SEIBEL, District Judge.
Before the Court is the appeal of N. Providence, LLC ("NP") from the Bankruptcy Court's September 26, 2011 bench ruling, (AP Doc. 14),
Although this case arises in a lengthy bankruptcy proceeding, the present issue involves little more than a breach of contract dispute between a landlord and tenant. I set forth below only the facts relevant to the disposition of this matter.
NP as landlord and A & P as tenant are parties to a 20-year lease (the "Lease"), dated June 26, 2007, and amended October 23, 2009, for a shopping center located in New Providence, New Jersey. (Compl. ¶¶ 18-20.)
Specifically, Article 7, Section G of the Lease (hereinafter, "Section 7.G"), as amended, provided that NP "shall pay to [A & P]" a $1.9 million construction allowance (the "Construction Allowance") on or before the ninetieth day following the date that A & P opened its store to the public. (Id. § 7.G; Amendment § 9(e).)
The Lease also required A & P to pay to NP the portion of NP's property taxes corresponding to A & P's share of floor space in the shopping center. (Id. Ex. G at 66.) Such payments thus were "Charges," defined as amounts "payable by [A & P] to [NP]" under the Lease. (Id. § 4.)
On September 24, 2010, A & P opened its store to the public, thereby giving NP ninety days, or until December 23, 2010, to pay the Construction Allowance. (Compl.¶ 24.) On October 22, 2010, NP secured a loan commitment for $19.2 million from UBS. (Id. ¶ 26.) NP and UBS established a target closing date of December 16, 2010, several days before the Construction Allowance was due. (Id. ¶ 27.)
On December 21, 2010, four days prior to NP's projected closing date, A & P, along with fifty-three other affiliated debtors, filed petitions for chapter 11 relief in the Bankruptcy Court. (Id. ¶ 28; A & P Mem. 2.)
On June 28, 2011, NP commenced an adversary proceeding against A & P, seeking a declaration from the Bankruptcy Court that the Construction Allowance owed to A & P must be reduced by the amount of rent payments under the Lease that A & P withheld. (Compl.¶ 10.) NP argued that Section 7.G of the Lease must be read in conjunction with Section 27.A, titled "LANDLORD'S DEFAULT," which provides that, in the event of NP's default, A & P "may deduct from fixed annual rent and/or Charges" the amount in default "plus interest on the outstanding balance," subject to certain limitations. (Id. ¶ 23 (citing Lease § 27.A)
On September 26, 2011, the Bankruptcy Court heard oral argument on the motions and issued a partial bench ruling on the record in favor of A & P. (See 9/26/11 Hr'g Tr. 148:6-154:17.) Judge Drain concluded that "under the plain language of paragraph 7(g) [A & P] has the ability to withhold the payment of fixed annual rent and [ ] charges until it actually receives the construction allowance." (See id. at 150:4-7.) He rejected NP's argument that Section 27.A of the Lease modified Section 7.G and "requir[ed] [A & P] to set-off versus simply withholding and abating the payment of rent until the construction allowance is paid." (See id. at 150:16-22, 151:17-20.) But Judge Drain was troubled that "without any offset or deduction ... there may be a considerable windfall to [A & P] beyond its readily imaginable or conceivable damages." (See id. at 154:6-10.) For this reason, Judge Drain ordered additional briefing on "the narrow issue of the enforceability of liquidated damages provisions under New Jersey law as between sophisticated entities such as [NP] and [A & P]." (See id. at 154:13-17.)
The parties submitted supplemental briefs on October 26, 2011, and the Bankruptcy Court issued a bench ruling on January 24, 2012, and an Order on March 8, 2012. (See 3/8/12 Order.)
On December 14, 2012, after hearing oral argument from the parties, the Bankruptcy Court preliminarily denied NP's motion, but requested additional briefing on A & P's argument that Section 7.G was a forfeiture provision. (See 12/14/12 Hr'g Tr. 74:13-23.)
On April 30, 2013, the Bankruptcy Court heard oral argument on A & P's motion for summary judgment and issued a bench ruling in A & P's favor. (See 4/30/13 Hr'g Tr.)
Judge Drain deferred ruling on NP's argument that it was owed Fourth Quarter 2010 and Third Quarter 2011 taxes, and ordered the parties to submit additional briefing on the issue. (See id. at 66:6-67:2.) The Bankruptcy Court reviewed the parties' submissions, and entered an Order, dated June 21, 2013, which granted A & P's motion for summary judgment, denied NP's cross-motion for summary judgment and fixed NP's claim for taxes. (See 6/21/13 Order.)
On July 3, 2013, NP filed a timely Notice of Appeal. (Doc. 1.) On appeal, NP argues that the Bankruptcy Court erred in granting summary judgment to A & P and permitting A & P to withhold all rent and Charges for the nine-month period during which NP failed to pay the Construction Allowance. (See NP Mem. 11-12.) Specifically, NP challenges the Bankruptcy Court's conclusions that: 1) Sections 7.G and 27.A of the Lease do not provide for a set-off or credit against the Construction Allowance owed to A & P; 2) Section 7.G is an enforceable forfeiture provision under New Jersey law; and 3) NP was not entitled to Third Quarter 2011 taxes. (See id.)
This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 158(a)(1) to hear appeals from final judgments, orders, and decrees of a bankruptcy court. A district court reviews a bankruptcy court's findings of fact for clear error and reviews its legal conclusions de novo. Overbaugh v. Household Bank N.A. (In re Overbaugh), 559 F.3d 125, 129 (2d Cir.2009) (per curiam); see Fed. R. Bankr.P. 8013 (district court may "affirm, modify, or reverse a bankruptcy judge's judgment, order, or decree").
NP first challenges the Bankruptcy Court's interpretation of Section 7.G of the Lease. (See NP Mem. 12-17.) The Bankruptcy Court held that, under Section 7.G of the Lease, A & P was allowed to withhold rent and Charges without crediting the withheld amounts against the Construction Allowance. NP argues that the plain language of the Lease, along with the clear intent of the parties, supports interpreting Section 27.A to modify Section 7.G and allow for a set-off of rent and Charges against the Construction Allowance. (See id.) A & P responds that the Bankruptcy Court correctly interpreted the Lease as providing a "customary abatement, not a setoff right." (See A & P Mem. 6-12.)
Under New Jersey law,
Reviewing the plain language of Section 7.G of the Lease, the Court is not persuaded that the parties intended for rent and Charges to be set off against the Construction Allowance. Section 7.G unambiguously states that if NP fails to pay the Construction Allowance, then A & P's "obligation to pay fixed annual rent and Charges shall abate." (Lease § 7.G.) The term "abatement" is defined as "[t]he act of eliminating or nullifying." Black's Law Dictionary 3 (9th ed. 2009). A & P's obligation to pay rent and Charges was eliminated during the period that NP failed to pay the Construction Allowance. Thus, the Bankruptcy Court correctly held, under the plain meaning of Section 7.G, that the Lease does not provide for rent and Charges to be set off against the Construction Allowance.
NP argues that Section 27.A of the Lease undermines this interpretation of Section 7.G and requires that the Construction Allowance be set off against the abated rent and Charges. Here, NP relies on two provisions of Section 27.A. The first states that A & P's right "to offset, withhold, or deduct" amounts when NP is in default is capped at thirty percent of the next month's payment, but that that cap does not apply to Article 7 of the Lease. (Lease § 27.A.)
NP first contends that because one provision of Section 27.A — the thirty-percent limitation on A & P's right "to offset, withhold, or deduct" — does not apply to Article 7, the remaining parts of the Section must apply to that Article, including Section 7.G. (See NP Mem. 14.) NP's argument appears to be that there would be no need to carve out Article 7 from the thirty-percent cap if Section 27.A did not otherwise apply to it in the first place.
As the Bankruptcy Court found, NP and A & P are "sophisticated parties," (see 9/26/11 Hr'g Tr. 153:17), and presumably they knew how to draft a lease. That they chose not to provide for set-off under Section 7.G persuades the Court to reject NP's suggestion that the parties intended for Section 27.A to modify Section 7.G.
The Court is equally unpersuaded by NP's argument that because Section 7.G refers to the term "Lease Interest Rate," and Section 27.A defines the term "Lease Interest Rate," Section 27.A must apply to Section 7.G. (See NP Mem. 16-17.) The cross-reference between Sections 7.G and 27.A serves to define the rate at which interest on the Construction Allowance must be paid; it does not imply that Section 27.A otherwise modifies Section 7.G. Contract provisions frequently incorporate definitions from other parts of the contract, and such incorporation has no effect on the substance of the incorporating provision. Cf. Am. Asphalt Co. v. Cnty. of Gloucester, No. L-1412-08, 2011 WL 1119064, at *4, *8 (N.J.Super.App.Div. Mar. 29, 2011) (rejecting plaintiff's argument that contract's "generic cross-reference"
NP also argues that because the parties did not amend Section 27.A when they amended Section 7.G, they intended for Section 27.A to apply to Section 7.G. (See NP Mem. 15.) But NP overlooks that A & P's obligation to pay rent and Charges also "abate[d]" under the pre-amendment version of Section 7.G. (See Lease § 7.G.) The Amendment to the Lease merely adjusted the amount of the Construction Allowance, reducing it from $2 million to $1.9 million, and the conditions under which rent and Charges abated. (Compare id. § 27.A, with Amendment § 9(e).) The Amendment provides no basis for inferring that the parties intended to modify the plain abatement language of Section 7.G.
NP finally argues that Section 27.A must apply to Section 7.G to prevent A & P from experiencing a windfall of $949,875.03. (See NP Mem. 15.) NP asserts that, without set-off, A & P will be allowed to keep the Construction Allowance plus interest, along with the abated rent and Charges, even though A & P had full use of the building during the entire period of NP's breach. (See NP Reply Mem. 2.) The Court recognizes that A & P may emerge from this dispute with a significant profit, but the Lease contemplates such an outcome, and the Court's task "is not to rewrite a contract for the parties better than or different from the one they wrote for themselves." Kieffer, 205 N.J. at 223. The Court therefore affirms the Bankruptcy Court's conclusion that Section 7.G provides for an abatement of rent and Charges, without set-off, during the period that NP was in breach of the Lease.
NP next contends that the Bankruptcy Court erred in construing Section 7.G as a forfeiture provision where the Lease did not expressly provide for forfeiture and controlling authority dictates that contracts be construed against forfeiture. (See NP Mem. 18-19.) NP further contends that, even if Section 7.G is a forfeiture provision, the provision is unenforceable under New Jersey law because A & P was adequately compensated for NP's breach via interest. (See id. at 19-21.) NP finally argues that a forfeiture provision, similar to a liquidated damages clause, must be reasonable, and here the amount of forfeiture is plainly unreasonable because it "does not bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages sustained by A & P for NP's delay." (See id. at 21-27.)
With respect to whether Section 7.G is a penalty, liquidated damages or forfeiture provision, A & P responds that Section 7.G falls squarely within the definition of "forfeiture" because NP "lost its right to collect rent [and Charges]," (see A & P Mem. 12), and is "wholly inconsistent with the definition of a `penalty' under New Jersey law," (see id. at 13). A & P adds that, despite NP's argument otherwise, there is no requirement under New Jersey law
The Bankruptcy Court correctly construed Section 7.G as a forfeiture provision. A "forfeiture" is defined as "[t]he loss of a right, privilege, or property because of a crime, breach of obligation, or neglect of duty." Black's Law Dictionary 722. Section 7.G abates A & P's obligation to pay rent and Charges upon NP's breach of its obligation to pay the Construction Allowance, and thus NP's right to collect rent and Charges is lost, or forfeited, in the event of breach. That Section 7.G does not expressly use the term "forfeiture" does not affect the Court's analysis. See Dunkin' Donuts, 100 N.J. at 173, 495 A.2d 66 (agreement that "rights of the Licensee [ ] shall cease" qualified as forfeiture);
The Bankruptcy Court also correctly determined that Section 7.G is enforceable under New Jersey law. Dunkin' Donuts remains the seminal New Jersey case on the enforceability of forfeiture provisions. There the Supreme Court of New Jersey held that "if parties choose to contract for a forfeiture, a court of equity will not interfere with that contract term in the absence of fraud, accident, surprise, or improper practice." 100 N.J. at 182, 495 A.2d 66. The Court in Dunkin' Donuts reversed the lower court, which had partially relieved a franchisee from an agreement that divested his entire interest in his franchise based on his breach of the agreement. Id. The lower court acted to prevent an "inappropriate windfall" to the franchisor, but the Supreme Court held that forfeiture was appropriate where the parties had contracted for such an outcome "in the absence of fraud, accident, surprise, or improper practice." Id. As in Dunkin' Donuts, NP and A & P contracted for a forfeiture and — in the absence of fraud, accident, surprise, or improper practice, none of which NP argues is present — the forfeiture will be upheld, even if it results in a windfall to A & P.
NP also attempts to import a reasonableness inquiry into the Court's forfeiture analysis. NP contends that, under New Jersey law, the "enforceability of a forfeiture provision [must be] judged against the standard of reasonableness." Rosen v. Smith Barney, Inc., 393 N.J.Super. 578, 592, 925 A.2d 32 (N.J.Super.App.Div.2007). NP fails to acknowledge that this language from Rosen follows a discussion on contract formation — namely whether "plaintiffs voluntarily entered into the agreement, [and whether]
NP finally argues that the Bankruptcy Court erred in finding that A & P does not owe $66,669.35 in Third Quarter 2011 taxes. (See NP Mem. 28-33.) NP contends that the Bankruptcy Court erroneously found that NP waived its claim to these taxes by failing to "timely assert a cure claim under 11 U.S.C. § 365," and that even if NP had not waived its claim, A & P was not obligated to pay these taxes because they became due as a "Charge" under the Lease while NP was in breach of the Lease for failing to pay the Construction Allowance. (See id.)
A & P responds that Third Quarter 2011 taxes were not part of the proceedings below, and that NP needed to assert a separate claim for that amount in the adversary proceeding or as an administrative claim. (See A & P Mem. 21.) A & P also argues that even if NP did not need to assert a separate claim for the taxes, A & P's obligation to pay them abated because NP was in breach when they came due. (Id. at 22-23.)
Assuming that NP has not waived its claim to collect Third Quarter 2011 taxes, A & P is not obligated to pay Third Quarter 2011 taxes because these taxes became due as a "Charge" under the Lease during the period when A & P could abate Charges as a result of NP's breach. As explained above, Section 7.G of the Lease permits A & P to abate payment of rent and Charges during the period of NP's breach, which began on December 23, 2010, and extended through September 2011. "Charges" are defined in the Lease as "all other charges payable by [A & P] to [NP]," (Lease § 4), which includes taxes A & P owed to NP under the Lease provision requiring A & P to reimburse NP for its proportional share of NP's property taxes, (id. Ex. G at 66). Under the Lease, A & P has to pay NP for taxes thirty days after NP invoices A & P for them. (Id.) There is no dispute that NP first invoiced the Third Quarter 2011 taxes on August 24, 2011, making A & P's payment due on September 23, 2011. (See AP Doc. 35 Ex. 2.) Nor is there any dispute that NP was in breach at that time for failing to pay A & P the Construction Allowance. Thus the Third Quarter 2011 taxes were a Charge that A & P was entitled to abate. That NP later submitted a second invoice on October 13, 2011, after it had cured its breach, (see id. Ex. 3), does not change the fact that NP first invoiced these taxes during the period when A & P had the right to abate these Charges. For this reason, I affirm the Bankruptcy Court's conclusion that NP is not entitled to collect $66,669.35 in Third Quarter 2011 taxes.
For the reasons stated above, the Order of the Bankruptcy Court is AFFIRMED.
(Lease § 27.A.)