A judge has denied a request by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s family to be granted a trial over legal actions taken by Martinsville-based Carter Bank & Trust as the bank seeks repayment of more than $300 million in loans.
Martinsville Circuit Judge G. Carter Greer’s opinion this week followed a Dec. 11 court hearing in which an attorney for Justice; his wife, Cathy; and their son, Jay, asked Greer to set aside confessions of judgment filed against the family by the bank and instead schedule the case for a trial.
A confession of judgment is a clause in a loan document that allows a creditor to obtain judgment against a non-paying debtor without having to go to trial. The bank filed multiple confessions of judgment against the Justices on April 20 in Martinsville Circuit Court in connection with the unpaid loans, which were due April 15, and soon followed up with similar filings against multiple Justice-owned companies.
Greer wrote in a letter dated Monday that the Justices do not deny that they owe the money, do not dispute the amounts owed and did not put forth “any well-recognized defense,” such as fraud or duress, when asking for a trial instead of allowing the confessions of judgment to stand.