In its motion for summary judgment, Plaintiff sought to establish that a debt owed by Defendant pursuant to the Colorado Mechanics Lien Trust Fund Statute, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-22-127, was nondischargeable pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(4). Plaintiff also sought treble damages, plus interest and attorneys’ fees, pursuant to Colorado’s Rights in Stolen Property Statute, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-4-405, along with a summary judgment that such award was nondischargeable.
The Court determined that – notwithstanding the statutory language limited to subcontractors, laborers, and suppliers – Plaintiff, a general contractor, had standing under the particular circumstances of this case to assert a claim under the Mechanics Lien Trust Fund Statute. The Court went on to determine that Defendant had committed defalcation while acting in a fiduciary capacity, rendering the debt owed by Defendant’s company to Plaintiff nondischargeable pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(4).
The Court also determined that, because Plaintiff had failed to provide evidence of a specific violation of Colorado’s Civil Theft Statute, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-4-401, arising from Defendant’s use of trust funds, Plaintiff had failed on summary judgment to establish a right to treble damages and attorneys’s fees under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-4-405.
[gview file=http://www.cob.uscourts.gov/opinions%5Cbk10-16920_adv10-1486_order.pdf]