Savoy v. Citimortgage CA2/8

Filed 2/18/14 Savoy v. Citimortgage CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION EIGHT

JAMES SAVOY, B242460

Plaintiff and Appellant, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BC462587) v.

CITIMORTGAGE INC. et al.,

Defendants and Respondents.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. Kenneth R. Freeman, Judge. Affirmed.

James Savoy, in pro. per.

Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, Roy G. Weatherup, Daniel G. Bath and Allison A. Arabian for Defendant and Respondent Citimortgage, Inc.

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In this action, James Savoy alleges that Phyllis Scott, his childhood friend, fraudulently induced him to help her pay the mortgage on and manage an apartment building she owned. Savoy brought a fraud and wrongful foreclosure action against Scott and Citimortgage, Inc. after Citimortgage foreclosed on the property. The trial court sustained Citimortgage’s demurrer to Savoy’s first amended complaint without leave to amend. We affirm. FACTS Scott and Savoy were childhood friends. Scott purchased an apartment building located in Los Angeles on June 9, 1999, with Wilson Twain. In or about May 2000, Scott began having financial difficulties and borrowed $4,000 from Savoy’s wife to pay the mortgage. She then arranged for Savoy to take over the mortgage payments for the property and manage it. On June 5, 2001, Scott notified Citimortgage that Savoy was “the Operations Manager and business partner of Phyllis Scott and Twain Wilson. He is to have full access to all information and full authority to initiate, implement, or terminate agreements, payments, contracts, etc.” She also advised Citimortgate that Savoy had full authority concerning the property and the related mortgage, deed, and trust on February 13, 2002. Scott promised to repay Savoy for the money and time he put into the property. On January 5, 2005, Scott signed a grant deed granting to Savoy an undivided one-half interest of her share of the property to him. A grant deed reflecting this transfer was recorded on February 25, 2005. In 2006, Savoy stopped managing the property. Scott collected rent from the property and was tasked with distributing Savoy’s share to him. A trustee’s sale of the property took place on October 15, 2009. Savoy brought suit against Citimortgage and Scott on May 31, 2011, for fraud and wrongful foreclosure. He sought an accounting, an equitable lien, an order vacating and setting aside the trustee’s sale, equitable estoppel, the cancellation of the void trustee’s deed upon sale, and quiet title. In addition to alleging the facts above, Savoy alleged that Scott never intended to fulfill her promise to repay him. Savoy alleged that from October 1999 to October 2008, Scott owed Savoy over $500,000, for which the property was