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Mathews v. Branch Banking & Trust Co.
Citations: 139 So. 3d 498; 2014 WL 2536831; 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 8629Docket: No. 2D13-4065
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; June 6, 2014; Florida; State Appellate Court
W. Robert and Lura B. Mathews are appealing a trial court order that awarded surplus funds from the foreclosure sale of their home to Branch Banking and Trust Co. (BB&T). The trial court concluded that BB&T was entitled to the entire surplus to satisfy its second mortgage interest. However, the appellate court found that the trial court erred because BB&T failed to file a claim with the clerk of the court within the sixty-day period mandated by section 45.031(7)(b), Florida Statutes (2010), following the foreclosure sale. The foreclosure action was initiated by U.S. Bank after the Mathewses defaulted on their loan, with Colonial Bank, N.A. named as a defendant due to its second mortgage. BB&T, as successor to Colonial Bank, claimed entitlement to sale proceeds based on its mortgage priority. After the property sale, U.S. Bank received the judgment amount, and $124,369.43 remained as surplus. The Mathewses filed a claim for these surplus funds seven months later, while BB&T filed its claim over three months after that. The trial court ruled in favor of BB&T, acknowledging that a subordinate lienholder needed to file a claim within sixty days post-sale. However, it incorrectly interpreted BB&T's earlier answer and affirmative defense as fulfilling the claim requirement. The appellate court clarified that such filings do not satisfy the statutory requirement to file a claim with the clerk after the property sale. The standard of review for this statutory interpretation is de novo, focusing on legislative intent and the statute's plain meaning. Clear and unambiguous statutory language mandates its plain interpretation without resorting to statutory construction rules. Section 45.031(7)(b) specifically requires any person claiming surplus funds to file a claim with the clerk within sixty days after the sale, emphasizing that failure to do so results in an inability to claim remaining funds. BB&T needed to submit its claim within this timeframe to preserve its rights to the surplus but failed to do so, as its claim was filed on July 5, 2013, just before the hearing set for July 8, 2013. The trial court's reliance on Citibank v. PNC Mortg. Corp. was deemed improper, as the sixty-day requirement was not part of the statute at the time Citibank was decided in 1998; it was added in 2006. The court concluded that BB&T was not entitled to the surplus funds from the foreclosure sale and reversed the trial court's order, remanding for further proceedings. Legislative history supports this interpretation, indicating a clear intent for notification regarding the claim filing requirement within the specified timeframe.