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Ogunwo v. American National Insurance Co.3/6/1997
Plaintiff, Bankole A. Ogunwo, appeals from a summary judgment in favor of defendant, American National Insurance Company (ANIC), ruling that he did not have standing to assert his wrongful termination claims against defendant because he had filed a petition in bankruptcy and, therefore, his claims belonged to the bankruptcy estate. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand the cause for further proceedings.
Ogunwo was employed by ANIC from October 1, 1990, until April 12, 1991. He alleged that his employment with ANIC was wrongfully terminated because he complained of and refused to participate in illegal and unethical conduct by ANIC.
In 1992, he filed a voluntary petition in bankruptcy under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, and obtained a discharge in October 1992. However, in his petition he had not scheduled his claims of wrongful termination against ANIC as an asset. Therefore, in February 1993 the bankruptcy court allowed Ogunwo to reopen the bankruptcy proceeding to list his wrongful termination claim as an asset of his bankruptcy estate. The following day, Ogunwo filed this wrongful termination action in state district court.
On October 28, 1993, the bankruptcy court determined that all personal injury claims and 75 percent of all wages and benefits of employment claimed by Ogunwo were exempt from the bankruptcy estate and allowed Ogunwo to pursue his exempt claims against ANIC. On the same date, the bankruptcy court granted the trustee's motion authorizing the trustee to sell the non-exempt claims to Ogunwo.
Subsequently, the trustee agreed to sell the non-exempt claims to Ogunwo for $1,750 payable in $150 monthly payments commencing February 20, 1995.
ANIC moved for summary judgment in the state court on September 11, 1995. Contending that Ogunwo's claims belonged to the bankruptcy estate at the time this action was filed and that Ogunwo did not acquire an interest in the claims until after the statute of limitations had expired on April 12, 1993, ANIC argued that Ogunwo did not have standing to bring the action. The motion made no distinction between exempt and non-exempt claims. The trial court granted the motion and this appeal followed.
I.
Ogunwo first contends that the trial court erred in granting ANIC's motion for summary judgment on the ground that the trustee was the real party in interest and that, therefore, Ogunwo did not have standing to bring this action. We agree with respect to Ogunwo's exempt claims, but not with respect to his non-exempt claims.
Summary judgment is appropriate only if there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. The purpose of summary judgment is to permit the parties to pierce the formal allegations of the pleadings and save the time and expense connected with trial when, as a matter of law, based on undisputed facts, one party could not prevail. Peterson v. Halsted, 829 P.2d 373 (Colo. 1992).
In determining whether summary judgment is proper, we must give the nonmoving party the benefit of all favorable inferences that may reasonably be drawn from the undisputed facts, and all doubts must be resolved against the moving party. A court must consider the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, in determining whether to grant a motion for summary judgment. Peterson v. Halsted, supra.
Every action must be prosecuted in the name of the real party in interest. C.R.C.P. 17(a). The real party in interest is the party who, by virtue of the substantive law, has the right to invoke the aid of the
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