Johnson v. Nadel, 94 A.3d 149

In 2007 Johnson purchased the Silver Spring property and borrowed $696,500 secured by a purchase-money Deed of Trust with a power of sale.
On Oct 27, 2011 the Note and Deed of Trust were assigned to U.S. Bank Trust, N.A.; substitute trustees were appointed on Oct 31, 2011.
Johnson defaulted in early 2010; foreclosure action commenced Nov 28, 2011; mediation Dec 26, 2011 resulted in a 60-day stay for loss-mitigation efforts.
Foreclosure sale was scheduled for June 18, 2012 after the stay; Johnson submitted two offers during the stay (roughly $601k and $550k) that were not approved by the lender.
The sale occurred on June 18, 2012, with the lender the successful bidder at $617,605; Johnson later asserted a third, higher offer of $650,000 that was not presented before the sale.
Johnson appealed, arguing the trustees breached fiduciary duties by ignoring a higher offer; the circuit court denied the exceptions and ratified the sale; Johnson appeals.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether trustees breached fiduciary duty by ignoring a higher bid	Johnson argues the trustees had to obtain the best price and should have halted for a $650,000 bid	Nadel argues no duty to halt; no irregularity proven; price may be adequate and sale not to be reopened	No reversible error; trustees not required to halt or reopen the sale; exceptions denied and sale ratified

Jones v. Rosenberg, 178 Md. App. 54 (2008) (rules on post-sale exceptions and irregularities under Rule 14-305(d))
Bates v. Cohn, 417 Md. 309 (2010) (limits on when Rule 14-305(d) can be invoked; requires timely and proper basis)
D’Aoust v. Diamond, 424 Md. 549 (2012) (trustee discretionary duties and necessity of fair price; ratification standards)
White v. Simard, 152 Md. App. 229 (2003) (trustees must exercise prudence to secure best obtainable price; fiduciary duty to all interested parties)
Waters v. Prettyman, 165 Md. 70 (1933) (foundation that sale proceeds must be fair and supported by the deed of trust)