FDIC v. Martin

• Decision Date: 29 September 1992
• Docket Number: No. 90-409-CIV-T-17B.,90-409-CIV-T-17B.
• Parties: FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION, as Manager of the FSLIC Resolution Fund, Plaintiff, v. Daniel N. MARTIN, Ronald R. Richmond, Stephen C. Booth, J. Harris Cook, Gerald A. Figurski, and Sharon Taylor, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Middle District of Florida

801 F. Supp. 617

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION, as Manager of the FSLIC Resolution Fund, Plaintiff, v. Daniel N. MARTIN, Ronald R. Richmond, Stephen C. Booth, J. Harris Cook, Gerald A. Figurski, and Sharon Taylor, et al., Defendants.

No. 90-409-CIV-T-17B.

United States District Court, M.D. Florida, Tampa Division.

September 29, 1992.

Henry A. Stein, Rudnick & Wolfe, Tampa, Fla., for plaintiff.

Cynthia Zellner MacKinnon, Russell Knighton Dickson, Jr., Lora A. Dunlap, Fisher, Rushmer, Werrenrath, Keiner, Wack & Dickson, P.A., Orlando, Fla., for defendants.

ORDER DENYING DEFENDANTS' MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

KOVACHEVICH, District Judge.

This cause is before the Court on Defendants Richmond, Booth, and Cook's individual Motion for Final Summary Judgment filed on June 15, 1992; and Defendants Martin, Richmond, Booth, Cook, Figurski, and Taylor's Motion for Summary Judgment also filed on June 15, 1992. Because the cause of action and ensuing motions stem from the same set of facts, the Court will address the motions concurrently. For purposes of this Order, however, the Court will first address Defendants' Richmond, Booth, and Cook's Motion for Final Summary Judgment followed by the Motion for Summary Judgment By All Defendants.

In the complete absence of genuine issues of material fact to support the allegations of a plaintiff, the defendant is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The Eleventh Circuit clearly holds that the party moving for summary judgment bears the initial burden of showing the lack of a genuine issue of material fact. Goree v. Winnebago Industries, Inc., 958 F.2d 1537 (11th Cir.1992) (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)). All doubt as to the existence of a genuine issue of material fact must be resolved against the moving party without first weighing the probative value of the evidence. Hayden v. First National Bank of Mt. Pleasant, 595 F.2d 994 (5th Cir.1979).

I. RICHMOND, BOOTH, AND COOK

Plaintiff, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC"), as manager of the FSLIC Resolution Fund, brought the instant suit against the former law firm of Martin, Richmond, Booth, Cook & Figurski (the "Martin Firm"). Defendants Richmond, Booth, and Cook terminated their partnership with the Martin Firm on July 20, 1984. The FDIC has alleged that the Martin Firm committed legal malpractice by failing to disclose material loan information to their client Liberty Savings & Loan Association of New Port Richey ("Liberty"). Specifically, the Plaintiff maintains that the Martin Firm neglected to disclose to Liberty the outstanding debts of potential loan recipients before Liberty's loan committee approved the transactions. Plaintiff alleges that Richmond, Booth, and Cook knew about these liabilities as members of the Martin Firm yet failed to disclose them to Liberty. Plaintiff further maintains that as a result of the Martin Firm's breach of fiduciary duty to its client Liberty, all of the loans fell into default and damaged Liberty in excess of two million dollars. Liberty subsequently became insolvent and was placed in a FSLIC receivership on May 15, 1987.

Although Liberty did not engage the Martin firm as underwriter for potential loans, the loan committee frequently asked the attorneys attending loan committee meetings if they had any personal knowledge of the credit worthiness of a prospective borrower. Members of the loan committee have stated that they relied upon this information when making decisions for approval of potential loans. Defendants, however, dispute the Plaintiff's characterization of the scope of representation and the times that they were still actually retained by Liberty. Loan committee members have further testified that Liberty would not have approved the loans had they known the information that Defendants Richmond, Booth, and Cook allegedly concealed.

The first disputed loan transaction took place in the beginning of 1984. S & K Development Company ("S & K") requested seven different loans from Liberty in order to develop a construction project known as Spring Haven. The savings and loan approved five loans totalling over $2.2 million dollars payable to S & K. The first of these loans was for $696,000. On July 17, 1984, Sharon Taylor of the Martin Firm attended the Liberty loan committee's approval meeting for this first loan. Defendants Richmond, Booth, and Cook split off from the Martin Firm three days later on July 20. Liberty sent a loan commitment letter on July 27, 1984. Liberty then disbursed the loan to S & K on September 20, 1984.

Defendants were aware of the existence of S & K before the loans came before Liberty's loan committee. In fact, the Martin Firm had performed the legal incorporation of S & K in 1982 and handled all of its early legal work. S & K negotiated in early 1983 for the purchase of farmland in Pasco County that would form Spring Lake. Defendant Richmond allegedly dealt at length with the sellers of the property, Elmer and Audrey Manos. A disputed question of material fact involves Richmond's allegedly informing Audrey and Elmer Manos of the risk of conveying their property to S & K without adequate security for repayment. Richmond also allegedly disclosed to his law partners Martin and Booth the terms of the purchase between Elmer and Audrey Manos and S & K. Armed with this knowledge, the Martin Firm allegedly declined to take part in the transaction.

Plaintiffs further allege that in early 1984 when Defendants Richmond, Booth, and Cook were still with the Martin Firm, the Firm knew about several material problems with the S & K loan. One of these problems was the $573,800 owed to Elmer and Audrey Manos as the unpaid balance of the purchase price of the land where Spring Haven was to be constructed. This unsecured balance represented approximately 99% of the purchase price. Another fact allegedly known by the Martin Firm before July 20, 1984 involved the eight million dollar default by P.G. International, Inc., the ostensible purchaser of 166 units to be built at Spring Haven. Further, the Martin Firm allegedly concealed on Department of Housing and Urban Development closing sheets a down payment made by a "straw man." Plaintiff claims that had any of this information been disclosed to Liberty by their attorneys, the Martin Firm, the loans would never have been made.

Defendants Richmond, Booth and Cook maintain...