Justice Eileen Bransten
Iberiabank sued Kramer asserting he was liable under a personal guaranty for over $5 million on a note between West End Mercury and Iberiabank’s predecessor, Century Bank. It moved for summary judgment. Kramer claimed Century failed to distribute the loan amount to the borrower, or that Century failed to distribute the loan amount in accordance with closing documents. He alleged the guaranty was invalid, void for lack of consideration and unenforceable. The court disagreed. It noted Kramer provided only conclusory and unsupported allegations in support of his defense, finding insufficient factual evidence existed to support his contention that Century failed to distribute the loan amount to the borrower or in accordance with closing documents. Also, the court stated an extension of credit was ample consideration of the execution of a guaranty, stating Kramer acknowledged receipt of valuable consideration when he executed the guaranty. Thus, his argument the guaranty was void for lack of consideration was insufficient to defeat Iberiabank’s motion. Hence, the court concluded Iberiabank sufficiently proved the underlying debt that Kramer guaranteed, demonstrating a prima facie entitlement to judgment on the guaranty.
