Catlett v. Catlett
| Decision Date | 07 March 2023 |
| Docket Number | 2021-CA-01071-COA |
| Parties | LYNNE O. CATLETT APPELLANT v. ROBERT CATLETT, FIFTH THIRD MORTGAGE COMPANY, UNDERWOOD LAW FIRM PLLC AND WILLIAM ROBERT COLEMAN, JR. APPELLEES |
| Court | Mississippi Court of Appeals |
BEFORE CARLTON, P.J., WESTBROOKS AND McCARTY, JJ.
¶1. Lynne Catlett and Robert Catlett are currently in an estranged marriage. The couple separated in August 2010. Sometime later, Lynne filed for divorce due to irreconcilable differences, but the action was dismissed for lack of prosecution. Lynne and Robert have two adult children (one son and one daughter) named Tyler Joseph Catlett and Courtney Catlett. When the children were younger, Lynne and Robert purchased a home located at 1004 Stonehenge Drive, Brandon Mississippi, 39042, on October 28, 1999. This home is the catalyst to the current cause of action.
¶2. When Robert and Lynne purchased the home through Ever Home Mortgage, Robert secured a note for its purchase in the amount of $101,023 to Mid State Mortgage. Lynne's name was not listed on the loan because her credit was in poor condition. However, Lynne's name was on this 1999 deed of trust, which was executed to H. Farris Crislor as trustee for Mid State Mortgage to cover the home and secure the note.
¶3. Throughout the years, the monthly mortgage was approximately $1,100. This mortgage amount became too high for the Catletts, as indicated by their filing for bankruptcy in 2004. The same year, Lynne also had back surgery and was no longer working. She returned to work sometime in 2006 after she and Robert defaulted on the mortgage loan.
¶4. On March 24, 2010, Robert refinanced the home. Robert went to William Coleman Jr.'s office in Ridgeland, Mississippi, to execute the new note with a principle balance of $104,497. In the new 2010 deed of trust, Gregory S. Graham was named trustee for Fifth Third Mortgage. Gregory S. Graham was later substituted as trustee for Underwood Law Firm.
¶5. The 2010 deed contained the initials "RC" and "LC" at the bottom of each page, and a signature for Lynne and Robert on the last page was notarized by William Coleman Jr. with his seal. The acknowledgment stated that the signatories "personally appeared" and named Robert M. Catlett and Lynne O. Catlett. Due to the refinancing, Robert received a little less than $10,000 in cash but the use of that cash is disputed by Lynne and Robert. Additionally, the monthly mortgage was reduced by an estimated $200. Fifth Third paid the original note in full, and the 1999 deed was cancelled.
¶6. In August 2010, Robert moved out of the residential home, while Lynne remained with the two children. Afterward, Robert agreed to continue to pay the mortgage until 2012. Lynne returned to work around that time and became employed with Robert Parker as a certified public accountant (CPA). On March 6, 2012, Lynne's attorney, Judy Barnett wrote to Fifth Third informing the entity that Lynne did not sign the 2010 deed and that someone else forged her signature. No further action was taken.
¶7. In 2013, the Catletts defaulted on the loan. Underwood, on behalf of Fifth Third, sent a letter to the residential address notifying the Catletts of foreclosure if the $5,400 debt was not resolved within a set period of time. In 2013, Lynne sent a check to Fifth Third in the amount of $5,400 and began making monthly payments until January 2015.
¶8. In 2015, the mortgage was in arrears once again. On January 13, 2015, Underwood sent another letter, on behalf of Fifth Third, informing Lynne of $7,642.44 of debt and the impending foreclosure sale should the debt not be paid by February 12, 2015. In March 2015, Underwood mailed another foreclosure notice. On March 17, 2015, Attorney Brent Southern, representing Lynne, filed a "Request for Temporary Restraining Order and Emergency Injunctive Relief" in the County Court of Rankin County.
¶9. On August 18, 2015, Underwood sent letters to Brent and Lynne stating that the debt totaled $16,717.06 and that continued failure to pay would result in foreclosure. Fifth Third then publicized the foreclosure sale in the Rankin County News on three separate occasions: September 30, 2015, October 7, 2015, and October 14, 2015. On October 21, 2015, Fifth Third foreclosed on the property and purchased the property through a foreclosure sale.
¶10. On December 3, 2015, Fifth Third sent Lynne a notice to vacate the premises. On December 14, 2015, Fifth Third filed a complaint in the Rankin County County Court for the unlawful entry and detainment of the current residents at 1004 Stonehenge Drive and requested their removal from the premises. In April 2016, Rankin County County Court Judge Kent McDaniel issued a warrant for Lynne's removal. In May 2016, Lynne moved to set aside the removal. In August 2016, a hearing was held on the motion to set aside or alter the judgment. During the August 2016 hearing, the court determined that the basis for Lynne's temporary restraining order (TRO) could not be decided by the court because it lacked jurisdiction to hear issues based on fraudulent conveyances. The court determined that, based on the record, the foreclosure was proper and suggested that Lynne file criminal charges against the culpable parties and file a separate claim for fraud in chancery court. On September 1, 2016, the county court ordered Lynne's removal from the property.
¶11. On November 28, 2016, however, Lynne filed a "Request for Emergency Temporary Restraining Order And Emergency Injunctive Relief With Notice" in the Rankin County Chancery Court. Lynne charged that Fifth Third had committed fraud by closing on a loan at William Robert Coleman Jr.'s place of business entitled Benchmark Title LLC. Lynne further alleged that William failed to obtain identification of the unknown woman Robert brought with him to the closing to sign Lynne's name. Additionally, Lynne asserted that Fifth Third's foreclosure on the home was improper because Fifth Third had accepted monetary payments from her. Lynne requested that the chancery court reverse the county court's order demanding Lynne's removal from the home and set aside Fifth Third's foreclosure sale of the home. Lynne also requested a hearing to determine Fifth Third's participation in the alleged fraud.
¶12. On December 1, 2016, a TRO hearing was held before Judge John S. Grant III. At the hearing, Judge Grant stated that because the chancery court was a court of equity, his ruling was limited to the TRO. All of Lynne's other claims, like fraud, conspiracy, and breach of contract, were alleged torts. Thus, it was necessary for those claims to be heard in a court of law (e.g., the Rankin County Circuit Court). On December 13, 2016, the chancellor denied Lynne's request for a TRO.
¶13. On May 1, 2017, Lynne filed a "Complaint to Set Aside Fraudulent, Unlawful, Wrongful Foreclosure to Void Deeds, to Confirm Plaintiff's Title to Property and for Additional Other Relief" against defendants Robert Catlett, William Coleman Jr., Fifth Third, and Underwood, in order to set aside Fifth Third's foreclosure sale. Lynne claimed wrongful foreclosure, asserting that Fifth Third failed to comply with Mississippi law, breached its contract with Robert, and did not act in good faith by accepting Lynne's monthly payments. On May 4, 2017, Lynne filed a second "Request for Emergency Temporary Restraining Order and Emergency Injunctive Relief with Notice" requesting the same relief as she did before and that the chancellor reverse the order removing Lynne from the home.
¶14. On May 8 and 9, 2017, the chancellor held another TRO hearing. The chancellor denied Lynne's TRO request for being frivolous and then imposed sanctions of $3,000 to be given to opposing counsel. The chancellor also dismissed Lynne's complaint for being filed outside the statute of limitations. On May 30, 2017, Lynne moved for reconsideration. On June 2, 2017, Lynne moved to stay the order imposing sanctions.
¶15. On June 6, 2017, the chancellor held a hearing on Lynne's motion for reconsideration. The chancellor set aside the dismissal of Lynne's complaint, finding that the court applied the incorrect statute of limitations to Lynne's fraudulent-conveyance claim. On June 19, 2017, the chancellor ruled that Lynne timely filed the complaint within the ten-year period under Mississippi Annotated Code section 15-1-7 (Rev. 2012), granted a new trial, and denied the request to stay sanctions, but reduced the sanction amount to $1,500.
¶16. The chancellor granted Lynne leave to properly serve the May 1, 2017 complaint. In the following months, the defendants timely answered. Robert moved to dismiss the complaint against him due to improper service of process, and Fifth Third moved for summary judgment. The court denied both motions as well as Fifth Third's subsequent motion for reconsideration. Then, Lynne and Robert's depositions were taken.
¶17. On June 30, 2021, a trial was held on the issue of whether the foreclosure of the property was void due to the alleged forgery of Lynne's signature on the 2010 deed. Lynne and Robert both testified at trial. William's, Rod Nixon's, and Parker's testimonies were stipulated to from prior hearings.
¶18. Lynne testified that when she and Robert first purchased the home in 1999, she was present for the home closing and the deed's execution. In December 2001, Lynne testified that her "back collapsed." In 2003, she had back surgery and did not work...
To continue reading
Request your trial