Drown v. National City Bank (In re Ingersoll)
- Summarized by Dean Langdon , DelCotto Law Group PLLC
- 14 years 7 months ago
- Citation:
- 11a0504n.06
- Tag(s):
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- Ruling:
- Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (420 B.R. 414) and Bankruptcy Court (403 B.R. 515) rulings upholding the validity of a notary certificate that did not reflect one signature was pursuant to a power of attorney. The Court of Appeals agreed with the Bankruptcy Court that 1) since the power of attorney granted the spouse full authority to mortgage the property, acknowledgement of her signature was what mattered; and 2) Ohio law did not require the notary certificate to disclose that a signature was made pursuant to a power of attorney.
- Procedural context:
- Chapter 7 trustee appealed ruling of the Sixth Circuit BAP, which affirmed the Bankruptcy Court's decision. Appellee, National City Bank did not file a brief with the Sixth Circuit. This case is not recommended for full-text publication.
- Facts:
- Husband executed general power of attorney to Wife on the same day that Wife executed a mortgage on real property owned jointly with the right of survivorship. Wife's signature on behalf of Husband states she signs as power of attorney. The notary certificate on the mortgage states that both Husband and Wife "personally appeared" and signed the mortgage. The notary certificate makes no reference to power of attorney status. Husband passes away and Wife files Chapter 7 two and a half years later. The Trustee sought to avoid the mortgage against deceased Husband's interest pursuant to his status as a bona fide purchaser. The Bankruptcy Court ruled in favor of the mortgage lender for the reasons stated above.
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