DISTRICT COURT OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS 
DIVISION OF ST. THOMAS AND ST. JOHN 
NPA ASSOCIATES, LLC,  
Plaintiff, 
v. 
ESTATE OF DENNIS A. CUNNING, RHONDA J. 
WRENN A/K/A RHONDA J. WRENN CUNNING, 
1C ESTATE THOMAS HOLDINGS, LLC, UNITED 
STATES REVENUE SERVICE, UNITED STATES 
VIRGIN ISLANDS BUREAU OF INTERNAL 
REVENUE “JOHN DOE” BEING ALL UNKNOWN 
HEIRS, SUCCESSORS, AND ASSIGNS OF 
DENNIS A. CUNNING, AND ALL PERSONS 
CLAIMING A RIGHT, TITLE, LIEN, ESTATE 
OR INTEREST IN PARCEL NO. 1C ESTATE 
THOMAS, NO. 6C NEW QUARTER, ST. 
THOMAS, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS, AS SHOWN 
ON DRAWING NO. D9-2537-T83.  
 
Defendants. 
 
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Civil No. 2013-100 
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ATTORNEYS: 
 
Arthur Pomerantz 
Law Offices of Arthur Pomerantz 
St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. 
 
For the plaintiff, 
 
Stylish Willis 
Law Offices of Stylish Willis 
St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. 
 
For 1C Estate Thomas Holdings, LLC. 
 
Jason T. Cohen, AUSA 
United States Attorney’s Office 
St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. 
 
For the United States Internal Revenue Service. 
 
 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 1 of 11
Tamika Archer 
V.I. Department of Justice 
St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. 
 
For the United States Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal 
 
Revenue. 
 
AMENDED JUDGMENT1 
GÓMEZ, J. 
Before the Court are the motions of the plaintiff, NPA 
Associates, LLC (“NPA”), for default judgment against the 
defendants, Estate of Dennis A. Cunning (“Cunning’s Estate”); 
Rhonda J. Wrenn (“Wrenn”), and John Doe, being all unknown 
heirs, successors, and assigns of Dennis A. Cunning, and all 
persons claiming a right, title, lien, estate or interest in 
Parcel No. 1C Estate Thomas, No. 6C New Quarter, St. Thomas, 
U.S. Virgin Islands, as shown on Drawing No. D9-2537-T83. Also 
before the Court are NPA’s motions for summary judgment against 
1C Estate Thomas Holdings, LLC (“1C Holdings”), the United 
States Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”), and the United 
States Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue (“VIBIR”).  
Upon consideration of the record, the Court finds the 
following facts:  
                     
1 The prior judgment, which is docketed at ECF No. 85, 
inadvertently referred to tax liens issued by the Virgin Islands 
Bureau of Internal Revenue and the United States Internal 
Revenue Service as extinguished. As explained herein, only the 
federal tax lien was extinguished. This amendment addresses that 
oversight. 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 2 of 11
1. 
Pursuant to a warranty deed recorded April 1, 2005, Dennis 
A. Cunning (“Cunning”) and Rhonda J. Wrenn (“Wrenn”) were 
the owners as joint tenants with right of survivorship of 
the real property described as follows: 
 
Parcel 1C 
Estate Thomas #6C New Quarter, 
St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands 
PWD # D9-2537-T83 
(the “Property”) 
 
2. 
On or about January 6, 2006, Flagstar Bank (“FSB”) loaned 
Cunning $1,000,000. 
3. 
In exchange, Cunning executed a promissory note (the 
“Note”) in which he promised to repay FSB the principal sum 
of $1,000,000, plus interest at the initial rate of 6.875% 
per annum, payable in monthly payments of $5,729.17. The 
interest rate was adjustable every six months and would be 
calculated by adding 2.625% to an index rate. The minimum 
monthly payment would adjust to correspond to any altered 
rate.   
4. 
As security for the repayment of the Note, Cunning and 
Wrenn executed a mortgage (the “FSB Mortgage”), in the 
principal amount of $1,000,000, covering the Property. 
5. 
Under the FSB Mortgage, Mortgage Electronic Registration 
Systems, Inc. is the mortgagee as a nominee for FSB and 
FSB’s successors and assigns.   
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 3 of 11
6. 
The FSB Mortgage grants FSB the right to foreclose on the 
FSB mortgage. 
7. 
The FSB Mortgage states that any individual who executed 
the mortgage, but not the promissory note, would not be 
personally obligated to pay the sums secured by the 
Mortgage. 
8. 
The FSB Mortgage was recorded at the Office of the Recorder 
of Deeds for St. Thomas and St. John on January 12, 2006, 
as document number 2006000363.  
9. 
FSB assigned its interest in the FSB Mortgage to NPA. That 
assignment was recorded at the Office of the Recorder of 
Deeds for St. Thomas and St. John on July 12, 2011, as 
document number 2011005063. 
10. 
Wrenn and Cunning executed another mortgage on the 
Property, securing other debt. NFP was named as the 
mortgagee. That mortgage (the “NFP Mortgage”) was recorded 
at the Office of the Recorder of Deeds for St. Thomas and 
St. John on January 20, 2006, as document number 
2006000581. 
11. 
NFP assigned its interest in the NFP Mortgage to 1C Estate 
Thomas Holdings, LLC (“1C Holdings”). That assignment was 
recorded at the Office of the Recorder of Deeds for St. 
Thomas and St. John on September 30, 2013, as document 
number 2013007692. 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 4 of 11
12. 
The IRS filed a federal tax lien in the amount of 
$36,949.30 against Cunning (the “IRS Tax Lien”). The IRS 
Tax Lien was recorded at the Office of the Recorder of 
Deeds for St. Thomas and St. John on September 16, 2010, as 
Doc. No. 2010006890. 
13. 
VIBIR filed a tax lien in the amount of $62,450.46 against 
Cunning and Wrenn (the “VIBIR Tax Lien”). The VIBIR Tax 
Lien was recorded at the Office of the Recorder of Deeds 
for St. Thomas and St. John on April 6, 2011, as Doc. No. 
2011002311. 
14. 
Cunning died on November 11, 2011.  No probate proceedings 
were commenced for Cunning’s Estate. Cunning’s heirs, 
successors, and assigns not specifically named in the 
complaint are unknown. 
15. 
Cunning and Wrenn failed to make payments as required under 
the terms of the Note and the FSB Mortgage. After demand 
for payment was issued, Cunning and Wrenn continued to fail 
to make payments. 
16. 
NPA declared the entire amount of unpaid principal with 
accrued interest under the Note due and payable.  
17. 
To date, Cunning’s Estate and Wrenn remain in default under 
the Note and Mortgage.   
18. 
The total amount currently due and owing on the Note and 
Mortgage is $1,142,915.37. 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 5 of 11
19. 
No representative of Cunning’s Estate, Wrenn, or Cunning’s 
unknown heirs answered or appeared in this action. Wrenn is 
not a minor nor incompetent. Wrenn is also not currently on 
active military service.  
20. 
The Court previously entered default against Cunning’s 
Estate, Wrenn, and John Doe on July 9, 2014. 
21. 
NPA also moved for default judgment against Cunning’s 
Estate on October 2, 2014. 
22. 
NPA also moved for summary judgment against the IRS on July 
9, 2014.   
23. 
NPA also moved for summary judgment against VIBIR on 
September 1, 2014.  On September 25, 2014, VIBIR filed a 
notice informing the Court that it does not oppose the 
motion for summary judgment. 
24. 
NPA also moved for summary judgment against 1C Holdings on 
September 22, 2014.  On September 24, 2014, 1C Holdings 
filed a notice informing the Court that it does not oppose 
the motion for summary judgment. 
ANALYSIS 
 
The IRS seeks to enforce a tax lien against the Property. 
The Warranty Deed states that Cunning and Wrenn owned the 
Property as joint tenants with rights of survivorship. 
Accordingly, when Cunning died, Wrenn succeeded to Cunning’s 
interest by process of law. The Court must now determine whether 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 6 of 11
the IRS Tax Lien, which only attached to Cunning’s interest in 
the Property, survived Cunning’s death. 
Tax liens “cannot extend beyond the property interests held 
by the delinquent taxpayer.” United States v. Rodgers, 461 U.S. 
677, 691 (1983). “The federal tax lien statute itself ‘creates 
no property rights but merely attaches consequences, federally 
defined, to rights created under state law.’” United States v. 
Craft, 535 U.S. 274, 278 (2002) (quoting United States v. Bess, 
357 U.S. 51, 55 (1958)). 
In most states, when property is held in joint tenancy with 
a right of survivorship, liens issued against a deceased joint 
tenant’s interest in the property are extinguished when the 
deceased joint tenant dies and any other living joint tenants 
succeed to his share. See, e.g., Biggers v. Crook, 283 Ga. 50, 
53, 656 S.E.2d 835, 838 (2008) (“In the present case, the 
security agreement encumbered [the deceased joint tenant’s] 
interest only . . . [H]is death terminated his interest and 
extinguished the security interest . . . [he had granted in his 
interest in the property].”); Webster v. Mauz, 702 P.2d 297, 298 
(Colo. App. 1985) (“Upon the death of a joint tenant, the 
surviving tenant becomes sole owner of the property free from 
any liens which may have existed on the extinguished interest of 
the deceased.”); Harms v. Sprague, 105 Ill. 2d 215, 224, 473 
N.E.2d 930, 934 (1984) (“[W]e find that the mortgage executed by 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 7 of 11
[the deceased joint tenant] does not survive as a lien on 
plaintiff's property. A surviving joint tenant succeeds to the 
share of the deceased joint tenant by virtue of the conveyance 
which created the joint tenancy, not as the successor of the 
deceased.”); see also Internal Revenue Manual § 5.17.2.5.2.2(4) 
(“In most states, if the individual, against whose property a 
federal tax lien attaches, dies before any of the other joint 
tenants, then the lien ceases to attach to the property . . . 
[S]tate law should always be consulted to determine whether 
there is an exception to the general rule.”).  
Although no Virgin Islands’ statute or case law addresses 
this issue, the Court concludes that the Supreme Court of the 
Virgin Islands would not depart from this general rule if the 
issue were before it. Accordingly, the Court will apply the 
general rule in this case. 
Here, the IRS Tax Lien attached to only Cunning’s interest 
in the Property. Cunning and Wrenn owned the Property as joint 
tenants with the right of survivorship. When Cunning died, Wrenn 
became the sole owner of the Property through the Warranty Deed 
because she was a joint tenant with the right of survivorship. 
At that time, the IRS Tax Lien, which attached only to Cunning’s 
interest in the Property, was extinguished.  
Accordingly, the IRS Tax Lien is no longer a valid lien on 
the Property.  
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 8 of 11
The premises considered, it is hereby 
ORDERED that NPA’s motions for default and summary judgment 
are GRANTED; it is further 
ORDERED that Cunning’s Estate is liable to NPA in the 
amount of $1,142,915.37. Interest will accrue on this amount at 
the statutory rate after the date of this Judgment; it is 
further 
ORDERED that the IRS Tax Lien is not a valid lien on the 
Property; it is further 
ORDERED that as to the Property, the FSB Mortgage is a 
first priority lien. The NFP Mortgage is a second priority lien. 
The VIBIR Tax Lien is a third priority lien; it is further 
ORDERED that the FSB Mortgage, and any liens subsequent to 
it, are hereby foreclosed; it is further 
 
ORDERED that the aforesaid liens shall be foreclosed and 
the Property shall be sold by the United States Marshal 
according to law and the proceeds of such sales shall be applied 
first to the expenses associated with any sale, including but 
not limited to the costs of publication and the commission 
assessed by the United States Marshal’s Service pursuant to 
Title 28, Section 1921 of the United States Code, and then 
toward satisfaction of this Judgment in favor of NPA, including 
any costs and attorney’s fees that may be awarded upon 
application and any sums that may be paid by NPA for insurance 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 9 of 11
premiums, taxes, and expenditures necessary to maintain the 
Property pending sale with interest from the date of any such 
payment. Pursuant to Title 5, Section 489(5) of the Virgin 
Islands Code, the surplus, if any, remaining after application 
of the proceeds as provided above, shall be returned to the 
debtor; and it is further 
ORDERED that: 
1. 
Pursuant to Title 5, Section 484 of the Virgin Islands 
Code, notices of the Marshal’s sales shall be posted for 
four (4) weeks prior to the sales in a public place in or 
near the Office of the Clerk of the Court; and published 
once a week for at least four (4) consecutive weeks prior 
to the sales in a newspaper regularly issued and of general 
circulation in the U.S. Virgin Islands, which uses 
newsprint. The notice shall describe the Property as set 
out above and shall contain the terms and conditions of 
sale as set out herein. 
2. 
The terms and conditions of the sales shall be as follows: 
a. 
The Property shall be sold, as a whole, at a public 
sale at the Office of the U.S. Marshal, Federal 
Building, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. 
b. 
NPA may bid a credit against its Judgment and interest 
thereon, plus any costs and expenses, without tender 
of cash. 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 10 of 11
c. 
The terms of the sales as to all other persons or 
parties bidding shall be cash. 
d. 
The successful bidder on the Property shall be 
required to deposit with the United States Marshal 
cash equal to ten percent of his or her total bids at 
or before 5:00 p.m. on the date of the sale of the 
respective property; and the remaining ninety percent 
of the said purchase price to be paid on or before 
5:00 p.m. within thirty days inclusive, of the date of 
sale of the respective property. 
e. 
The United States Marshal shall make his report of the 
sale of the Property within ten days from the date of 
the sale. 
3. 
NPA shall have any and all writs necessary to execute the 
terms of this Judgment. 
 
S\ 
 
 
 
 
CURTIS V. GÓMEZ 
District Judge 
Case: 3:13-cv-00100-CVG-RM   Document #: 87   Filed: 10/17/14   Page 11 of 11