Stubbins v. Jones (In re Battistelli)
Stubbins v. Jones (In re Battistelli)
Opinion of the Court
In Chapter 7 cases, the case trustee is generally tasked with collecting and liquidating the debtor's non-exempt assets for the benefit of creditors.
Plaintiff filed an adversary complaint (the "Complaint") against Defendant on April 24, 2018. The Complaint alleges the *26following facts: Mark and Robin Fleming obtained a judgment against Debtor in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in Pennsylvania. The judgment was subsequently assigned to Defendant.
In Count One of the Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that the garnishment:
was a preference in that it was: (1) to or for the benefit of one of the Debtor's creditors; (2) for or on account of an antecedent debt owed by the debtor before such transfer was made; (3) made while the Debtor was insolvent; (4) made on or within 90 days of the date of filing of the Debtor's Bankruptcy Petition; and (5) enables the creditor to receive more than such creditor would have received had the transfer had not been made and such creditor would have received payment of the debt as provided pursuant to 11 U.S.C. Chapters 5 and 7.
(Compl. at 3, ECF No. 1). In Count Two, Plaintiff alleges that he is entitled to an order compelling Defendant to turn over the garnished funds pursuant to
Defendant filed his Amended Motion to Dismiss the Complaint (Doc. # 6) (the "Motion") on June 1, 2018, arguing that the Complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
"To survive a motion to dismiss, the plaintiff must allege facts that if accepted as true, are sufficient to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face." Majestic Building Maint., Inc. v. Huntington Bancshares, Inc .,
*27When deciding a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the court "may consider the Complaint and any exhibits attached thereto, public records, items appearing in the record of the case and exhibits attached to defendant's motion to dismiss so long as they are referred to in the Complaint and are central to the claims contained therein." Bassett v. NCAA ,
First, the Court finds that the Complaint states a plausible claim for relief under
In order to survive a motion to dismiss, the complaint must contain allegations regarding the following elements: (1) the transfers were of an interest of Debtors in property; (2) the transfers were made to or for the benefit of a creditor; (3) the transfers were for or on account of a debt owed by Debtors before the transfer was made; (4) Debtors were insolvent when the transfers were made; (5) the transfers were made within ninety days before the filing of the petition or between ninety days and one year before the filing of the petition if the creditor was an insider; and (6) the transfers enabled the creditor to receive more than he would otherwise have received if the transfer had not been made and he had received his pro rata share of the property of the estate under Chapter 7.
Zaremba v. Pheasant (In re Cont'l Capital Inv. Servs., Inc.) , No. 05-3322,
The Complaint alleges that $20,326.68 was garnished
Defendant argues that the Complaint must be dismissed because it fails to establish all the elements of an avoidable transfer under
First, the Court will not consider the handwritten letter because it is not the Complaint, an exhibit attached to the Complaint, a public record, or referred to in the Complaint. Bassett ,
Turning to Count Two, the Court also finds the Complaint states a plausible claim for relief under
Defendant argues that Debtor only had the intent to hold the checking account for the benefit of his father. Thus, Debtor's interest in the funds "is that of a trustee of a resulting trust, an interest which is not property of the estate." (Def.'s Am. Mot. Dismiss at 7, ECF No 10). Again, Defendant is putting the cart before the horse; Debtor's intent with respect to the account and the amount of contributions Debtor made to the account, if any, are issues of fact that will not be determined at this point in the case. Whether it be at trial or in a motion for summary judgment filed after discovery, Defendant will have an opportunity to raise his arguments. But at this stage of the litigation, the only question is whether Plaintiff's allegations, taken as true, state plausible claims for relief. Here, they do.
Accordingly, it is hereby
ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that the Amended Motion of Defendant, Brian W. Jones, to Dismiss the Complaint for Failure to State a Claim Pursuant to Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7012(b)(6) (Doc. # 6) is DENIED .
IT IS SO ORDERED .
The purpose of this power is to discourage creditors from "racing to the courthouse to dismember the debtor's property during the debtor's slide into bankruptcy" and to "facilitate the prime bankruptcy policy of equality of distribution among creditors of the debtor." 10 Collier on Bankruptcy P. 547.01 (Alan J. Resnick & Henry J. Sommer eds., 16th rev. 2018).
A trustee must file an adversary complaint in order to recover money or property from a non-debtor. Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7001(1).
According to the Writ of Execution attached to the Complaint, the judgment is in the amount of $287,790.00.
A copy of Debtor's Redacted Checking Account Statement, evidencing the garnishment, is attached to the Complaint.
It is not clear why this amount differs from the amount garnished according to paragraph 10 of the Complaint.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 12 is applicable to adversary proceedings in bankruptcy court pursuant to Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7012.
A garnishment may constitute a "transfer" for purposes of § 547(b). See
The Court would be required to treat the Motion as a motion for summary judgment if it elected to consider the letter or other matters outside the pleadings. Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(d)
Reference
- Full Case Name
- IN RE: Geary M. BATTISTELLI, Debtor. Brent Stubbins v. Brian W. Jones
- Status
- Published