Victor Rosario v. Marco Construction and Management , 443 N.J. Super. 345 ( 2016 )


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  •                  NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE
    APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION
    SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY
    APPELLATE DIVISION
    DOCKET NO. A-1562-14T3
    VICTOR ROSARIO, NILDA
    MALDONADO, NOEMI FLORES
    and JOSE FLORES,                        APPROVED FOR PUBLICATION
    Plaintiffs-Appellants,
    January 12, 2016
    v.
    APPELLATE DIVISION
    MARCO CONSTRUCTION AND
    MANAGEMENT INC. a/k/a MARCO
    CONSTRUCTION, WILLIAM MUSEY,
    and DOMINIC ANTONINI,
    BALSLEY/LOSCO1 REAL ESTATE,
    Defendants,
    and
    THE ESTATE OF STEPHAN MUSEY,
    Defendant-Respondent.
    ____________________________________
    Argued December 7, 2015 – Decided January 12, 2016
    Before Judges Lihotz, Fasciale and Nugent.
    On appeal from Superior Court of New Jersey,
    Law Division, Cumberland County, Docket No.
    L-0057-08.
    Louis   Giansante   argued  the   cause   for
    appellants (Giansante & Associates, L.L.C.,
    attorneys; Mr. Giansante, on the briefs).
    Mitchell   H.   Kizner   argued   the   cause   for
    1
    Although "Balsley" is spelled inconsistently in the record,
    we adopt the judge's spelling.
    respondent Jeannette Haynes, Executrix of
    the   Estate  of   Stephan  Musey   (Flaster/
    Greenberg, P.C., attorneys; Mr. Kizner and
    Douglas S. Stanger, on the joint brief).
    Gruccio, Pepper, DeSanto & Ruth, P.A.,
    attorneys for respondents Richard Goldstine
    and Marilyn Goldstine (Walter F. Gavigan, on
    the joint brief).
    The opinion of the court was delivered by
    FASCIALE, J.A.D.
    Victor Rosario, Nilda Maldonado, and Jose and Noemi Flores
    (collectively plaintiffs) appeal from a March 11, 2014 order
    denying their motion to file a fourth amended complaint against
    Jeannette Haynes, in her individual capacity and as executrix of
    defendant the Estate of Stephan Musey (the Estate), Richard and
    Marilyn   Goldstine,2      and    William    Musey,    Jr.   (the   grandson),
    alleging violations under the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act
    (the Act), N.J.S.A. 25:2-20 to -34.
    Plaintiffs       purchased      two     houses    constructed    on     land
    originally   owned    by    Musey,     which    was    contaminated.        They
    instituted   this     action      against    various    defendants     seeking
    damages to remediate the resultant environmental contamination.
    The asserted violations under the Act pertain to two alleged
    fraudulent   transfers       of    a   residence      originally    owned     by
    2
    Although "Goldstine" is also spelled "Goldstein" in the
    record, we adopt the judge's spelling.
    2                               A-1562-14T3
    defendant     Stephan   Musey,        located      on    Geissinger       Avenue    (the
    Geissinger property).
    In     2006,   Musey      sold    the       Geissinger        property    to    his
    daughter, Haynes, for $1 (the 2006 transfer), and retained a
    life estate for himself until his death in June 2008.                         In 2012,
    Haynes, after holding title for approximately six years, sold
    the Geissinger property to the Goldstines (the 2012 transfer),
    who are the in-laws of the grandson.3
    Plaintiffs contended that the transfers were designed to
    avoid collection on any potential judgment against the Estate
    following Musey's death.         The judge denied plaintiffs' motion to
    assert new claims under the Act, finding the new claims time
    barred under either the four-year statute of limitations (SOL)
    or one-year tolling period contained in N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a).
    Plaintiffs,        who     have        characterized           the    underlying
    environmental dispute as a tort case, urge us to conclude that
    the commencement of the SOL under the Act runs from a different
    date than in commercial contract transaction cases.                        Plaintiffs
    admit that in commercial contract transaction cases, the SOL
    under   the   Act   runs      from    the       date    of   the   transfer.        They
    maintain, however, that in tort cases, the SOL is triggered once
    3
    We adopt the judge's finding at the motion hearing that the
    transfer was made in 2012.
    3                                  A-1562-14T3
    they obtain a judgment.         Haynes and the Goldstines assert that
    the SOL under the Act is triggered on the date of the alleged
    fraudulent transfer.
    Applying the plain text of N.J.S.A. 25:2-31, we hold that
    the commencement of the SOL for claims under the Act in an
    underlying tort case is not contingent on obtaining a judgment.
    Thus, the SOL for causes of action under N.J.S.A. 25:2-25(a),
    regardless      of   whether   the   claimant     has   become   a   judgment
    creditor, expires four years from the date the transfer was made
    or the obligation was incurred or, if later, one year after the
    transfer   or    obligation    was   discovered   by    the   claimant.4     We
    decline to draw the distinction requested by plaintiffs that the
    commencement of the SOL under the Act runs from a different date
    in tort disputes than in commercial contract transaction cases.
    We conclude that the proposed claims under the Act are barred
    and therefore affirm.
    I.
    Musey owned property comprising three separate but adjacent
    4
    Although our Supreme Court refers to N.J.S.A. 25:2-31 as a
    statute of limitations, Sasco 1997 Ni, LLC v. Zudkewich,
    
    166 N.J. 579
    , 585 (2001), other courts have characterized it as
    a statute of repose because it refers to the extinguishment of
    substantive rights and is self-executing, see, e.g., Gibbons v.
    First Fid. Bank, N.A. (In re Princeton-New York Investors,
    Inc.), 
    199 B.R. 285
    , 293 n.4 (Bankr. D.N.J. 1996) (finding
    N.J.S.A. 25:2-31 is a statute of repose because it bars the
    right to bring the action and not the remedy).
    4                             A-1562-14T3
    lots located in Vineland (the property).                    Between 1972 and the
    1980s, Musey and his son, defendant William Musey (the son),
    operated an auto body and repair shop on the property.                       By 2003,
    Musey admitted to the New Jersey Department of Environmental
    Protection     (NJDEP)   that     the     property        contained    contaminated
    soil.    The NJDEP required Musey to remediate the property, which
    he never did.
    Without    resolving      the     environmental        issues,     Musey     and
    defendant      Marco   Construction           and    Management,      Inc.     (Marco
    Construction) entered into a joint venture agreement to build
    and sell two residential homes on a portion of the property.
    Marco Construction took title to the property, built the houses,
    and   listed    them   for    sale     using   defendant      Balsley/Losco       Real
    Estate   (Balsley/Losco).            Plaintiffs     then    purchased    the     homes
    without knowledge of the environmental problems.                       Soon after,
    Musey made the 2006 transfer.
    In January 2008, plaintiffs filed their complaint against
    Marco    Construction,       Stephan    Musey,      the   son,   Dominic     Antonini
    (owner of Marco Construction), and Balsley/Losco.5                      After Musey
    5
    Plaintiffs alleged the following causes of action: violation
    of the Consumer Fraud Act (CFA), N.J.S.A. 56:8-1 to -20 (Count
    One); breach of contract (Count Two); misrepresentation (Count
    Three); negligence (Count Four); equitable fraud (Count Five);
    and a violation of the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control
    Act (Spill Act), N.J.S.A. 58:10-23.11 to -23.24 (Count Six).
    5                                  A-1562-14T3
    passed    away,    plaintiffs    named       the    Estate   as    a   party,       which
    defaulted.
    The Estate was probated in July 2008.                      As to the probate
    matter, plaintiffs' counsel indicated generally in his merits
    brief that plaintiffs "were claimants in the [E]state, however,
    their claims were never addressed."                    There is no evidence in
    this record plaintiffs contended in the probate matter that the
    Geissinger property constituted an asset of the Estate.                         By the
    time the Estate was probated, Haynes had title to the Geissinger
    property, which had been publicly recorded in the county clerk's
    office for approximately one year.
    In    March     2011,    more     than    four     years      after     the    2006
    transfer, the son filed an individual petition in bankruptcy.
    As   a    result,    this     matter     was        stayed   until     March        2012.
    Plaintiffs'       counsel     indicated        in     his    merits     brief       that
    plaintiffs    were     "creditors"       in    the     bankruptcy      proceedings.
    There is no evidence in this record that plaintiffs questioned
    the propriety of the 2006 transfer, or that they argued in the
    bankruptcy matter the son played any role in the 2006 transfer.
    In    2012,     Haynes    sold     the    Geissinger         property     to    the
    Goldstines for $110,000.             Plaintiffs speculate the Geissinger
    property is worth more than the sale price.                       The grandson and
    his wife, the Goldstines' daughter, then occupied the Geissinger
    6                                    A-1562-14T3
    property.      On   December   6,   2013,   the   court   entered   default
    judgment against the Estate and awarded plaintiffs $1,843,210.07
    on their CFA claim.6
    Plaintiffs then filed their motion for leave to file a
    fourth amended complaint, asserting claims under the Act.                  In
    February 2014, the judge conducted oral argument and on March
    11, 2014, the judge denied the motion, issuing a written opinion
    and entering the order under review.7
    The judge concluded the four-year SOL contained in N.J.S.A.
    25:2-31(a) barred plaintiffs from bringing a claim under the Act
    as to the 2006 transfer.        The judge also addressed whether the
    one-year tolling period contained in N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a) saved
    plaintiffs' claim as to the 2006 transfer.          He found, based on a
    letter from plaintiffs' counsel, plaintiffs knew about the 2006
    transfer in May 2012.     As a result, the judge concluded that the
    one-year tolling period expired in May 2013.              Consequently, he
    determined plaintiffs' claim as to the 2006 transfer was time
    barred.     The judge did not reach the claim related to the 2012
    transfer because barring the 2006 claim broke the chain of title
    6
    This amount is comprised of damages in the amount of
    $501,942, trebled ($1,505,826) pursuant to the CFA, plus
    $337,384.07 for attorneys' fees and costs.
    7
    The order denied other relief not the subject of this appeal,
    and which our opinion otherwise rendered moot.
    7                              A-1562-14T3
    and precluded plaintiffs from arguing the Geissinger property
    was an asset of the Estate.
    In     2014,   the   judge     conducted        a     bench    trial    as   to    the
    remaining defendants.          In September 2014, the judge rendered a
    thirty-five page written opinion expressing his findings of fact
    and conclusions of law.            On October 16, 2014, the judge entered
    a final judgment in plaintiffs' favor against Marco Construction
    on Count One (CFA),8 Count Two (breach of contract), Count Three
    (misrepresentation),         and   Count       Six   (Spill        Act).9    The     judge
    dismissed     Count   Four    (negligence)           and    Count     Five   (equitable
    fraud).10    The remaining parties either settled or were dismissed
    8
    For the CFA claim, the judge entered a judgment against both
    Marco Construction and Dominic Antonini individually.   Judgment
    as to Counts Two, Three, and Six was rendered solely against
    Marco Construction.
    9
    As to the CFA charges, the judge awarded plaintiffs Victor
    Rosario and Nilda Maldonado trebled damages totaling $754,437,
    and plaintiffs Jose and Noemi Flores trebled damages amounting
    to $730,405.98.   Plaintiffs were also awarded attorneys' fees
    totaling $362,461.76 and filing fees and costs totaling
    $12,814.13.   As to the breach of contract claims, the court
    awarded Rosario and Maldonado $251,479 and Jose and Noemi Flores
    $243,468.66. As to misrepresentation, the court awarded Rosario
    and Maldonado $251,479 and Jose and Noemi Flores $243,468.66.
    The court awarded Rosario and Maldonado and Jose and Noemi
    Flores $35,000 for loss of quiet enjoyment. As to the Spill Act
    claims, the court ordered that plaintiffs were entitled to full
    contribution for any future cleanup and remediation costs that
    should arise.
    10
    These claims were alleged against both Marco Construction
    and Dominic Antonini.
    8                                      A-1562-14T3
    from the case and have not participated in this appeal.
    II.
    On appeal, plaintiffs argue that (1) the commencement of
    the   SOL    for   their   claims      under   the     Act    was    triggered    by
    obtaining final judgment on October 16, 2014; (2) their claims
    under   the    Act     should   have    been       tolled    under   the   adverse
    domination rule; (3) the remedies under the Act are "cumulative
    not exclusive" and are therefore "not [i]ntended to [d]isplace
    [c]ommon [l]aw [a]ctions"; and (4) their claims under the Act
    relate back to the filing of the complaint in January 2008,
    pursuant to Rule 4:9-3.
    The question as to what date triggers the SOL under the Act
    is a legal one.        "When deciding a purely legal issue, review is
    de novo."     Kaye v. Rosefielde, 
    223 N.J. 218
    , 229 (2015) (quoting
    Fair Share Hous. Ctr., Inc. v. N.J. State League of Muns., 
    207 N.J. 489
    , 493 n.1 (2011)).             Here, the judge properly concluded
    that the SOL is triggered by the date of the 2006 transfer.
    Rule 4:9-1 governs motions to amend pleadings.                  Motions for
    leave to amend are granted liberally,                  "even if the ultimate
    merits of the amendment are uncertain."                Prime Accounting Dep't
    v.    Twp.    of     Carney's   Point,       
    212 N.J. 493
    ,    511   (2013).
    Nonetheless,
    [o]ne exception to that rule arises when the
    amendment would be "futile," because "the
    9                                 A-1562-14T3
    amended claim will nonetheless fail and,
    hence, allowing the amendment would be a
    useless endeavor."    Notte v. Merchants Mut.
    Ins.   Co.,  
    185 N.J. 490
    ,  501  (2006).
    "'[C]ourts are free to refuse leave to amend
    when the    newly   asserted claim is not
    sustainable as a matter of law. . . .
    [T]here is no point to permitting the filing
    of an amended pleading when a subsequent
    motion to dismiss must be granted.'"    
    Ibid. (quoting Interchange State
    Bank v. Rinaldi,
    
    303 N.J. Super. 239
    , 256-57 (App. Div.
    1997)).
    [Ibid. (alterations in original).]
    We conclude that the proposed amendment asserting claims under
    the Act would be futile because the SOL expired.                As a result,
    the judge did not err.
    A.
    We reject plaintiffs' contention that the commencement of
    the SOL under the Act should be analyzed differently in tort and
    commercial contract transaction cases.            Specifically, plaintiffs
    maintain the SOL under the Act, in tort cases, is triggered only
    after   a   party   obtains   final   judgment.       The   premise   of    this
    contention,     which   is    indubitably       incorrect,     is    that    the
    transfers of the Geissinger property amounted to claims under
    the Act only after plaintiffs became judgment creditors in the
    underlying tort case.
    Plaintiffs       focus    primarily    on   the   "right    to    payment"
    language contained in N.J.S.A. 25:2-21, asserting that in an
    10                               A-1562-14T3
    underlying tort case, a claimant enjoys that right only after
    obtaining a judgment.        To address plaintiffs' assertion, we must
    interpret the text of the SOL under the Act.                    Our paramount goal
    in   interpreting     a   statute   is    to    ascertain       the      Legislature's
    intent, and "generally[] the best indicator of that intent is
    the statutory language."        DiProspero v. Penn, 
    183 N.J. 477
    , 492
    (2005).      When    interpreting    a    statute,        we   give      words     "their
    ordinary meaning and significance."              Tumpson v. Farina, 
    218 N.J. 450
    , 467 (2014) (quoting 
    DiProspero, supra
    , 183 N.J. at 492).
    The plain language of N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a) clearly provides
    that the triggering date for calculating the SOL under the Act
    is the transfer or the date when the obligation was incurred.
    The text of the SOL does not differentiate between tort and
    commercial     contract     transaction        cases.          It   is    clear       that
    becoming   a   judgment     creditor      is    not   a    precondition          to    the
    commencement of the SOL related to underlying tort cases.
    A cause of action with respect to a
    fraudulent transfer or obligation under this
    article is extinguished unless action is
    brought:
    a. Under subsection a. of R.S. 25:2-25,
    within four years after the transfer
    was made or the obligation was incurred
    or, if later, within one year after the
    transfer or obligation was discovered
    by the claimant[.]
    [N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a) (emphasis added).]
    11                                      A-1562-14T3
    The Act addresses fraudulent transfers, not solely as to
    present     creditors,      but   also       as    to    future    creditors      —   i.e.,
    creditors whose claims arose after the transfer was made but not
    necessarily before judgment in an underlying matter is entered.
    N.J.S.A. 25:2-25 states:
    A transfer made or obligation incurred by a
    debtor is fraudulent as to a creditor,
    whether the creditor's claim arose before or
    after   the   transfer  was   made   or  the
    obligation was incurred, if the debtor made
    the transfer or incurred the obligation:
    a. With actual intent to hinder, delay,
    or defraud any creditor of the debtor
    . . . .
    The Act provides precise definitions of the terms used.                             A
    "transfer"      is    defined     as    "every          mode,   direct     or   indirect,
    absolute or conditional, voluntary or involuntary, of disposing
    of or parting with an asset or an interest in an asset, and
    includes payment of money, release, lease, and creation of a
    lien   or     other    encumbrance."              N.J.S.A.      25:2-22.        For   cases
    involving real property, "transfer" has been defined as the date
    real    property       is     recorded.            See     N.J.S.A.       25:2-28(a)(1);
    Boardwalk Regency Corp. v. Burd, 
    262 N.J. Super. 162
    , 165 (App.
    Div. 1993).      A "debtor" is defined as "a person who is liable on
    a   claim."      N.J.S.A.      25:2-21.           A     "'claim'   means    a    right   to
    payment,      whether    or    not     the    right       is    reduced    to   judgment,
    liquidated, unliquidated, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured,
    12                                   A-1562-14T3
    disputed, undisputed, legal, equitable, secured, or unsecured."
    
    Ibid. A "creditor" is
    "a person who has a claim."                 
    Ibid. Importantly, a claim,
    as that term is defined in the Act,
    need not be reduced to a judgment.                  Consequently, a "creditor"
    may   include     "the    holder   of    an    unliquidated    tort    claim     or    a
    contingent claim."           Ibid.; see also 
    Sasco, supra
    , 166 N.J. at
    487 (stating the clear language of N.J.S.A. 25:2-31 reveals "the
    Legislature       concluded     that     the    date     of   judgment    was       not
    determinative of the timeliness of claims under the [Act]");
    Flood v. Caro Corp., 
    272 N.J. Super. 398
    , 405 (App. Div. 1994)
    (stating    "[a]ny       creditor,      with   or   without    a   judgment,        may
    prosecute a suit" under the Act).
    As a result, the "right to payment" of a claim, referenced
    in N.J.S.A. 25:2-21, is not dependent on obtaining a judgment
    because the Act refers to claims "whether or not the right is
    reduced      to     judgment,        liquidated,         unliquidated,          fixed,
    contingent,       matured,    unmatured,       disputed,      undisputed,      legal,
    equitable, secured, or unsecured."               
    Ibid. Because "'[t]he [Act]
    does not prevent a present or future "creditor" from seeking a
    remedy prior to judgment[,]'" 
    Sasco, supra
    , 166 N.J. at 586-87
    (quoting Intili v. DiGiorgio, 
    300 N.J. Super. 652
    , 659 (Ch. Div.
    1997)), it is logical to conclude in all cases that the SOL
    provided in N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a) commences from the date of the
    13                                  A-1562-14T3
    transfer or the date the transfer is discovered.                       Under the Act,
    "[a]ny creditor, with or without a judgment, may prosecute a
    suit."    
    Flood, supra
    , 272 N.J. Super. at 405.
    Granting plaintiffs' request to use a different triggering
    SOL   date    depending   on   the     nature       of   the   claim    —   commercial
    contract transaction or tort cases — would require us to rewrite
    an enactment of the Legislature or presume that the Legislature
    intended something other than what it clearly expressed in the
    plain language of the statute.                It is well settled that "[a]
    court may neither rewrite a plainly-written enactment of the
    Legislature nor presume that the Legislature intended something
    other    than    that   expressed      by     way    of    the    plain     language."
    O'Connell v. State, 
    171 N.J. 484
    , 488 (2002).                         As a result, we
    will not do so here.
    B.
    Although the plain language of N.J.S.A. 25:2-31 is clear,
    the   purpose    and    history   of    the    Act,       as   well    as   New     Jersey
    Supreme      Court   precedent,   provide       conclusive        support     for       our
    holding.
    New Jersey adopted the Act in 1988 to replace the Uniform
    Fraudulent Conveyance Act, which had been in effect since 1919.
    
    Sasco, supra
    , 166 N.J. at 584.                  "The Act modernizes the law
    respecting the rights and remedies of creditors in cases of
    14                                       A-1562-14T3
    transfers of assets by debtors[,] the design or effect of which
    is    to   prevent     or    impede     satisfaction         of     claims    out    of    the
    debtor's assets, or to prefer favored claimants."                            
    Flood, supra
    ,
    272 N.J. Super. at 403.
    "The    purpose       of   the   [Act]     is    to   prevent     a    debtor      from
    placing       his    or     her    property       beyond       a    creditor's      reach."
    Gilchinsky v. Nat'l Westminster Bank N.J., 
    159 N.J. 463
    , 475
    (1999).       "Underlying the Act is the notion that a debtor cannot
    deliberately cheat a creditor by removing his property from the
    'jaws of execution.'"              
    Ibid. "Fraudulent conveyance claims
    thus
    allow the creditor to undo the wrongful transaction so as to
    bring the property within the ambit of collection."                             
    Ibid. The Act prohibits
          any    transfer       intended        "to    hinder,     delay,      or
    defraud any creditor of the debtor."                    N.J.S.A. 25:2-25(a).
    The definition of claim contained within N.J.S.A. 25:2-21
    is    derived       from    Section     101(4)     of    the       Bankruptcy      Code,   11
    U.S.C.A. § 101(4).                7A Uniform Laws Annotated, Business and
    Financial Laws (Master ed. 2006) 16.                     "Since the purpose of the
    [Uniform      Fraudulent          Transfer    Act]      is     primarily      to    protect
    unsecured creditors against transfers and obligations injurious
    to their rights, the words 'claim' and 'debt' . . . generally
    have reference to an unsecured claim and debt."                          
    Ibid. Indeed, "[u]nder the
    Bankruptcy Code, the courts have noted that the
    15                                     A-1562-14T3
    term 'claim' has been defined as broadly as possible."                      Tronox
    Inc. v. Kerr McGee Corp. (In re Tronox Inc.), 
    503 B.R. 239
    , 309
    (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. 2013).            Other courts have adopted this same
    principle in cases interpreting their state's Uniform Fraudulent
    Transfer Act.        See, e.g., 
    ibid. (referencing the same
    definition
    of   "claim"    in    both   Oklahoma's      and   Utah's    Uniform   Fraudulent
    Transfer Act); Skyline Potato Co. v. Tan-O-On Mktg., Inc., 
    879 F. Supp. 2d 1228
    , 1262 (D.N.M. 2012) (explaining the "statutory
    definition[] for the term . . . claim, along with the manner in
    which courts have applied th[at] term[], the potential scope of
    persons who can qualify as proper plaintiffs under [New Mexico's
    Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act] is 'the broadest available' one
    a legislature could have adopted").
    In Sasco, our Supreme Court held the SOL under the Act
    commences      on    the   date   of   transfer,     as     "both   the   explicit
    language of and the intent underlying the [Act] demonstrate that
    the statute operates without regard to when the creditor obtains
    a judgment."         
    Sasco, supra
    , 166 N.J. at 587.             The Sasco Court
    further noted:
    The explicit language of the [Act] provides
    that the four-year provision runs from the
    date "the transfer was made," N.J.S.A. 25:2-
    31a, and indicates that the Legislature
    concluded that the date of judgment was not
    determinative of the timeliness of claims
    under the [Act].     N.J.S.A. 25:2-21.    We
    cannot ignore that intent.
    16                                A-1562-14T3
    [Id. at 588.]
    Other jurisdictions agree with our conclusion the SOL runs
    in all cases from the date of transfer, not the judgment.         An
    appellate court in Arizona, in Moore v. Browning, 
    50 P.3d 852
    ,
    859-60 (Ariz. Ct. App. 2002), similarly held that the plain
    language of the statute compels the conclusion the SOL runs from
    the date of the transfer; the court found "no reason to deviate
    from the first rule of statutory construction."        Accord Gulf
    Ins. Co. v. Clark, 
    20 P.3d 780
    , 788 (Mont. 2001); First Sw. Fin.
    Servs. v. Pulliam, 
    912 P.2d 828
    , 830-31 (N.M. Ct. App. 1996);
    Salisbury v. Majesky, 
    817 N.E.2d 1219
    , 1221-22 (Ill. App. Ct.
    2004), appeal denied by, 
    829 N.E.2d 794
    (Ill. 2005); see also
    Levy v. Markal Sales Corp., 
    724 N.E.2d 1008
    , 1010 (Ill. App.
    Ct.) (stating that "the clear and unambiguous wording of the Act
    demonstrates[] the four-year limitation period begins to run on
    the date the challenged transfer was made"), appeal denied by,
    
    731 N.E.2d 764
    (Ill. 2000).
    We now apply these legal principles to the facts of this
    case.   As to the 2006 transfer, it is undisputed the four-year
    SOL expired in 2010.        Plaintiffs' counsel admitted before us
    plaintiffs knew about the 2006 transfer in May 2012.     Thus, the
    one-year tolling provision under N.J.S.A. 25:2-31(a) expired in
    May 2013.    Plaintiffs filed their motion for leave to amend in
    17                       A-1562-14T3
    December 2013.          As a result, the claim related to the 2006
    transfer is time barred.
    As to the 2012 transfer, plaintiffs' counsel conceded at
    oral argument that if the 2006 transfer was untimely under the
    Act, then the purported claim as to the 2012 transfer would be
    barred as well.         The claim as to the 2012 transfer, that Haynes
    fraudulently transferred property that belonged to the Estate,
    is   dependent     on    the    Geissinger        property   being   part     of    the
    Estate.     If plaintiffs are barred by the SOL from pursuing the
    allegation       that   the    2006    transfer     was   fraudulent,      then    what
    Haynes     did   with    the    Geissinger        property   six   years    later    is
    irrelevant.       We emphasize that in the probate matter, and even
    in the bankruptcy proceedings, plaintiffs did not fully pursue
    any argument that the Geissinger property constituted an asset
    of   the   Estate,      or    that    the   co-executors     wrongfully      retained
    assets     of    the    Estate.        If    plaintiffs      are   precluded       from
    challenging       Musey's      transfer      to     Haynes   of    the     Geissinger
    property in 2006, then plaintiffs cannot now argue that Haynes,
    six years later, fraudulently transferred that property to the
    Goldstines.        The practical effect of barring plaintiffs from
    raising claims under the Act as to the 2006 transfer means that
    by the time of the 2012 transfer, the Geissinger property was
    neither Musey's nor the Estate's.
    18                               A-1562-14T3
    III.
    After reviewing the record and the briefs, we conclude that
    plaintiffs' remaining arguments are without sufficient merit to
    warrant discussion in a written opinion.               R. 2:11-3(e)(1)(E).
    We add the following brief remarks.
    Plaintiffs rely on the non-precedential opinion of Wing v.
    Dockstader, 
    482 F. App'x 361
    (10th Cir. 2012).             In that matter,
    the   court    concluded     Utah's    Uniform    Fraudulent    Transfer   Act
    supported the plaintiff's contention his claims should have been
    tolled under the doctrine of adverse domination, a corporate law
    equitable tolling doctrine applicable where wrongdoers control
    or dominate a corporation and are unlikely to bring claims in
    the   name    of   the   corporation    against   themselves.     Plaintiffs
    offer no reasonable explanation for how such a doctrine would be
    applicable in this setting.
    Affirmed.
    19                           A-1562-14T3