Opinion ID: 2338745
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Third party complaint against the Kennedy Center

Text: The motions court ruled in 1989 that Corto could not sue the Kennedy Center as a third-party defendant. Corto argues that the court erred because, for purposes of the proceeding, the Kennedy Center was acting as a party and the trial court, in its final order entered after trial, considered the Kennedy Center to be a party when it made findings with respect to the Kennedy Center's contractual and garnishee relationships with Corto. We disagree. A proper third-party claim would lie only if Corto claimed that the Kennedy Center was liable to her for the debt she owed to National. Super. Ct.Civ. R. 14(a); see also Delany v. Murphy, 338 A.2d 432, 434-35 (D.C.1975) (noting that if the party sought to be impleaded can only be held liable to the original plaintiff, however, he cannot be brought into the action under Rule 14.). In her third-party complaint Corto did not allege any basis for the Kennedy Center's liability based on her liability to National. Instead, Corto claimed that the Kennedy Center had illegally attached her property and, as a result, converted it. Corto also claimed that the Kennedy Center breached fiduciary and contractual responsibilities. Therefore, there was no basis for a complaint against the Kennedy Center as a third-party defendant. As noted above, to the extent that Corto's claims related to the Kennedy Center's actions as garnishee, Corto did not timely assert her objections in the trial court. To the extent that Corto's claims against the Kennedy Center were based on the production contract, those claims should have been brought either in a separate action or in recoupment at trial. [13] In view of the bankruptcy court's determination that the involuntary petition filed on the day of trial was collusive and filed in bad faith, Corto cannot claim that she did not have an opportunity, at trial, to assert her contractual claims against the Kennedy Center in mitigation of her liability to the Kennedy Center.