Opinion ID: 1925557
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Mortgage at Issue

Text: ¶ 5. On May 7, 1987, Waltke and his wife Marilyn executed a real estate mortgage on 34 acres of non-homestead property in Genesee, Wisconsin. The May 7 mortgage (the Mortgage) was a preprinted form that was originally prepared to have been executed on May 14, 1987. [3] The Mortgage was not recorded until June 2, 1987. This Mortgage is the subject of the parties' respective actions. ¶ 6. The face of the Mortgage states that it was given in consideration for a $50,000 promissory note (the Note), also dated May 7, 1987, in favor of the Bank. The Note is missing; however, the record clearly indicates that no money was disbursed to Waltke on May 7, 1987. The Bank asserts that this Note was a renewal of a September 4, 1986, loan, while Schanke argues that the Mortgage was a fraudulent transfer. ¶ 7. The Bank asserts that the Note, along with countless other documents, was destroyed in a flood of the Bank's basement. The circuit court found it was plausible that a flood destroyed the Note, although Schanke contested this explanation. Accordingly, the controversy between the Bank and Schanke arises from the missing Note. ¶ 8. Waltke had many other transactions with the Bank, including two related notes that were executed in the months leading up to May 7, 1987. Waltke signed the first of those notes on September 4, 1986. This $50,000 note in favor of the Bank was due December 3, 1986, and was secured by a printing press. This was a new loan; the record shows Waltke received a $50,000 cashier's check on September 4, 1986. The Bank claims that this note was renewed in December 1986 for another 90 days, to be due in early March. [4] ¶ 9. As for the second note, the record shows that on March 3, 1987, Waltke renewed the $50,000 September 4 note for another 90 days. This new note was due June 1, 1987, and states that it was a renewal of the September 4 note, but does not reflect that it was secured by any collateral. [5] ¶ 10. The Bank claims that the May 7 Mortgage and Note were a renewal and restructuring of the March 3 renewal note; the May 7 Note renewed the loan period, and the May 7 Mortgage secured the $50,000 debt in the March 3 renewal note. It is likely that, on its face, the May 7 Note would reveal whether it was, in fact, a renewal of the March 3 note.