Warren v. Keechle et al

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
WESTERN DIVISION AT DAYTON
In re: 	J OHN R. M ONROE
ANNA M. M ONROE ,
Debtors
Case No. 	04-40475
Adv. No. 	05-3223
J AMES R. WARREN, CHAPTER 7 TRUSTEE ,
Plaintiff
v.
J ENNIFER LYNN KEECHLE -SOWDER, ET AL .,
Defendants
Judge L. S. Walter
Chapter 7
DECISION AND ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT-DEBTORS’
MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
This matter is before the court on the Motion for Summary Judgment filed by Defendant-
Debtors John and Anna Monroe (“Debtors”) against their Co-Defendant, Jennifer Lynn Keechle-
Sowder (“Defendant Keechle”) [Adv. Doc. 34]. Plaintiff-Trustee James R. Warren filed a
This document has been electronically entered in the records of the United
States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: January 31, 2006
____________________________________________________________
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response in support of the Debtors’ Motion [Adv. Doc. 36]. Defendant Keechle did not timely
respond to the Debtors’ Motion.
Although Defendant Keechle did not respond, the court must still determine whether the
Debtors are entitled to summary judgment in their favor. The appropriate standard to address
their motion is contained in Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c) and incorporated in bankruptcy adversary
proceedings by reference in Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7056. Rule 56(c) states in part that a court must
grant summary judgment to the moving party if:
the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file,
together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any
material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of
law.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). In order to prevail, the moving party, if bearing the burden of persuasion
at trial, must establish all elements of its claim. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 331
(1986). If the burden is on the nonmoving party at trial, the movant must: 1) submit affirmative
evidence that negates an essential element of the nonmoving party’s claim; or 2) demonstrate to
the court that the nonmoving party’s evidence is insufficient to establish an essential element of
the nonmoving party’s claim. Id. at 331-32.
In this case, the Debtors’ motion and the attached evidentiary materials do not adequately
negate or even address the specific elements of the cross-claims raised in Defendant Keechle’s
Answer, Counter-Claim and Cross-Claim [Adv. Doc. 13]. Specifically, the Debtors do not
discuss Defendant Keechle’s claims regarding the existence of an express, resulting or
constructive trust. In addition, their motion fails to address the sufficiency of Defendant
Keechle’s claim that the Debtors were unjustly enriched through the conveyance of the New
Carlisle property at 242 Shepard Street. Furthermore, the Debtors’ reliance on two municipal
court entries to establish ownership interests in the New Carlisle property valued at $60,000.00
in the Debtors’ Schedule A raises questions as to whether the entries, if intended to settle
ownership interests in the property, exceed municipal court jurisdiction. See Ohio Rev. Code §
1901.17.
Because there remain disputed issues of fact as to the cross-claims raised in Defendant
Keechle’s Answer, Counter-Claim and Cross-Claim, the Debtors’ Motion for Summary
Judgment [Adv. Doc. 34] is denied.
SO ORDERED.
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Copies to:
James R Warren
PO Box 706
Springfield, OH 45501
Email: jamesrwarren@sbcglobal.net
John R Monroe
Anna M Monroe
336 Rosewood Road
Medway, OH 45341
Anthony E Kohler
210 N Fountain Ave
Springfield, OH 45504
Email: kohler@core.com
Jennifer L Keechle
242 Shepard Street
New Carlisle, OH 45344
Dennis E Stegner
111 East Cecil Street
Springfield, OH 45504
Asst US Trustee (Day)
Office of the US Trustee
170 North High Street
Suite 200
Columbus, OH 43215-2417
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