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Successful Contracting Company. Jimmy Jones had a successful contracting company which was worth several million dollars. Over his lifetime, he had seen the business go up and down with the economy. To put away some funds for the future, he bought an apartment building and a small shopping center. Jimmy worked until his seventies and never found the right person to take over his company. His daughter Jane is a successful CPA with her own practice but his son Jimmy Jr. drifts from job to job. Jimmy gave his children everything when
they were growing up because he didn’t want his children to remember being poor as a child.
Great Banking Relationship. Jimmy has had a great relationship with his local community bank where he had his business accounts over the years. He had a line of credit and commercial loans on his apartment building and shopping center all with the same bank. He thought he saved on legal fees when he obtained or renewed his loans by not having a lawyer review the documents.
MegaBank Takes Over. On Friday the 13th of November, Jimmy had a heart attack and died. All of the loan documents for his business and his real estate have a clause in the loan documents which say that if Jimmy died, the bank could demand full payment immediately on all of his loans. Recently, his local community bank had been acquired by MegaBank which now has all of Jimmy’s loans. MegaBank has been kept out of bankruptcy by billions of dollars from the federal government. The federal regulators want MegaBank to have higher cash reserves in case of loan defaults and to get rid of all risky loans, which the regulators classify as including all commercial loans on local real estate to individual owners. Jimmy had always paid all of his loans on time and the business and real estate generated enough cash flow most months to pay all of the loans; Jimmy was an excellent credit risk. Now, because Jimmy has no successor in place to take over his construction business and manage his real estate, MegaBank feels itself insecure, is being pressured by the regulators and therefore declares due and immediately payable all of the loans that Jimmy had with the bank based upon the clause in the loan documents that the bank can demand immediate full payment if the borrower dies.
MegaBank Wins in Court. Jimmy’s daughter Jane hires an attorney to try to stop the foreclosures on the business and the real estate. Jane loses in court because the loan documents clearly allowed MegaBank to foreclose if Jimmy died. Jane pays $120,000 in legal fees out of her savings and MegaBank adds its legal fees of $150,000 to the balance due on the loans owed by Jimmy’s estate. Due to the depressed construction industry during the recession and the decrease in values for the real estate and the shortage of loan money, Jane can not get loans to stop the foreclosures. After MegaBank foreclosed, Jimmy’s construction company closed its doors and 32 people lost their jobs. The real estate was sold at fire sale prices for less than the balances on the loans. MegaBank came after Jimmy’s savings and wiped out any other money he had that did not go by right of survivorship to Gerry, Jimmy’s widow. Jimmy’s widow sells her house to have money to live on and moves in with her sister and her sister’s crude and rude husband. Jimmy’s children, who could have each inherited millions, will get no significant inheritance from their parents.
Prevention. This could have all been prevented. “Death is a default” is a standard term in commercial loan documents that can be removed through negotiations. If Jimmy had hired our firm to represent him with his commercial loans, we would have insisted that the loan commitment letter state that the loan could not be called by the bank if Jimmy died. We would have worked with Jimmy to have a business succession plan in place that we would show to the bank to convince them that they would still be paid if Jimmy died. We have always been able to obtain bank agreement that the loan could not be called in the event of the death of the principal borrower. MegaBank would not have had the right to foreclose and the Jimmy Jones family assets would have been saved and Gerry would not have had to move in with her sister and her rude husband. Many entrepreneurs do not use competent legal counsel to review the commercial loan commitment letter before their sign it. This story shows what can happen to a lifetime of work and a family if you do not obtain the proper loan terms.
they were growing up because he didn’t want his children to remember being poor as a child.Great Banking Relationship. Jimmy has had a great relationship with his local community bank where he had his business accounts over the years. He had a line of credit and commercial loans on his apartment building and shopping center all with the same bank. He thought he saved on legal fees when he obtained or renewed his loans by not having a lawyer review the documents.
MegaBank Takes Over. On Friday the 13th of November, Jimmy had a heart attack and died. All of the loan documents for his business and his real estate have a clause in the loan documents which say that if Jimmy died, the bank could demand full payment immediately on all of his loans. Recently, his local community bank had been acquired by MegaBank which now has all of Jimmy’s loans. MegaBank has been kept out of bankruptcy by billions of dollars from the federal government. The federal regulators want MegaBank to have higher cash reserves in case of loan defaults and to get rid of all risky loans, which the regulators classify as including all commercial loans on local real estate to individual owners. Jimmy had always paid all of his loans on time and the business and real estate generated enough cash flow most months to pay all of the loans; Jimmy was an excellent credit risk. Now, because Jimmy has no successor in place to take over his construction business and manage his real estate, MegaBank feels itself insecure, is being pressured by the regulators and therefore declares due and immediately payable all of the loans that Jimmy had with the bank based upon the clause in the loan documents that the bank can demand immediate full payment if the borrower dies.
MegaBank Wins in Court. Jimmy’s daughter Jane hires an attorney to try to stop the foreclosures on the business and the real estate. Jane loses in court because the loan documents clearly allowed MegaBank to foreclose if Jimmy died. Jane pays $120,000 in legal fees out of her savings and MegaBank adds its legal fees of $150,000 to the balance due on the loans owed by Jimmy’s estate. Due to the depressed construction industry during the recession and the decrease in values for the real estate and the shortage of loan money, Jane can not get loans to stop the foreclosures. After MegaBank foreclosed, Jimmy’s construction company closed its doors and 32 people lost their jobs. The real estate was sold at fire sale prices for less than the balances on the loans. MegaBank came after Jimmy’s savings and wiped out any other money he had that did not go by right of survivorship to Gerry, Jimmy’s widow. Jimmy’s widow sells her house to have money to live on and moves in with her sister and her sister’s crude and rude husband. Jimmy’s children, who could have each inherited millions, will get no significant inheritance from their parents.
Prevention. This could have all been prevented. “Death is a default” is a standard term in commercial loan documents that can be removed through negotiations. If Jimmy had hired our firm to represent him with his commercial loans, we would have insisted that the loan commitment letter state that the loan could not be called by the bank if Jimmy died. We would have worked with Jimmy to have a business succession plan in place that we would show to the bank to convince them that they would still be paid if Jimmy died. We have always been able to obtain bank agreement that the loan could not be called in the event of the death of the principal borrower. MegaBank would not have had the right to foreclose and the Jimmy Jones family assets would have been saved and Gerry would not have had to move in with her sister and her rude husband. Many entrepreneurs do not use competent legal counsel to review the commercial loan commitment letter before their sign it. This story shows what can happen to a lifetime of work and a family if you do not obtain the proper loan terms. 
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