Credit Europe Bank, N.V. v. Tuspa Trade, LLC

Filing 8

ORDER granting Plaintiff's ECF No. 4 Ex Parte Motion for TRO, temporarily restraining Defendant Tuspa Trade LLC; directing Plaintiff to serve documents on Defendant by 3/2/2017. Response to request for preliminary injunction due by 3/8/2017, reply due by 3/10/2017, and hearing on the motion set for 3/14/2017 at 10:00 AM in Reno Courtroom 5 before Judge Larry R. Hicks. Signed by Judge Larry R. Hicks on 3/1/2017. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - KR)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

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***

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CREDIT EUROPE BANK, N.V.,

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Plaintiff,
Case No. 3:17-cv-0129-LRH-WGC

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v.
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ORDER
TUSPA TRADE, LLC,
Defendant.

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Before the court is plaintiff Credit Europe Bank, N.V.’s (“CEB”) ex parte application

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for a temporary restraining order and order to show cause as to why a preliminary injunction

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should not be issued. ECF No. 4. Defendant Tuspa Trade, LLC (“Tuspa”) has not been served

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with either the present application for a temporary restraining order or the underlying

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complaint.

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I.

Facts and Procedural Background
This is a fraudulent transfer action arising out of a loan agreement. Plaintiff CEB is an

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international bank incorporated in the Netherlands with its principal place of business in

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Amsterdam. On or about January 25, 2013, CEB entered into a loan and credit agreement with

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two companies, Kurum International S.H.A. and Kurum Demir Sanayi Dis Tacaret A.S. The

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loan and credit agreement was guaranteed by Kurum Holding A.S. (“Kurum Holding”) and

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Hasmet Bedii Kurum (“Kurum”), the owner/director of the various companies. Pursuant to the

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loan and credit agreement and the guarantee, Kurum pledged to not transfer any personal or

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company assets without CEB’s written approval.
From 2013 through 2015, the two borrowing companies were extended credit under the

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credit and loan agreement in excess of €10,000,000.00. In 2016, CEB notified all parties

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involved in the credit and loan agreement and guarantee that an event of default had occurred

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under the agreement1 and that repayment of the extended credit was due. At this time, no

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money has been repaid on the outstanding amounts.
Prior to Kurum’s personal bankruptcy, but after the personal guarantee on the credit and

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loan agreement was executed, Kurum allegedly transferred, without CEB’s express written

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permission, all shares Kurum had owned in a company known as Kosova e Re Sh. p.k.

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(“Kosova”) to defendant Tuspa, a Nevada limited liability company set up by Kurum in 2014.

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At this time, the value of the shares in Kosova are alleged to be approximately €1,500,000.00.
On February 28, 2017, CEB initiated the underlying action for fraudulent transfer

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against defendant Tuspa. ECF No. 1. Along with its complaint, CEB filed the present ex parte

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application for a temporary restraining order. ECF No. 4.

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II.

In its present application, Credit Europe Bank requests the court issue a temporary

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Discussion

restraining order without notice to defendant Tuspa. See ECF No. 4.
Pursuant to Rule 65, “[t]he court may issue a temporary restraining order without

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written or oral notice to the adverse party . . . only if: (A) specific facts in an affidavit or a

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verified complaint clearly show that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will

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result to the movant before the adverse party can be heard in opposition; and (B) the movant’s

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attorney certifies in writing any efforts made to give notice and the reasons why it should not

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be required.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 65(b)(1).
Here, after reviewing the documents and pleadings on file in this matter, the court finds

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that CEB has satisfied the requirements for issuance of a temporary restraining order without

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The triggering event of default under the credit and loan agreement is identified at the personal bankruptcy of
Kurum in Turkey.

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notice under Rule 65. Although CEB has not filed a verified complaint in this action (See ECF

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No. 1), it has set forth specific facts in three separate declarations2 attached to the present

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application establishing that immediate and irreparable injury is likely to occur if notice of the

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present application is required. Specifically, CEB has established that on previous attempts to

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collect on the underlying debt Kurum has repeatedly transferred assets to various companies

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around the globe in an attempt to hide those assets upon receiving notice of collection attempts

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and civil lawsuits. For example, in early 2016, CEB initiated legal action in Albania against

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Kurum Holding A.S. in an attempt to annul a similar transfer of stock from Kurum to a

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company incorporated in Delaware. After receiving notice of the Albanian lawsuit, the stock

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was transferred from that Delaware company to a Scottish limited liability partnership and then

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transferred again in an attempt to hide and protect that stock from the Albanian litigation. See

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ECF No. 4, Ex. 3. Based on this evidence, the court finds that there is a real likelihood that

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upon receiving notice of the pending lawsuit, Kurum and Tuspa will attempt to transfer the

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Kosova stock to another entity, likely outside of this court’s jurisdiction as it did in the

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Albanian litigation. Therefore, the court finds that Credit Europe Bank has met the

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requirements for issuance of a temporary restraining order without notice.

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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that plaintiff’s ex parte application for a temporary

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restraining order (ECF No. 4) is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that defendant Tuspa Trade, LLC is TEMPORARILY

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RESTRAINED from transferring, selling, gifting, or in any way relieving itself of any and all

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shares of Kosova e Re Sh. p.k., a Republic of Kosova insurance company, until such time that

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the court can decide whether to issue a preliminary injunction.

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In support of its application, Credit Europe Bank has provided the following attached declarations: Declaration of
Arvin Tseng, counsel for Credit Europe Bank (ECF No. 4, Ex. 1); Declaration of Songul Balaban Yucebas,
department manager and vice president for the structured trade and commodity finance department at Credit Europe
Bank (ECF No. 4, Ex. 2); and Declaration of Aike Arjen Krips, the division director for the legal division at Credit
Europe Bank (ECF No. 4, Ex. 3).

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff Credit Europe Bank, N.V. shall serve a copy

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of the ex parte application for a temporary restraining order and order to show cause

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(ECF No. 4) - along with a copy of the complaint (ECF No. 1), summons, and a copy of this

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order - on defendant no later than Thursday, March 2, 2017. Defendant may file a response to

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the request for a preliminary injunction no later than 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, March 8, 2017.

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Plaintiff may file a reply no later than 5:00 p.m., Friday, March 10, 2017.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a hearing on plaintiff’s request for a preliminary

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injunction is scheduled for Tuesday, March 14, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 5 at the Bruce

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R. Thompson courthouse in Reno, Nevada. If the parties have any questions concerning the

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hearing, the parties may contact the courtroom deputy, Dionna Negrete, at [phone] no

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later than Monday, March 13, 2017.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED this 1st day of March, 2017.

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LARRY R. HICKS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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