d at 1258 n. 6.
. Clark v. Wetherill (In re Leitner), 236 B.R. 420, 425 (Bankr.D.Kan. 1999).
. Id.
. Id. at 426 (footnote collecting cases omitted).
. Begier, 496 U.S. at 59, 110 S.Ct. 2258.
. See George Bogert, Bogert’s Trust and Trustees § 1, at 11 (2d ed. 1984).
. See Canal Corp. v. Finnman, et at (In re Johnson), 960 F.2d 396 (4th Cir. 1992).
. See 1 Henry J. Sommer, et al„ Consumer Bankruptcy Law and Practice § 18.5.2.2. at n. 159 (9th ed. 2009 & Supp. 2010). “State courts’ prepetition imposition of constructive trusts is not a transfer that can be avoided as a preference,” citing In re Pitchford, 410 B.R. 416 (Bankr.W.D.Pa. 2009).
. 5 Collier on Bankruptcy ¶ 547.03[2] (Alan N. Resnick & Henry J. Sommer eds., 16th ed. 2012).
. Nelson v. Nelson, 288 Kan. 570, 580, 205 P.3d 715 (2009) (emphasis omitted), (quoting Restatement (First) of Restitution § 160).
. See id.
. Id. at 585, 205 P.3d 715 (emphasis added by Luckert, J.) (quoting In re Estate of Zimmerman, 207 Kan. 354, 357, 485 P.2d 215 (1971)).
. Id. (quoting Horsley v. Hrenchir, 146 Kan. 767, 769, 73 P.2d 1010 (1937)).
. Id.
. Leitner, 236 B.R. at 425.
. Restatement (First) of Restitution § 160 cmt. i (1937).
. Nelson, 288 Kan. at 580, 205 P.3d 715 (citation omitted).
. Grogan v. Garner, 498 U.S. 279, 286, 111 S.Ct. 654, 112 L.Ed.2d 755 (1991) (quoting Local Loan Co. v. Hunt, 292 U.S. 234, 244, 54 S.Ct. 695, 78 L.Ed. 1230 (1934)).
. Id.
. Gillman v. Scientific Research Prods. Inc. of Del. (In re Mama D'Angelo, Inc.), 55 F.3d 552, 554 (10th Cir. 1995).
. In re Leitner, 236 B.R. at 423.
. Id. at 424.
. Pearlman v. Reliance Ins. Co., 371 U.S. 132, 135-36, 83 S.Ct. 232, 9 L.Ed.2d 190 (1962), quoted in Leitner at 425 n. 13.
. See, generally, Cohen v. de la Cruz, 523 U.S. 213, 217-18, 118 S.Ct. 1212, 140 L.Ed.2d 341 (1998).
. Bank One Columbus, N.A. v. Schad (In re Kountry Komer Store), 221 B.R. 265, 271 (Bankr.N.D.Okla. 1998) (citing S.Rep. No. 98-65, at 9 (1983)).
. S.Rep No. 98-65, at 9 (1983).
. 236 B.R. 420 (Bankr.D.Kan.1999, Flanna-gan, J.).
. Id. at 424.
. Id.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- In re Terry Lee CHRISTENSON and Carmella Martha O'Dwyer-Christenson, Debtors. Eric C. Rajala, Chapter 7 Trustee v. US Bank
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published