Westmore Equities, LLC v. Village of Coulterville et al
Filing
135
ORDER: For the reasons set forth in the attached Memorandum and Order, the Court GRANTS the Appellants request for a stay contingent on the Appellants cooperation with a supersedeas bond in the amount of $75,600.00. Until the supersedeas bond is deposited, the judgment remains in full force and effect as to all parties. Signed by Chief Judge Michael J. Reagan on 12/30/16. (rah)
WESTMORE EQUITIES, LLC,
Plaintiff,
vs.
VILLAGE OF COULTERVILLE,
Defendant/Third-Party Plaintiff,
vs.
MORAN ECONOMIC DEV., LLC,
Third-Party Defendant.
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Case No. 15-cv-0241-MJR-DGW
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
REAGAN, Chief District Judge:
I.
Introduction
This case, initiated in March 2015, concerns the validity of an agreement between
the parties regarding Tax Increment Financing dollars (“TIF Funds”) generated by the
construction of a Dollar General Store in Coulterville, Illinois. In September 2016 this
Court granted summary judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs (Docs. 102, 103). The grant
of summary judgment was premised upon a number of complex findings about the
authority of the parties to enter into various contracts and agreements, or alternatively,
the basic principle of estoppel. A more thorough history of the underlying facts and
findings can be found in this Court’s orders granting summary judgment for the
Plaintiffs (Docs. 102 and 103). The Defendants (Appellants) filed a notice of appeal, and
simultaneously requested a stay of judgment (Docs. 109-111). The request for a stay of
judgment is now before the Court for a decision.
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II.
Pertinent Facts
The Appellants seek a stay of judgment pending the outcome of the appeal (Doc.
111). The Appellees oppose the requested stay on two grounds: first, that the judgment
was not a money judgment; and, second, that the relevant factors do not weigh in favor
of a stay (Doc. 124). In the alternative, the Appellees’ request that the Appellants place
funds into a supersedeas bond (Id.). The Court directed the parties to specifically
address the amount of money to be placed in a bond (Dkt. entry 128). The Appellees
requested a bond of $75,600.00—an amount comprised of monies owed for 2013 and
2014, projected figures for 2015 and 2016, and the amount of costs awarded in relation
to summary judgment (Doc. 130). The Appellants timely responded, continuing to
oppose the necessity of a bond, but agreeing with the amount calculated by the
Appellees in the event that the Court requires a bond.
III.
Legal Analysis
FEDERAL RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 62(d) allows an appellant to stay a monetary
judgment by posting a supersedeas bond. “The bond may be given upon or after filing
the notice of appeal or after obtaining the order allowing the appeal. The stay takes
effect when the court approves the bond.” FED. R. CIV. P. 62(d). This Court possesses
discretion regarding the appropriateness of a bond, though the Seventh Circuit has
found that requiring a bond “is the simplest way” of assuring an appellee that payment
on an underlying judgment will be made should the appellee prevail on appeal.
Lightfoot v. Walker, 797 F.2d 505, 507 (7th Cir. 1986). The factors to be considered
when issuing a stay include: (1) the showing of likelihood of success on appeal; (2) the
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likelihood of irreparable harm absent a court order; (3) the harm to other parties from a
possible court order; and, (4) the public interest. Hilton v. Braunskill, 481 U.S. 770, 777
(1987).
First, as to the likelihood of success on appeal—this Court is not persuaded that
the Appellants are likely to succeed, but the Court does acknowledge that reasonable
jurists could differ on the interpretation of the parties’ contractual powers and
obligations that this Court was required to interpret in granting summary judgment.
Given the complexity of TIF funds, and the lack of authority directly resolving the
conflict between the parties, the Court cannot say that there are no debatable issues to
be addressed on appeal. Thus, even though the Court stands by its ruling on summary
judgment, the Court finds that this factor weighs in favor of requiring a bond given the
possibility that there are meritorious arguments to be made on appeal.
Second, the Court does not find the likelihood of irreparable harm to weigh
explicitly for or against granting a stay and requiring a bond in this case. On one hand,
the Appellants suggest that if the funds are paid during the pendency of the appeal, the
Appellee’s may in essence wind-up shop and liquidate the funds. The Court finds this
suggestion improbable because the Appellants have not identified any plausible reason
why the Appellees would wind-up and dissolve their assets.
On the other hand, as to the third factor (harm to other parties), the Appellees
suggest that the Appellants may make the funds unavailable to them by depleting the
TIF fund during the pendency of the appeal (Doc. 124 at 5). The Court finds this
suggestion similarly implausible because the Appellees have not provided any
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explanation as to how the Appellants could deplete these funds—and the Court’s
understanding is that once the funds are earmarked for certain valid TIF purposes,
those funds cannot be easily redistributed.
The Appellants insist that a bond is
unnecessary or useless because they do not have the authority to reallocate or diminish
the TIF funds in the interim, but they do not explicitly argue that taxpayers or any other
party would be affirmatively hurt by the placement of the funds in a bond.
Accordingly, the Court does not find that any party has made a persuasive argument on
this factor.
Fourth, the Court finds that public interest weighs slightly in favor of requiring a
bond in this case.
As the Seventh Circuit has stated, a supersedeas bond is the
“simplest” way to maintain the security and finality interests that typically accompany
the entry of judgment. This case has already cost the parties sufficient funds and time,
so there is a vested interest in finality of judgment.
IV.
Conclusion
Based on the factors analyzed above, the Court GRANTS the Appellants request
for a stay contingent on the Appellants cooperation with a supersedeas bond in the
amount of $75,600.00. This Court does not have explicit rules for calculating the proper
amount of a bond, but the parties have agreed on this amount and the Court does not
find it unreasonable.
Therefore, the Court approves a bond in the amount of
$75,600.00. The requested stay will become effective when the Appellants deposit the
supersedeas bond, as set forth above. Until the supersedeas bond is deposited, the
judgment remains in full force and effect as to all parties.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: December 30, 2016
s/ Michael J. Reagan
Michael J. Reagan
United States District Judge
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