Opinion ID: 532607
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Tax Deed Proceeding

Text: 16 The BAP correctly held that the tax deed proceeding was void due to the invalid tax sale. We agree with the analysis of this issue in Richard v. City of Chicago, 80 B.R. at 452-53. The facts in Richard were similar to this case and, like this case, Richard involved Illinois law. In Richard the purchaser argued that the tax sale was a voidable act ratified when the debtor let the two-year statutory redemption period lapse. The court rejected this argument, holding the tax sale void. Id. at 453. It further held invalid the tax deed issued because of the void tax sale. Id. at 455; see also In re Young, 14 B.R. at 812 (enjoining purchaser at tax sale from seeking issuance of tax deed because sale, conducted in violation of automatic stay, was null and void); cf. In re Wheeler, 5 B.R. 600, 603-04 (Bankr.N.D.Ga.1980) (holding delivery of deed, acceptance of check, and recording of deed all void actions and without legal effect) (Georgia law). 17 The decisions cited by Phoenix, Marks, and DeBois and relied on by the bankruptcy court involve facts different from this case. All involve situations where the bankruptcy petition was filed during the statutory redemption period. See, e.g., In re Tynan, 773 F.2d 177, 179 (7th Cir.1985) (Wright, J.); In re Martinson, 731 F.2d 543, 544 (8th Cir.1984); Johnson v. First Nat'l Bank, 719 F.2d 270, 272 (8th Cir.1983), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1012, 104 S.Ct. 1015, 79 L.Ed.2d 245 (1984); In re Tabor Enters., Inc., 65 B.R. 42, 44 (Bankr.N.D.Ohio 1986) (under Illinois law). The Shamblins filed their petition well before the tax sale occurred. 18 The equities surrounding the tax deed proceeding also weigh against the appellants. They could have sought relief from the automatic stay before committing acts that violated it. See Richard, 80 B.R. at 453 n. 2, 455. Instead, they refused to return the Certificate of Purchase, continued with the tax deed proceeding, and misled the court regarding the bankruptcy.