BRANCH, Judge.
Following foreclosure on his residential property, Adrian Stewart brought suit against Suntrust Mortgage, Inc. and later amended his verified complaint, asserting
We review de novo a trial court's determination that a pleading fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, "constru[ing] the pleadings in the light most favorable to the plaintiff with any doubts resolved in the plaintiff's favor." Center for a Sustainable Coast v. Ga. Dept. of Natural Resources, 319 Ga.App. 205-206, 734 S.E.2d 206 (2012) (citation omitted). See also Gold Creek SL v. City of Dawsonville, 290 Ga.App. 807, 809(1), 660 S.E.2d 858 (2008) (pleadings to be construed include exhibits attached to and incorporated into complaint and answer).
So construed, the pleadings show that in January 2008, Stewart signed a promissory note in favor of Suntrust and a security deed in favor of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as nominee for Suntrust in exchange for a loan from the bank. In August 2012, with the mortgage past due, Suntrust offered "home preservation assistance" to Stewart to avoid foreclosure on the property. Stewart had used these services to obtain a loan modification to prevent foreclosure one year earlier. In the August 2012 negotiations, Suntrust told Stewart that he should work only with the bank and that while his application for home preservation assistance was pending, any foreclosure sale would be postponed. Suntrust asked Stewart to complete a "borrower response package" to apply for the assistance, and Stewart did so on September 6. Suntrust told Stewart that within 30 days of receipt of the package, it would tell him what home preservation options were available and instruct him on the next steps.
During September, October and the beginning of November, however, Suntrust informed Stewart several times that his documentation was incomplete and required him to send the same documents repeatedly. Meanwhile, on October 6, Suntrust placed a foreclosure sale notice in the newspaper showing a sale date of November 6. On the day of the scheduled foreclosure, Suntrust told Stewart that no final decision had been made on his application for home preservation assistance but that it was too late to stop the foreclosure, which occurred that day. Suntrust thereafter successfully pursued a dispossessory action against Stewart; a final order was entered on July 31, 2013. His appeal of the dispossessory judgment has been denied.
A motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim
Stendahl v. Cobb County, 284 Ga. 525, 525(1), 668 S.E.2d 723 (2008) (citation and punctuation omitted). See also Austin v. Clark, 294 Ga. 773, 775, 755 S.E.2d 796 (2014) (such a motion "should not be granted unless it appears to a certainty that the plaintiff would be entitled to no relief under any state of facts which could be proved in support of his claim") (citation and punctuation omitted). Also, a plaintiff need not set forth all elements of a cause of action in order to state a claim. Babalola v. HSBC Bank, USA, N.A., 324 Ga.App. 750, 752(2), 751 S.E.2d 545 (2013).
In his complaint, Stewart alleges that Suntrust made knowingly false statements when it told him that his application documentation was incomplete, that it would inform him of his options after receiving the application, and that foreclosure would be postponed while his application was pending.
2. Stewart contends the trial court erred by dismissing his claim for wrongful foreclosure. The elements of a claim of wrongful foreclosure are "a legal duty[
Stewart alleges that Suntrust breached contractual duties found in Paragraphs 10 and 18 of the security agreement. Paragraph 18 provides the procedures for foreclosure, including that the borrower appoints the lender to be his agent and attorney-in-fact to exercise the power of sale. "The relationship of principal and agent, being confidential and fiduciary in character, demands of the agent the utmost loyalty and good faith to his principal." Harrison v. Harrison, 214 Ga. 393, 394(1), 105 S.E.2d 214 (1958) (citation and punctuation omitted); Wright v. Apt. Inv. & Mgmt. Co., 315 Ga.App. 587, 592(2)(a), 726 S.E.2d 779 (2012) (same); OCGA § 23-2-58 (same). In the complaint, Stewart alleged that Suntrust breached paragraph 18 of the security agreement by failing to conduct the foreclosure of the property "fairly," which, together with the remainder of the complaint, can be construed as conducting the foreclosure while falsely representing that the foreclosure would be postponed pending his application for reinstatement; these allegations, at a minimum, suggest a breach of the agent's
Suntrust argues that even if it made the representations as alleged by Stewart, they are unenforceable because agreements to modify a security deed are unenforceable under the Statute of Frauds. But Stewart does not allege that Suntrust agreed to modify the terms of the security agreement. As shown, Stewart alleges that Suntrust breached a legal duty under that agreement.
3. Stewart contends the trial court erred by dismissing its claim for breach of contract. Under Georgia law, "a security deed which includes a power of sale is a contract and its provisions are controlling as to the rights of the parties thereto and their privies." Babalola, 324 Ga.App. at 754(2)(b), 751 S.E.2d 545 (citation and punctuation omitted). As shown, Stewart has alleged a breach of Paragraph 18, which is supported by the text of that paragraph and Stewart's allegations cited above in the context of the fraud and wrongful foreclosure claims. Thus, "[Stewart's] complaint, coupled with the attachment of the Security Deed as an exhibit thereto, was sufficient for purposes of the Civil Practice Act to put [Suntrust] on notice of the breach-of-contract claim being asserted against it." Racette v. Bank of America, N.A., 318 Ga.App. 171, 180(4), 733 S.E.2d 457 (2012) (citation omitted). Suntrust argues that because Stewart had not paid in full at the time that Suntrust sought foreclosure, Stewart is precluded from suing Suntrust for failing to perform its contractual obligations related to reinstatement and foreclosure. This argument is without merit because Stewart's obligation to make payments was not a precondition to Suntrust's obligations of reinstatement and foreclosure, which, obviously, are triggered by a failure to pay. See generally OCGA § 13-5-8 ("A condition, precedent or subsequent, not complied with, insufficiency or failure of consideration, or any act of the opposite party, by which the obligation of the contract has ceased, may be pleaded as a defense."); Nutting v. Wilson, 75 Ga.App. 148, 152, 42 S.E.2d 575 (1947) (plaintiff's right to recover on a contract may depend upon a condition precedent to be performed by him). In sum, the trial court therefore erred by dismissing this claim.
4. Stewart contends the trial court erred by dismissing its claim for breach of duty of good faith and fair dealing. A duty of good faith and fair dealing is implied in all contracts. OCGA § 11-1-203; West v. Koufman, 259 Ga. 505, 506, 384 S.E.2d 664 (1989). A breach of that duty may arise where a party to a contract acts arbitrarily or capriciously in executing its contractual duties. See Hunting Aircraft v. Peachtree City Airport Auth., 281 Ga.App. 450, 452(1), 636 S.E.2d 139 (2006). Thus, for the same reasons discussed in Division 3, the trial court erred in dismissing the claim for breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing. Racette, 318 Ga.App. at 181(5), 733 S.E.2d 457.
5. Stewart contends the trial court erred by dismissing its claim for violation of Georgia's Fair Business Practices Act (FBPA), which prohibits "[u]nfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of consumer transactions and consumer acts or practices in trade or commerce." OCGA § 10-1-393(a). But the FBPA exempts "[a]ctions or transactions specifically authorized under laws administered by or rules and regulations promulgated by any regulatory agency of this state or the United States." OCGA § 10-1-396(1). Thus, where the action or transaction at issue is authorized or regulated by a state or federal regulatory agency, the FBPA does not apply. Cf. Chancellor v. Gateway Lincoln-Mercury, 233 Ga.App. 38, 45(2), 502 S.E.2d 799 (1998) (because finance charges, disclosure, and truth in lending are regulated by the federal Truth In Lending Act and other federal regulations,
Although we have found no similar Georgia cases, Federal courts applying Chancellor have held that because mortgage transactions are regulated by state and federal law, FBPA claims that allege injury based on mortgage transactions should be dismissed, either because the entire area of mortgage transactions are regulated or because the specific transactions at issue in the case are so regulated.
6. Stewart's claim that the trial court erred by dismissing his claim for injunctive relief is also without merit. Stewart's complaint reveals that the debt was in default at the time of the foreclosure.
Berry v. Govt. Nat. Mtg. Assoc., 231 Ga. 503, 202 S.E.2d 450 (1973) (citation and punctuation omitted) (affirming dismissal of borrower's suit to cancel and set aside foreclosure given that plaintiff had not tendered past due payments); see also Smith v. Citizens & Southern Financial Corp., 245 Ga. 850, 852(1), 268 S.E.2d 157 (1980) ("Appellants have made no tender of the indebtedness secured by the deed to secure debt and thus are not entitled to set aside the sale under power.") (citations omitted). Accordingly the trial court correctly dismissed this claim.
7. Because we have reversed the dismissal of four of Stewart's substantive claims, including the intentional tort of fraud, we also reverse the dismissal of his claims for punitive damages, attorney fees and costs. Racette, 318 Ga.App. at 181(6), 733 S.E.2d 457.
8. Stewart's argument that the trial court erred by giving res judicata effect to the ruling in the dispossessory case is without merit and mooted by the remainder of this opinion. Nothing in the trial court's order indicates that it held that Stewart's claims were barred by res judicata.
Judgment affirmed in part and reversed in part.
BARNES, P.J., and BOGGS, J., concur.