In re Laskaratos

• Decision Date: 30 August 2019
• Docket Number: Case No. 19-41363-ess
• Citation: 605 B.R. 282
• Parties: IN RE: Tasso LASKARATOS, Debtor.
• Court: U.S. Bankruptcy Court — Eastern District of New York

605 B.R. 282

IN RE: Tasso LASKARATOS, Debtor.

Case No. 19-41363-ess

United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. New York.

Signed August 30, 2019

Tasso Laskaratos, 575 80th Street (Apartment 3A), Brooklyn, NY 11209, Debtor, Pro Se

Irena Milos, Esq., Irena Milos Law Office, 210 Canal Street (Suite 502), New York, NY 10013, Attorneys for Yu Tang Realty LLC

MEMORANDUM DECISION AFTER EVIDENTIARY HEARING ON STAY VIOLATION CLAIM

HONORABLE ELIZABETH S. STONG UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY JUDGE

Introduction

Tasso Laskaratos commenced this bankruptcy case on March 7, 2019 by filing a pro se petition for relief under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code. Some six weeks later, on April 14, 2019, representatives of Mr. Laskaratos' landlord, Yu Tang Realty LLC ("Yu Tang"), came to his home at 575 80th Street in Brooklyn (the "80^th Street Property") and attempted to clear out several items from the backyard of the building. These items included a table and chairs, a barbecue, several large potted plants and a watering can, and a large piece of plywood that shielded the backyard from the street, among other items. A confrontation ensued, the police were summoned, and Yu Tang abandoned its efforts and left.

On the following day, April 15, 2019, Mr. Laskaratos, again pro se , filed an application for an order to show cause, seeking a determination that Yu Tang's actions violated the automatic stay that came into effect upon the filing of his bankruptcy case. He seeks a broad range of relief, including compensatory and punitive damages, and an order directing Yu Tang to "cease and desist all harassing" of him and his family. OSC App. at 1, ECF No. 24.

It is plain from the record of this case, from the records of the bankruptcy cases of Mr. Laskaratos' mother Irini and his brother Kosta, and from the long history of litigation in New York state court between Yu Tang and the Laskaratos family, that the relationship between the Laskaratos family and Yu Tang has been difficult, strained, and contentious. That relationship appears to have begun some three years ago, in July 2016, when Yu Tang purchased the 80^th Street Property from Irini Laskaratos. In connection with that purchase, Yu Tang permitted Ms. Laskaratos to continue to live in the building for a year, and in return, Ms. Laskaratos agreed to pay monthly rent of $1,958 to Yu Tang.

But on this application, the Court's task is far narrower and more specific than the range of disputes among these parties. In order to decide Mr. Laskaratos' stay violation claim, the Court must determine neither more nor less than whether each of the elements of a stay violation has been established. That is, the Court must decide first whether Mr. Laskaratos has established that he filed an individual bankruptcy petition, whether he has shown that Yu Tang had notice of his bankruptcy petition, whether Yu Tang's actions amounted to a willful violation of the automatic stay, and whether he has suffered damages. In re Leiba , 529 B.R. 501, 506 (Bankr. E.D.N.Y. 2015).

Jurisdiction and Authority To Enter a Final Judgment

Mr. Laskaratos' stay violation claim arises under Bankruptcy Code Sections 362(a) and 362(k). "Core proceedings include, but are not limited to ... matters concerning the administration of the estate." 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A) and (G). Courts in this Circuit have found claims of violations of the automatic stay to be "core matter[s], going to fundamental, and critically important, bankruptcy policy." In re Ames Dep't Stores, Inc. , 542 B.R. 121, 141 & n.79 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. 2015) (citing Eastern Air Lines, Inc. v. Rolleston (In re Ionosphere Clubs Inc.) , 124 B.R. 635, 638 (S.D.N.Y. 1991) ). Accordingly, Mr. Laskaratos' stay violation claim is a core matter. See 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2)(A). And as a core matter, this Court has constitutional authority to enter a final judgment, because Mr. Laskaratos' claim stems "from the bankruptcy itself." Stern v. Marshall , 564 U.S. 462, 499, 131 S.Ct. 2594, 180 L.Ed.2d 475 (2011). For these reasons, this Court has jurisdiction to consider and enter judgment on these claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b) and the Standing Order of Reference dated August 28, 1986, as amended by Order dated December 5, 2012, of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. This decision constitutes the Court's findings of fact and conclusions of law to the extent required by Bankruptcy Rule 7052.

Procedural History

The path to these proceedings has been long. It began with a real estate transaction in 2016, when Yu Tang acquired the 80^th Street Property from Irini Laskaratos, and includes proceedings in New York State Court and Ms. Laskaratos's own Chapter 13 bankruptcy case, as well as that of Kosta Laskaratos. Those events and proceedings provide some context for the present matter, and they are described in pertinent part below.

Yu Tang's Acquisition of the 80th Street Property

On or about July 15, 2016, Yu Tang purchased the 80th Street Property from Irini Laskaratos. The parties' Contract of Sale provides for Yu Tang to pay $1,845,000 to acquire the property, and for Irini Laskaratos to remain at the property for a period of one year after the sale. It also provides that her right to remain is conditioned on $40,000 being held in escrow in Yu Tang's attorney's "IOLA account," to "be returned to [her] at the time that she surrenders possession," and on her payment of monthly rent of $1,958 to Yu Tang. Contract of Sale, ECF No. 17-7 ¶ 19 (Yu Tang Stay Relief Motion).

The New York City Housing Court Action

On May 23, 2017, almost one year after the sale of the 80th Street Property and before Mr. Laskaratos filed this bankruptcy case, Yu Tang brought an action to evict Ms. Laskaratos and "undertenants" John Doe and Jane Doe in New York City Housing Court (the "Eviction Action"). The grounds for the eviction proceeding were Ms. Laskaratos' failure to make the monthly rent payments, as agreed when Yu Tang purchased the 80^th Street Property.

In the Eviction Action, Yu Tang sought a final judgment awarding it (i) possession of the premises, together with a warrant of eviction; (ii) rental arrears in the amount of $15,880, with interest accruing from September 15, 2016, along with fair value of use and occupancy of the premises; and (iii) attorneys' fees, costs, and disbursements in an amount to be determined, as well as such other and further relief as the court deemed just and proper.

On June 25, 2018, the Housing Court recorded and approved a settlement reached between Yu Tang and Irini Laskaratos in the Eviction Action. In the stipulation, the parties agreed as follows:

(i) the parties consented to the jurisdiction of the New York state court;

(ii) Yu Tang was awarded a money judgment in the amount of $43,076 (the "Judgment"), along with a judgment of possession and a warrant of eviction, to be stayed through October 15, 2018; (iii) the Judgment represented rent for the period from September 15, 2016 through June 16, 2018, in the amount of $1,958 per month;

(iv) the Respondents were required to keep current with rental payments, and all amounts received would first be applied towards current rental payments, and then to the Judgment;

(v) the Respondents were required to remove their personal items from the basement of the 80th Street Property by October 15, 2018;

(vi) if Respondents did not comply with the Stipulation terms, then a warrant to execute the warrant of eviction would be issued upon notice by the Marshal;

(vii) if the Respondents paid the Judgment and kept current with ongoing rental payments as they became due, then the Judgment would be satisfied and the warrant of eviction would be vacated; and

(viii) the Respondents' answer to Yu Tang's petition was marked withdrawn.

See Stipulation (Yu Tang Stay Relief Motion), ECF No. 17-9. The stipulation was signed by representatives of Yu Tang and by Ms. Laskaratos through a Greek interpreter, and entered as an order by the Housing Court.

About two months later, on August 20, 2018, the Housing Court approved a second stipulation entered into between Yu Tang and Ms. Laskaratos, in resolution of the issues raised by Ms. Laskaratos in an application for an order to show cause. That stipulation states that Ms. Laskaratos "has brought to court" rent payments for July 2018 and August 2018, and directs Ms. Laskaratos to mail her future rent payments directly to Yu Tang or its counsel. Stipulation on OSC (Yu Tang Stay Relief Motion), ECF No. 17-9.

But this second stipulation did not resolve the parties' disputes. By decision and order dated October 18, 2018, the Housing Court denied Ms. Laskaratos' application for an order to show cause. The court observed that Ms. Laskaratos sold the 80th Street Property to Yu Tang and remained at the property as a tenant with monthly rent of $1,958. It found that she was "advised to bring 1,958 twice, ... and does not have said monies." Decision and Order dated October 18, 2018 (Yu Tang Stay Relief Motion), ECF No. 17-10. The court also found that Ms. Laskaratos did not make the $43,076 payment required to satisfy Yu Tang's judgment.

Irini Laskaratos' Bankruptcy Case

On November 26, 2018, Ms. Laskaratos filed a pro se petition for relief under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code. Voluntary Petition, Case No. 18-46717, ECF No. 1. Three days later, on November 29, 2019, Yu Tang moved for relief from the automatic stay. In that motion, Yu Tang requested stay relief under Bankruptcy Code Sections 362(d)(1) and 362(d)(2), to permit it to continue the Eviction Action.

This Court held a hearing on Yu Tang's motion on January 10, 2019, at which Ms. Laskaratos, again pro se , and Yu Tang appeared and were heard. And on February 4, 2019, the Court issued an order modifying the automatic stay, to permit Yu Tang to pursue its rights under applicable law with respect to the 80th Street Property, and staying the effective date of that relief for three weeks, until February 25, 2019.

On March 1, 2019, four days after ...