In re Dickey
In re Dickey
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM OF DECISION
I. INTRODUCTION
The matters before the Court are the “Amended Motion to Avoid Judicial Liens of New England Phoenix Co., Inc.” (the “Motion to Avoid NEPCO Lien”) filed by Laurie A. Dickey (the “Debtor”), the “Objection of New England Phoenix Co., Inc. to Debtor’s Motion to Avoid Judicial Liens of New England Phoenix Co., Inc.” (the “NEPCO Objection”) filed by New England Phoenix Co., Inc. (“NEPCO”), the “Motion to Avoid Judicial Liens of Ridge-wood Partners, LLC” (the “Motion to Avoid Ridgewood Lien,” collectively with the Motion to Avoid NEPCO Liens, the “Lien Avoidance Motions”) filed by the Debtor, and the “Objection of Ridgewood Partners, LLC, to Motion to Avoid Judicial Liens of Ridgewood Partners, LLC” (the “Ridgewood Objection”) filed by Ridge-wood Partners, LLC (“Ridgewood,” collectively with NEPCO, the “Lienholders”). Through the Lien Avoidance Motions, the Debtor seeks to avoid judicial liens held by the Lienholders as impairing her exemption claimed pursuant to the Massachusetts Homestead Statute.
II. BACKGROUND
The facts are not in dispute. The liens in question encumber real estate located at 110 Sea Shells Drive in Chatham, Massachusetts (the “Property”) at which the Debtor resides. The Debtor individually took title to the Property by a deed recorded on March 22, 2005 in the Barnsta-ble Land Court Registry (the “Land Court”).
Between 2005 and 2006, the Debtor operated several construction businesses, including Ridgewood Custom Homes, Inc. (“RC Homes”) and Blackwood Development Corporation (“Blackwood,” collectively with RC Homes, the “Debtor Entities”), for which she was a principal, director, and shareholder. Ridgewood contracted the Debtor Entities to serve as general contractors on a residential construction project in Hingham, Massachusetts (the “Project”). The Debtor executed and delivered a contract and a personal guaranty that guaranteed the Debtor Entities completion
On August 30, 2006, the Debtor executed a Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration of Trust”) of Lanac Shores Realty Trust (“the Lanac Trust”) and named Ruth Goodhall (“Goodhall”) as trustee.
On September 13, 2006, Ridgewood filed a complaint against the Debtor, the Debtor Entities, and Goodhall in the Superior Court Department of the Trial Court for Plymouth County (the “Plymouth Superior Court”). In its complaint, Ridgewood alleged, inter alia, that the Property had been fraudulently conveyed by the Debtor to Goodhall. The following day, the Plymouth Superior Court issued a writ of attachment in favor of Ridgewood, attaching “the right, title, and interest that ... Goodhall” had in the Property in the amount of $300,000.00, which Ridgewood recorded in the Land Court (the “Ridge-wood Lien”) on September 14, 2006.
On September 20, 2006, Sovereign Bank filed a complaint in the Superior Court Department of the Trial Court for Suffolk County (the “Suffolk Superior Court”) against the Debtor, RC Homes, and William R. Dickey, alleging a default on a commercial loan (the “Commercial Loan Action”). NEPCO subsequently bought the loan and was substituted as the plaintiff. On November 2, 2007, NEPCO filed its own fraudulent transfer action in the Suffolk Superior Court against the Debtor and Goodhall (the “Fraudulent Transfer Action”). On November 9, 2007, NEPCO obtained a writ of attachment against “the right, title, and interest that ... Goodhall” had in the Property in the amount of $500,000.00, which it recorded in the Land Court on November 13, 2007.
On August 19, 2008, the Suffolk Superi- or Court entered judgment against the defendants in the Commercial Loan Action.
On June 19, 2007, while the Lienholders’ various state court actions were pending, National Lumber Company (“National Lumber”) recovered a judgment against the Debtor in the Superior Court Department of the Trial Court for Bristol County (the “Bristol Superior Court”).
On April 29, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service recorded a Notice of Federal Tax Lien against the Debtor in the amount of $27,452.60 in the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds.
On March 30, 2011, the Debtor, as the Lanac Trust’s sole beneficial interest holder removed Goodhall as trustee and appointed Steven J. Cirpriano (“Cipriano”) as successor trustee.
By late October 2011, a jury in the Ridgewood action found, inter alia, that the Debtor’s conveyance of the Property to Goodhall as trustee was a fraudulent transfer following a seven day jury trial in the Plymouth Superior Court.
It is DECLARED, ORDERED and ADJUDGED:
I. It is DECLARED that the Deed conveying the property known as*11 and numbered 110 Sea Shell Lane, Chatham, Barnstable County, Massachusetts, from Laurie Dickey to the Lanac Shores Realty Trust, recorded at the Barnstable Land Court Registry as Document No. 1,043,231 with Certificate No. 181012 on September 1, 2006, is hereby null and void.
II. It is further DECLARED and ORDERED that the Deed dated March 22, 2005 recorded at the Barnstable Land Court Registry as Document No. 996,904 with Certificated No. 176191 to Laurie Dickey is hereby revived.
III. It is further ORDERED that the attachment issued by the Court dated September 13, 2006, and the injunction issued on August 28, 2007 shall continue in full force and effect unless otherwise ordered by the Court. Specifically, the Court ENJOINS and PROHIBITS Laurie Dickey, as sole named beneficiary of the Lanac Shores Realty Trust and Ruth Goodhall as trustee or any other successor trustee, from taking any steps to transfer, convey, sell, mortgage, or in any way alienate the property, nor take any steps to hinder, avoid or interfere with the plaintiffs right to execute its judgment by levying on said property.
V. That the plaintiff, Ridgewood Partners, LLC, recover of the defendant Laurie Dickey, the sum of $398,607.00 with interest thereon from 09/13/2006 to 11/02/2011 in the sum of $245,849.84 as provided by law, c. 93A damages in the sum of $42,890.00, attorney’s fees in the sum of $28,708.29 and its costs of action....30
On February 3, 2012, the Debtor filed a petition in the Land Court seeking to have the Ridgewood Judgment enforced insofar as it declared the deed to Goodhall “null and void” and ordered the revival of the prior deed and title certificate.
On July 11, 2012, F.D. Sterritt Lumber Company (“Sterritt Lumber”) recorded in the Land Court an execution in the
On January 23, 2013, the Debtor filed a voluntary Chapter 7 petition. On “Schedule A — Real Property” (“Schedule A”), the Debtor listed a fee simple ownership interest in the Property. The Debtor further listed the value of the Property at $980,000.00. On “Schedule C — Property Claimed as Exempt” (“Schedule C”), the Debtor claimed an exemption in the Property in the amount of $500,000.00 pursuant to Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 1 (the “Exemption”).
As of the petition date, the Property was subject to the following encumbrances:
_Holder_Lien Type_Date_Amount
HSBC Mortgage Corp._First Mortgage_3/22/2005_$485,413.00
HSBC Mortgage Corn. Second Mortgage 3/22/2005_$99,227.00
Ridgewood_Attachment_9/14/2006_$716,053.13
NEPCO_Execution_11/13/2007 $797,570.34
National Lumber_Execution_9/26/2008_$350,728.87
Federal Tax Lien_Tax Lien_4/29/2009_$15,208.84
MA State Tax Lien_Tax Lien_7/27/2009_$2,000.00
Nickerson Lumber_Execution_9/7/2011_$10,000.00
Sterritt Lumber_Execution_7/11/2012_$18,224.21
Total: $2,494,427.39
The values reflected in the table above are those used by the Debtor in the Lien Avoidance Motions and, with one exception, are consistent with the proofs of claim filed in this case.
On April 25, 2013, NEPCO filed the “Objection of New England Phoenix Co., Inc. to Debtor’s Claim of Homestead Exemption” (the “NEPCO Homestead Objection”), asserting, inter alia, that the NEP-CO Lien is excepted from the Exemption pursuant to Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6) as being based on fraud and that the Exemption must be otherwise limited to $155,675 pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l). Four days later, on April 29, 2013, Ridgewood filed the “Objection of Ridgewood Partners, LLC to Debtor’s Claim of Homestead Exemption” (the “Ridgewood Homestead Objection”), echoing NEPCO’s arguments and further arguing that the 2012 Homestead was registered in violation of the Plymouth Superior Court’s injunction provided in the Ridge-wood Judgment. On June 14, 2013, the Debtor filed responses to both the NEP-CO Homestead Objection and the Ridge-wood Homestead Objection, contending that the effect of the Ridgewood Judgment is to establish that she has held title to the Property since 2005 without interruption. After a hearing on June 21, 2013, I continued generally both the NEPCO Homestead Objection and the Ridgewood Homestead Objection in favor of addressing these issues in the context of lien avoidance under 11 U.S.C. § 522(f).
Just prior to the hearing on the Motion to Avoid NEPCO Lien, the Debtor filed the Motion to Avoid Ridgewood Lien on April 8, 2014. Ridgewood filed the Ridge-wood Objection on May 2, 2014. On June 3, 2014, the Debtor filed a brief in support of the Motion to Avoid Ridgewood Lien, to which Ridgewood filed a reply on June 5, 2014. I heard the matter on June 6, 2014, and, recognizing the overlapping issues with the Motion to Avoid NEPCO Lien, took the Motion to Avoid Ridgewood Lien under advisement.
III. POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
The Debtor seeks to avoid the both the NEPCO Lien and the Ridgewood Lien pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 522(f) as impairing her Exemption. Given that the Lien-holders’ objections primarily challenge the Debtor’s entitlement to the Exemption, I will address their arguments before turning to her responses.
A. NEPCO
From the outset, NEPCO argues that despite the words “null and void” in the Ridgewood Judgment, the Ridgewood Judgment and Revived Certificate cannot be construed to eviscerate its rights, particularly since NEPCO was not a party to that action. Acknowledging the difficulty with the words “void” and “voidable,” NEPCO posits that the transfer to Good-hall was “avoided,” meaning re-transferred back to the Debtor, rather than having been declared a legal nullity ab initio. In support, NEPCO notes that the Massachusetts Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (the “UFTA”) uses the word “voidable” rather than void.
With that framework, NEPCO initially argues that pursuant to Farrey v. Sander-foot,
To the extent that the Exemption is not otherwise invalid, NEPCO contends that it must be limited to $155,675 pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l) because the Debtor acquired a title interest to the Property within 1,215 days of the petition date. In support, NEPCO relies on In re Aroesty
Finally, NEPCO argues that that the Debtor is seeking to avoid liens in the wrong order, and that the judicial liens junior to it must be avoided first. Moreover, while NEPCO asserts that its own appraisal of the Property reflects a fair market value of $1,650,000.00.
B. Ridgewood
Like NEPCO, Ridgewood begins its analysis by focusing on the effect of the Ridgewood Judgment and the Debtor’s subsequent actions to secure the Revived Certificate. Unlike NEPCO, however, Ridgewood takes the position that the Debtor’s Land Court petition was filed in direct violation of the Ridgewood Judgment’s injunction barring her from taking any act “to transfer ... or interfere” with Ridgewood levying on the Property.
Based on the view that the Lanac Trust owns the Property rather than the Debtor, Ridgewood asserts that the Exemption is invalid because Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 5 requires a trustee to execute the declaration in favor of the beneficiaries of the trust that holds real property. Here, the Debtor, not Cirpriano, executed the 2012 Homestead. Alternatively, Ridgewood similarly argues that Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6) excepts the Ridgewood Lien from the Exemption because it is a judgment based upon fraud.
Ridgewood further contends that the Ridgewood Lien in not avoidable under 11 U.S.C. § 522(f) because it predates the Debtor’s ownership of the Property. It reasons that either the Revived Certificate, having been registered in violation of the Plymouth Superior Court’s injunction, did not transfer title to the Debtor and it remains in the Lanac Trust or the Revived
Next, Ridgewood contends that the Debtor’s lien avoidance analysis is flawed in several respects. First, like NEPCO, Ridgewood objects to the Debtor seeking to avoid the Ridgewood Lien without first having avoided all junior judicial liens. Second, Ridgewood states that the Debtor has overstated its secured claim by $416,053.13, rendering her calculation mathematically incorrect. Third, Ridge-wood disputes the value of the Property assigned by the Debtor and requests an evidentiary hearing.
To the extent that the Debtor argues that the Ridgewood Lien expired by operation of law because Ridgewood did not file any lien continuations, Ridgewood asserts that the Debtor’s Land Court Petition, which registered the Ridgewood Judgment in the Land Court within six years of the attachment, substantially complied with the provisions of Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A and successfully carried the Ridge-wood Lien forward.
C. The Debtor
The Debtor’s argument is also framed by her interpretation of the Ridgewood Judgment. In stark contrast to either NEPCO or Ridgewood, she asserts that the Plymouth Superior Court adjudicated that she has held an interest in the Property since March 22, 2005 and all times thereafter by declaring the deed to Good-hall null and void. In other words, the Debtor never transferred the Property. She further notes that the Land Court records confirm her uninterrupted title interest.
Because the Debtor maintains she has always held title to the Property, she disputes the Lienholders’ assertions that their liens did not attach to her interest. For the same reason she argues that she did not acquire an interest in Property within the 1,215 days prior to filing her bankruptcy petition, rendering 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l) inapplicable Moreover, the Debtor asserts that the 2012 Homestead is valid because she was record owner at the time of registration.
If, however, I conclude that the Debtor has not been the uninterrupted title holder of the Property since 2005, she argues that she clearly possessed an interest in the Property at the time of the NEPCO Lien and Ridgewood Lien by virtue of her 100% beneficial interest in the title holding La-nac Trust. In further support, she explains that Massachusetts law views the holders of beneficial interests of a nominee trust like the Lanac Trust as the true owners. As such, the Debtor contends that the Lienholders’ reliance on Farrey v. Sanderfoot is misplaced. She further distinguishes the present case from In re Vizard,
The Debtor also urges me to reject Ridgewood’s contention that the Plymouth Superior Court’s injunction barred her
Next, the Debtor asserts that, even if she received a new interest as a result of the Ridgewood Judgment, she did not “acquire” an interest in Property for purposes of 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l). Relying on In re Welch,
The Debtor stresses that even if the Lienholders’ debts are nondischargeable as being based upon fraud, that has no impact on whether the liens are avoidable under 11 U.S.C. § 522(f).
Contrary to the positions of both Lien-holders, the Debtor maintains that she does not have to avoid the judicial liens on the Property in the order of their priority. In support, she again cites In re Vizard for the proposition that “the relative priorities of the judicial and mortgage liens have no bearing on the Court’s determination of whether the Debtor may avoid the judicial lien.”
Despite filing the Motion to Avoid Ridgewood Lien pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 522(f), the Debtor has subsequently taken the position that the Ridgewood Lien expired by operation of Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A because neither Ridge-wood or its counsel filed a written request to bring the lien forward within six years of the attachment.
IV. DISCUSSION
A. Law Applicable to Lien Avoidance under Section 522(f)
Section 522(f) of the Bankruptcy Code provides that a debtor may avoid the fixing of a judicial lien “on an interest of the debtor in property to the extent that such lien impairs an exemption to which the debtor would have been entitled. ...”
For the purposes of this subsection, a lien shall be considered to impair an exemption to the extent that the sum of—
(i) the lien;
(ii) all other liens on the property; and
(iii) the amount of the exemption that the debtor could claim if there were no liens on the property;
exceeds the value that the debtor’s interest in the property would have in the absence of any liens.56
Pursuant to Fed. R. Bankr.P. 4003(d), “a creditor may object to a motion filed under § 522(f) by challenging the validity of the exemption asserted to be impaired by the lien.”
Under 11 U.S.C. § 522(b), “an individual debtor may exempt from property of the estate the property listed in ... paragraph (3) of this subsection,” which allows a debtor to claim the exemptions provided for under applicable state law.
Here, the Exemption is claimed pursuant to the Massachusetts Homestead Statute. As a result of a comprehensive revision in 2010, “parsing the Massachusetts Homestead Statute now involves a complicated web of defined terms and cross-references.”
B. Effect of the Ridgewood Judgment
The most logical place to start my analysis is to consider the effect of the Ridgewood Judgment on status of the Property’s title. Each of the three parties to this dispute interprets the effect differently. Ridgewood argues that the Ridge-wood Judgment barred the Debtor and the Lanac Trust from further transferring title to the Property such that it remains in trust notwithstanding the Land Court petition. The Debtor asserts that the Plymouth Superior Court declared the deed to Goodhall null and void, thus adjudicating her the only owner of the Property since March 22, 2005. NEPCO generally agrees that a transfer has taken place as a result of the Ridgewood Judgment, but contends that the deed to Goodhall was avoided, that is, re-transferred to the Debtor, rather than having been declared a legal nullity ab initio.
Having reviewed the Ridgewood Judgment, the Ruling and Order, and Massachusetts law regarding fraudulent transfers, I find that NEPCO has the best of the three arguments. Admittedly, the Ridgewood Judgment expressly declared the deed to Goodhall “null and void” and the prior title certificate “revived,” but the language used by the Massachusetts UFTA, the statute under which Ridge-wood obtained judgment, indicates that a creditor may obtain “avoidance” of a fraudulent transfer and that such transfers are “voidable.”
Accordingly, I reject the Debtor’s argument that she has been the uninterrupted title holder of the Property since March 22, 2005. I further note that Ridgewood’s contention that the Ridgewood Judgment barred such a re-transfer appears antithetical to the relief it sought and obtained in the Plymouth Superior Court.
C. Effect of the Land Court Petition 1. Validity of the Revived Certificate
Ridgewood argues that the Debt- or’s filing of the Land Court petition violated the Plymouth Superior Court’s injunction against transferring the Property. I, however, find such a position dubious as the purpose of the Land Court petition was to conform the Property’s title to the Ridgewood Judgment. Indeed, the Ridge-wood Judgment, by its own terms, declared the deed to Goodhall “null and void” and ordered the prior title certificate revived.
2. Validity of the Ridgewood Lien
The Debtor asserts that the Ridge-wood Lien expired as a matter of law because neither Ridgewood nor its counsel timely requested the register of deeds bring to the attachment forward for another six years. The relevant statute, Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A, provides:
An attachment of land, or of a right or interest therein, shall, unless otherwise dissolved, expire by operation of law at the end of six years from the date of filing the same in the office of the register of deeds in the county or district where said land or some part of it is situated, unless said register shall, within said period, at the written request of the plaintiff or his attorney bring forward the same upon the books of attachments.69
While writ of attachment becomes a perfected judgment lien upon judgment, the risk remains that a writ of attachment is only valid for six years unexecuted.
Ridgewood does not dispute its failure to bring the attachment forward. Nevertheless, it dismisses its inaction as technical, asserting that the recordation of the Ridgewood Judgment in the Land Court before the expiration of the initial six year period, albeit by the Debtor, was substantial compliance with the statute. Notably, the Ridgewood Judgment provides:
It is further ORDERED that the attachment issued by the Court dated September 13, 2006 ... shall continue in full force and effect unless otherwise ordered by the Court.71
The Debtor responds that the text of the Ridgewood Judgment does not supersede the statutory requirements, but not address the effect of its recordation in the Land Court. Although NEPCO’s relative priority would be raised if the Ridgewood Lien expired, NEPCO has not taken a position on this matter.
Unfortunately, there is a dearth of case law on Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A. On the subject of substantial compliance, however, the Supreme Judicial Court has explained:
It has been argued that the use of the word “shall” in the statute imposes the requirement of strict compliance with the prescribed formalities. In this instance we hold that there was sufficient compliance with the statute. We are much persuaded by the observation of Judge Learned Hand that “it is one of the surest indexes of a mature and developed jurisprudence not to make a fortress out of the dictionary; but to remember that statutes always have some purpose or object to accomplish, whose sympathetic and imaginative dis*20 covery is the surest guide to their meaning.”72 -
In another case relating to an election recount statute, the Supreme Judicial Court held that there was substantial compliance where the prime objective of the statute was satisfied.
Although it is a close call, I am persuaded that if the Supreme Judicial Court were faced with this question, it would find the recordation of the Ridgewood Judgment was sufficient to bring forward the Ridge-wood Lien. The statute requires the register of deeds to bring forward the attachment upon the request of the plaintiff, affording it no discretion in such action.
D. Validity of the Homestead Declaration and Exemption
Starting from the premise that title remains with the Lanac Trust, Ridgewood challenges the validity of the 2012 Homestead for several reasons.
The Debtor contends, and I agree, that Ridgewood’s implicit argument is that the acquisition of a homestead itself violated the Plymouth Superior Court’s injunction. This position is flawed because the acquisition of a homestead neither alienates nor transfers an interest in property.
E. Fixing of a Lien on an Interest of the Debtor in Property
As previously stated, 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(1) permits a debtor to avoid “the fixing of a lien on an interest of the debtor in property.”
F. Applicability of the Massachusetts Homestead Statute’s Fraud Exception
Both Lienholders assert that their liens are excepted from the Massachusetts Homestead Statute pursuant to Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6). That section provides:
An estate of homestead shall be exempt from the laws of conveyance, descent, devise, attachment, seizure, execution on judgment, levy and sale for payment of debts or legacies except as follows:
(6) upon an execution issued from a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce its judgment based upon fraud,*22 mistake, duress, undue influence or lack of capacity.87
The Debtor argues that this state law exception has been preempted by the Bankruptcy Code.
Generally speaking, “[property that is properly exempted under § 522 is immunized against liability for prebankruptcy debts.”
In In re Weinstein, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that the Massachusetts Homestead Statute’s pre-existing debt exception conflicted with 11 U.S.C. § 522(c) because it was not among the excepted types of prepetition debt listed in that section and was therefore preempted.
As the Supreme Court recognized in discussing the interplay between § 522(f) and state exemption exceptions in Owen, the state’s ability to define its exemptions is not absolute and must yield to conflicting policies in the Bankruptcy Code.95
On its face, the same reasoning applies to the fraud exception Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6). To the extent that Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6) seeks to except prepetition debts for fraud that do not otherwise fall into a an exception contained within 11 U.S.C. § 522, it conflicts with the Bankruptcy Code and must give way.
As a final note, despite the Supreme Court’s recent admonition that “when a debtor claims a state-created exemption, the exemption’s scope is determined by state law, which may provide that certain types of debtor misconduct warrant denial of the exemption,” I do not understand the Supreme Court to have abrogated Owen’s central premise that state law exemptions are preempted to the extent they conflict
In sum, Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6) is preempted by 11 U.S.C. § 522(e). Thus, the NEPCO Lien and the Ridgewood Lien are not excepted from the Exemption.
G. Applicability of Section 522(p)
Section 522(p)(l) of the Bankruptcy Code provides in relevant part: a debtor may not exempt any amount of interest that was acquired by the debtor during the 1215-day period preceding the date of the filing of the petition that exceeds in the aggregate $155,6751 in value in— The United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the First Circuit has held that a homestead exemption permitted under state law is subject to this limitation where: “(i) an interest in property (ii) is acquired by the debtor (iii) within 1,215 days of the petition filing date.”
(A) real or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence....100
The Debtor, on the other hand, disputes that she “acquired” an interest in the Property as that term in used in 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(1).
In In re Leung, I recognized that 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l) may require “an affirmative action” by the debtor.
*24 the addition of the clause “by the debt- or” after “acquires” implies more than a passive acquisition — such as by appreciation; it implies an active acquisition of equity such as by an affirmative act of a down payment or mortgage pay down.106
Put simply, the distinction between “passive” and “active” acquisition, to the extent that the Bankruptcy Code mandates this distinction, is meant to address a very narrow issue. When analyzing actual transfers of property interests, these distinctions are less meaningful given that the acceptance and recording of a deed has been held sufficient to “acquire” an interest for purposes of this section.
Admittedly, the case at bar presents a new twist. As I stated above, I conclude that the effect of the Ridgewood Judgment was to reconvey the Property back to the Debtor, thus undoing the fraudulent transfer. Even if, as the Debtor urges, that did not constitute a declaration that she always held title to the Property, the question remains as to whether her acquisition of the title interest was a sufficiently “active” acquisition to fall within 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l). Given this record, I have no trouble finding that the Debtor actively acquired the title interest to the Property
because it necessarily resulted from her actively deeding the Property to Goodhall in fraud of her creditors. But for her fraudulent transfer, the title interest would have remained with the Lanac Trust. In this way, the Debtor’s deeding away of the Property inextricably linked to its ultimate return. I further note that the filing of the Land Court petition to conform the Property’s title to the Ridgewood Judgment was in this context, not unlike recording a deed.
For these reasons, I find that the Debt- or acquired the title interest to the Property from the Lanac Trust on November 2, 2011, four hundred and forty-seven days prepetition, by virtue of the entry of the Ridgewood Judgment. As such, the Exemption is capped at $155,675.00.
H. Applicability of Section 522(o )
Section 522(o) of the Bankruptcy Code was enacted as part of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (“BAPCPA”) to limit the value of a debtor’s homestead exemption in certain circumstances.
*25 (o) For purposes of subsection (b)(3)(A), and notwithstanding subsection (a), the value of an interest in—
(1)real or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence; [or]
(4) real or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor claims as a homestead;
shall be reduced to the extent that such value is attributable to any portion of any property that the debtor disposed of in the 10-year period ending on the date of the filing of the petition with the intent to hinder, delay, or defraud a creditor and that the debtor could not exempt, or that portion that the debtor could not exempt, under subsection (b), if on such date the debtor had held the property so disposed of.109
In In re Corbett, Judge Feeney of this district recognized that a party must establish the following four elements to sustain an objection under 11 U.S.C. § 522(o):
(1) the debtor disposed of property within the 10 years preceding the bankruptcy filing;
(2) the property that the debtor disposed of was nonexempt;
(3) some of the proceeds from the sale of the nonexempt property were used to buy a new homestead, improve an existing homestead, or reduce the debt associated with an existing homestead; and
(4)the debtor disposed of the nonexempt property with the intent to hinder, delay or defraud a creditor.110
As previously stated, NEPCO has made no effort establish any of the four of the requisite elements under 11 U.S.C. § 522(o). Indeed, I cannot fathom how NEPCO could satisfy the third element. That is not my responsibility, however, as the First Circuit has repeatedly stated that “[i]t is not enough merely to mention a possible argument in the most skeletal way, leaving the court to do counsel’s work.”
I. Order of Lien Avoidance
The Lienholders assert that the Debtor must avoid liens in the reverse order of their priority and thus cannot yet avoid the NEPCO Lien or Ridgewood Lien. The Debtor asserts that this is erroneous, and cites In re Vizard for this proposition. The passage on which she relies states “the relative priorities of the judicial and mortgage liens have no bearing on the Court’s determination of whether the Debtor may avoid the judicial lien.”
In many cases, the amount of the nonjudicial liens coupled with the value of the exemption claimed so far exceed the value of the property that the sequence of avoidance is irrelevant.
Even assuming, as the Debtor asserts, the Property has a value of $980,000.00, there would be $222,476.16 of non-exempt equity in the Property after taking into account the Exemption ($155,675.00), the first mortgage ($485,413.00), the second mortgage ($99,227.00), the federal tax lien ($15,208.84), and the Massachusetts tax lien ($2,000).
J. Value of the Property
The Debtor asserts that the value of the Property is $980,000.00. NEPCO contends that it is worth $1,650,000.00. Ridgewood does not offer a value of its own, but disputes the Debtor’s value and requests an evidentiary hearing. As such, I will schedule this matter for an eviden-tiary hearing, provided that the Debtor complies with my conditional order and moves to avoid the remaining judicial liens.
K. Value of the Ridgewood Lien
As stated above, Ridgewood filed a proof of claim asserting a secured claim in the amount of $300,000.00, the amount of its pre-judgment attachment. Nevertheless, the Debtor asserts that its full judgment amount of $716,053.13 should be used to calculate the impairment of the Exemption under 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(2)(A). She reasons that, in order to levy against the Property, Ridgewood would first need to obtain an execution in the full amount of the Ridgewood Judgment, making that the appropriate figure. Ultimately, unless the Property is worth more than $1,057.523.84, the sum of the Ridgewood Lien valued at $300,000.00, the non-judicial liens, and the Exemption, the issue is moot.
Y. CONCLUSION
In light of the foregoing, I will enter an order limiting the Exemption to $155,675 pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l) and directing the Debtor to file, within fourteen days, a motion or motions seeking avoidance of the judicial liens junior to Ridge-wood and NEPCO failing which, the Lien Avoidance Motions will be denied without prejudice. If the Debtor timely seeks avoidance of the remaining judicial liens, I will schedule an evidentiary hearing to determine the valuation of the Property.
. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 1 etseq.
. The Lienholders also filed objections to the Debtor’s claim of homestead exemption.
. Exhibit 1, Docket No. 107-1 at 1-2.
. Exhibit 2, Docket No. 107-1 at 6-27.
. Exhibit 3, Docket No. 107-2 at 1-19.
. See Exhibit F, Docket No. 100 at 26-32.
. Id.
. Exhibit C, Docket No. 99-1 at 9-12.
. Id.
. Exhibit B, Docket No. 99-1 at 4-8.
. Exhibit C, Docket No. 99-1 at 9-12; Exhibit B, Docket No. 100 at 13-14.
. Exhibit E, Docket No. 99-1 at 16-18.
. Exhibit C, Docket No. 100 at 15.
. Exhibit G, Docket No. 95 at 39.
. Exhibit E, Docket No. 95 at 33-34.
. Exhibit G, Docket No. 95 at 39.
. Exhibit 6, Docket No. 107-3 at 4-10.
. Exhibit G, Docket No. 99-1 at 22-24.
. Id.
. Id.
. Exhibit 9, Docket No. 107-4 at 10-11.
. Exhibit 10, Docket No. 107-4 at 12-13.
. Exhibit H, Docket No. 99-1 at 25-26.
. Exhibit I, Docket No. 99-1 at 27-29.
. Exhibit H, Docket No. 99-1 at 25-26; Exhibit I, Docket No. 99-1 at 27-29.
. Exhibit 11, Docket No. 107-4 at 14-15.
. Exhibit F, Docket No. 100 at 26-32.
. Id. at n. 2.
. Exhibit F, Docket No. 100 at 26-32.
. Exhibit J, Docket No. 99-1 at 30-32 (bold in original).
. Exhibit E, Docket No. 100 at 23-25.
. Exhibit G, Docket No. 100 at 33.
. Exhibit H, Docket No. 100 at 34-40.
. Exhibit K, Docket No. 99-1 at 33-34.
. Exhibit J, Docket No. 99-1 at 30-32.
. Exhibit 5, Docket No. 107-3 at 1-3.
. Exhibit 12, Docket No. 107-4 at 16-18.
. See Motion to Avoid NEPCO Lien, Docket No. 107 at 2-6.
. The Debtor overstated the Ridgewood claim by $2.00 in her motions, which I have corrected in the above table.
. See Claim No. 10-1.
.The Debtor had made two prior attempts to avoid all judicial liens in a single motion, but I denied both motions for failure to comply with various provisions of Massachusetts Local Bankruptcy Rule (“MLBR”) 4003-l(a) and 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(2)(B).
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 109A, § 9.
. Farrey v. Sanderfoot, 500 U.S. 291, 299, 111 S.Ct. 1825, 114 L.Ed.2d 337 (1991).
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6).
. Aroesty v. Bankowski (In re Aroesty), 385 B.R. 1 (1st Cir. BAP 2008).
. Exhibit J, Docket No. 99-1 at 30-32.
. Ridgewood Objection, Docket No. 124 at ¶ 24.
. In re Vizard, 327 B.R. 515 (Bankr.D.Mass. 2005).
. In re Welch, 486 B.R. 1, 4 (Bankr.D.Mass. 2013).
. In re Aroesty, 385 B.R. at 6-7.
. Because the Lienholders did not raise this argument in their pleadings, this may have been meant to be a response to their argument that their liens are excepted from the homestead as judgments based upon fraud pursuant to Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6).
. In re Noonan, 13-15420-WCH, 2014 WL 184776 (Bankr.D.Mass. Jan. 15, 2014).
. In re Vizard, 327 B.R. at 518.
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A.
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(1).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(2).
. Fed. R. Bankr.P. 4003(d).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(b)(1) and (3).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(1) ("Unless a party in interest objects, the property claimed as exempt on such list is exempt.”).
. Fed. R. Bankr.P. 4003(c). See Shamban v. Perry (In re Perry), 357 B.R. 175, 178 (1st Cir. BAP 2006).
. In re Newcomb, 513 B.R. 7, 12 (Bankr. D.Mass. 2014).
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, §§ 3(a), 4.
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, §§ 1, 5.
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, §§ 1, 4.
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 1.
. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 109A, §§ 8(a)(1), 9(b).
. See, e.g., Bakwin v. Mardirosian, 467 Mass. 631, 634, 6 N.E.3d 1078 (2014); First Fed. Sav. & Loan Ass'n of Galion, Ohio v. Napoleon, 428 Mass. 371, 381, 701 N.E.2d 350 (1998). See also Fleet Nat. Bank of Massachusetts v. Merriam, 45 Mass.App.Ct. 592, 594, 699 N.E.2d 1266 (1998).
. Exhibit J, Docket No. 99-1 at 30-32.
. Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 223, § 114A
. Citibank, N.A. v. Leahy, CIV.A. 04-0153A, 2005 WL 937338, *2 n. 8 (Mass.Super. Mar. 28, 2005)
.Exhibit J, Docket No. 99-1 at 30-32.
. Abbene v. Bd. of Election Comm’rs of Revere, 348 Mass. 247, 250-51, 202 N.E.2d 827 (1964) (quoting Cabell v. Markham, 148 F.2d 737, 739 (2d Cir. 1945)).
. Crosby v. Bd. of Election Comm’rs of Newton, 350 Mass. 544, 548, 215 N.E.2d 781 (1966).
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 223, § 114A.
. I note that Ridgewood also seemingly objects to the Debtor claiming the Exemption because she is not the "owner” of the Property. This, however, is easily dismissed because the Massachusetts Homestead Statute defines "owner” to include "a natural person who is a sole owner ... or holder of a beneficial interest in a trust.” Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 1. Thus, even if the Ridgewood Judgment did not reconvey the Property back to the Debtor as I have determined, she remains an "owner” by virtue of her beneficial interest in the Lanac Trust.
. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 10(c).
. See In re Miller, 113 B.R. 98, 105 (Bankr. D.Mass. 1990) (the declaration of homestead is not a fraudulent conveyance).
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 4.
. See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(2), (6).
. Shamban v. Masidlover, 429 Mass. 50, 53, 705 N.E.2d 1136 (1999).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(1).
. Farrey v. Sanderfoot, 500 U.S. at 296, 111 S.Ct. 1825.
. In re Varrichione, 354 B.R. 563, 570 (Bankr.D.Mass. 2006).
. In re Colbran, LLC, 475 B.R. 289, 296 (Bankr.D.Mass. 2012) (quoting Apahouser Lock and Sec. Corp. v. Carvelli, 26 Mass.App.Ct. 385, 388, 528 N.E.2d 133 (1988)).
. In re Eastmare Dev. Corp., 150 B.R. 495, 503 (Bankr.D.Mass. 1993).
. 11 U.S.C. § 101(37).
. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 188, § 3(b)(6).
. Owen v. Owen, 500 U.S. 305, 308, 111 S.Ct. 1833, 1835, 114 L.Ed.2d 350 (1991). See also 11 U.S.C. § 522(c) ("[P]roperty exempted under this section is not liable during or after the case for any debt of the debtor that arose ... before the commencement of the case....”).
. Law v. Siegel, — U.S. -, 134 S.Ct. 1188, 1196, 188 L.Ed.2d 146 (2014).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(c)(4).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(o).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(q)(l)(B)(ii).
. Patriot Portfolio, LLC v. Weinstein (In re Weinstein), 164 F.3d 677, 682 (1st Cir. 1999).
. Owen v. Owen, 500 U.S. at 305, 111 S.Ct. 1833.
. In re Weinstein, 164 F.3d at 683 (citing Owen v. Owen, 500 U.S. at 313, 111 S.Ct. 1833).
. Law v. Siegel, 134 S.Ct. at 1196-1197 (emphasis in original).
. Jensen v. Dietz (In re Sholdan), 217 F.3d 1006, 1008 (8th Cir. 2000).
. Law v. Siegel, 134 S.Ct. at 1197.
. Id.
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l)(A).
. In re Aroesty, 385 B.R. at 4.
. Based on my findings above, I reject the Debtor's argument that 11 U.S.C. § 522(p)(l) does not apply because she has held title to the Property since March 22, 2005.
. In re Welch, 486 B.R. at 4.
. In re Leung, 356 B.R. 317, 322 (Bankr. D.Mass. 2006)
. In re Rasmussen, 349 B.R. 747, 757 (Bankr.M.D.Fla. 2006)
. In re Aroesty, 385 B.R. at 7; In re Leung, 356 B.R. at 322.
. Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, Pub.L. No. 109-8, 119 Stat. 23, 11 U.S.C. § 101, et seq. As cogently explained by the United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Tenth Circuit:
The addition of § 522(o) to the Bankruptcy Code was “intended to strike a balance between the rights of debtors and creditors in states with unlimited homestead exemptions ... and to make clear that abusive pre-bankruptcy planning will not be tolerated at the expense of creditors.” However, even after BAPCPA’s amendments, "[s]ection 522 continues to adopt the position favorably viewed by the Code drafters that the mere conversion of nonexempt property into exempt property, without fraudulent intent, does not deprive the debtor of exemption rights in the converted property.” Ultimately, it appears that the purpose of adding § 522(o) and § 522(p) in 2005 was the attempt by Congress to address the pre-BAPCPA "mansion loophole” and to limit the value of homestead exemptions when there is fraud. This lends support to our interpretation of § 522(o) — that the statute was enacted to prevent the fraudulent attempt to build up equity in a homestead.
Soulé v. Willcut (In re Willcut), 472 B.R. 88, 94 (10th Cir. BAP 2012) (footnotes omitted).
. 11 U.S.C. § 522(o).
. In re Corbett, 478 B.R. 62, 69 (Bankr. D.Mass. 2012) (quoting In re Presto, 376 B.R. 554, 568 (Bankr.S.D.Tex. 2007)).
. DiVittorio v. HSBC Bank USA, NA (In re DiVittorio), 670 F.3d 273, 288 (1st Cir. 2012); United States v. Zannino, 895 F.2d 1, 17 (1st Cir. 1990).
. In re Vizard, 327 B.R. at 518.
. Id. at 517-518 (citing In re Smith, 315 B.R. 636, 641 (Bankr.D.Mass. 2004) ("Though Congress went to some length to distinguish those [liens] that could be avoided from those that would be protected, it gave no special protection to judicial liens that are senior to unavoidable mortgages.”)).
. Id. at 518.
. See In re Derocha, 503 B.R. 553, 555 (Bankr.D.R.I. 2014).
. See, e.g., Bank of America Nat’l Trust Savings Ass’n v. Hanger (In re Hanger), 217 B.R. 592, 595 (9th Cir. BAP 1997), aff'd 196 F.3d 1292 (9th Cir. 1999); In re Heaney, 453 B.R. 42, 48 (Bankr.E.D.N.Y. 2011); In re Dolan, 230 B.R. 642, 647 (Bankr.D.Conn. 1999).
. $155,675.00 (the Exemption) + $485,413.00 (the first mortgage) + $99,227.00 (the second mortgage) + $15,208.84 (the federal tax lien) + $2,000.00 (the Massachusetts tax lien) = $757,523.84. Therefore, value of the Property ($980,000.00) exceeds the sum of the non-judicial liens and the Exemption ($757,523.84) by $222,476.16.
. While a single motion will suffice, the Debtor must nevertheless separately perform the 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(2)(A) calculation for each lien, each time removing the liens that have been previously tested for avoidance. See 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)(2)(B); see also In re Derocha, 503 B.R. at 557-558.
. $300,000.00 (the Hypothetical Value of the Ridgewood Lien) + $485,413.00 (the first mortgage) + $99,227.00 (the second mortgage) + $15,208.84 (the federal tax lien) +
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