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On February 27, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit joined a minority approach followed by District of Columbia Circuit: failing to turn over property after demand is not a violation of the automatic stay imposed by 11 U.S.C. § 362. WD Equipment v. Cowen (In re Cowen), No. 15-1413, — F.3d —-, 2017 WL 745596 (10th Cir. Feb. 27, 2017), opinion here.
In Cowen, one secured creditor (WD Equipment) repossessed a vehicle in need of repairs for which the debtor (Cowen) could not pay. Id. at *1. Another secured creditor (Dring, the debtor’s father-in-law who is likely no longer welcome at Thanksgiving) repossessed a separate vehicle through the use of false pretenses, a can of mace, and five goons helpful colleagues:
“Mr. Dring lured Mr. Cowen under false pretenses to his place of business to repossess the Kenworth [truck]. Mr. Dring asked Mr. Cowen, who had brought along his young son, to leave the keys in the ignition, engine running, and to step out of the truck. As Mr. Cowen exited the vehicle, Mr. Dring jumped in, grabbed the keys, and declared the truck ‘repossessed.’ When Mr. Cowen asked what was going on, Mr. Dring told him to take his son and leave—immediately. A group of five men gathered around Mr. Dring while he brandished a can of mace above his head and threatened to use it if Mr. Cowen did not leave. Mr. Cowen pushed his young son behind him to protect him, and the two left the lot on foot.” Id.
(Editor’s Note from the Bankruptcy Cave: You can’t find these stories anywhere in the judicial system except in Bankruptcy Court; we love it. Here is also a Bankruptcy Cave rendering of what we think these fine young lads looked like.)
Within days of the repossessions, Cowen filed for chapter 13 bankruptcy protection in the Bankruptcy Court of the District of Colorado and demanded the return of both trucks, but WD Equipment and Dring both refused. Id. Cowen then obtained a show cause order from the bankruptcy court, which ordered the Defendants to “immediately turn over” the trucks to Mr. Cowen; “[c]ontinuing failure to turn over the Truck[s],” the bankruptcy court warned, “may result in the imposition of monetary damages against the Creditors for willful violation of the automatic stay.” Id. at *2.
After the Defendants failed to comply with the bankruptcy court’s show cause order, Cowen instituted an adversary proceeding against Defendants WD Equipment and Dring for willful violation of the automatic stay. Id. During the adversary proceeding, the Defendants argued that Cowen’s rights in the trucks had been properly terminated by Defendants before the bankruptcy petition was filed. But the bankruptcy court did not find the Defendants’ testimony credible, found that Defendants likely manufactured and forged documents regarding transfer of title, and found that because Defendants’ actions contravened Colorado law, Defendants did not effectively terminate Cowen’s ownership interest in the Trucks. The bankruptcy court ultimately concluded, “[f]ailing to return the Trucks violated § 362(a)(3) of the Bankruptcy Code,” and it imposed actual and punitive damages under 11 U.S.C. § 362(k)(1). Id.
The district court affirmed, noting that the bankruptcy court had applied the majority rule followed by the Second, Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits: “that the act of passively holding onto an asset constitutes ‘exercising control’ over it, and such action violates section 362(a)(3) of the Bankruptcy Code.” Id. at *4 (citing Thompson v. Gen. Motors Acceptance Corp., 566 F.3d 699, 703 (7th Cir. 2009); Weber v. SEFCU (In re Weber), 719 F.3d 72, 81 (2d Cir. 2013), California Emp’t Dev. Dep’t v. Taxel (In re Del Mission Ltd.), 98 F.3d 1147, 1151 (9th Cir. 1996), Knaus v. Concordia Lumber Co. (In re Knaus), 889 F.2d 773, 775 (8th Cir. 1989), Unified People’s Fed. Credit Union v. Yates (In re Yates), 332 B.R. 1, 4 (10th Cir. BAP 2005).
The Tenth Circuit reasoned that the majority approach relied too much on legislative history and “practical considerations.” Id. In choosing to follow the minority approach followed by the D.C. Circuit (see United States v. Inslaw, 932 F.2d 1467, 1474 (D.C. Cir. 1991)), the Tenth Circuit stated as follows:
Here again is § 362(a)(3), in relevant part: a bankruptcy petition “operates as a stay … of … any act to obtain possession of property of the estate or of property from the estate or to exercise control over property of the estate.” Breaking down the sentence, “any act” is the prepositive modifier of both infinitive phrases. In other words, § 362(a)(3) prohibits “any act to obtain possession of property” or “any act to exercise control over property.” “Act”, in turn, commonly means to “take action” or “do something.” New Oxford American Dictionary 15 (3d ed. 2010) (primary definition of “act”). This section, then, stays entities from doing something to obtain possession of or to exercise control over the estate’s property. It does not cover “the act of passively holding onto an asset,” Thompson, 566 F.3d at 703, nor does it impose an affirmative obligation to turnover property to the estate. “The automatic stay, as its name suggests, serves as a restraint only on acts to gain possession or control over property of the estate.” Inslaw, 932 F.2d at 1474. Stay means stay, not go.
Id. The Tenth Circuit concluded: “[a]nd so, adhering to the text of the statute, as we must, we adopt the minority rule: only affirmative acts to gain possession of, or to exercise control over, property of the estate violate § 362(a)(3). Id. at *5.
Despite the reversal, the Defendants were not absolved of liability. While simply refusing to turn over the trucks did not constitute affirmative acts of the Defendants, the Tenth Circuit stated that the Defendants’ manufacturing of paperwork, forging of documents, potentially perjured testimony, and coaching of witnesses, “would qualify as post-petition acts to exercise control over the debtor’s property in violation of the automatic stay.” Id. at *6.
Potential Ramifications
Cowen could prove useful to banks and credit card companies who are faced with allegations that account freezes violate the automatic stay. Cowen will also necessitate that lawyers practicing on the borders of the D.C. or Tenth Circuits (such as in Kansas City, which is divided between the Eighth and Tenth Circuits) be mindful of the location of repossessions and turnover demands and denials.
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