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A legal monkey wrench has derailed implementation of a settlement plan -- at least for the time being -- that resolves a long-standing dispute between a developer and the residents of a Hempfield Township housing development.

Attorney David Robinson, of Greensburg, temporarily scuttled the deal as he tries to collect 12 years of legal fees from 70 residents he represented from 1989 until 2001 when he was replaced as their legal counsel by the Pittsburgh law firm Buchanan Ingersoll.

A federal bankruptcy judge this month cleared the way for Robinson to pursue claims that he is owed nearly $190,000 from the clients he represented in lawsuits filed against Art Nobile, developer of Lago de Vita, an upscale community located along Route 130 in Hempfield Township.

The homeowners have carried on their fight under their nonprofit association, The Communities of Lago de Vita Inc.

Earlier this month, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge M. Bruce McCullough lifted an automatic stay that blocked Robinson from pursuing the claims against the homeowners he'd represented since the first lawsuit was filed in 1989.

Robinson filed a lien against the property that will remain in place until the debt is resolved or paid. The lien was in jeopardy last year when the homeowners' association filed bankruptcy, citing more than $527,000 in liabilities and $4,700 in assets. Bankruptcy imposes an automatic stay that prevents creditors from pursuing debts while the bankruptcy action is pending.

McCullough's decision to lift the stay allows Robinson to seek his fees despite the bankruptcy. The decision also prevents a financial settlement from being enforced between Nobile and the residents.

Robinson has been trying to gain access to an escrow account that contains some $180,000 in road maintenance fees paid by the residents in recent years. The homeowners want to use money in the escrow account to pay for upkeep of the development's private road system. The escrowed funds have been held since 1989 when Nobile and the homeowners began suing each other over the way Nobile maintained the roads within the development.

Robinson's next step will be to depose the association's treasurer to determine exactly how much money is in the escrow account, according to a subpoena. He declined comment.

Dr. Edward Halusic, president of the association, did not return a call seeking comment.

The major issue in the dispute had been whether the roads within Lago de Vita are public or private; a county judge ruled the roads were private. The homeowners had paid $1 million in road maintenance fees to Nobile over the years. In court documents, they'd demanded that he account for how the money was spent.

In January 2002, the homeowners reached a deal with Nobile and agreed to pay him $200,000 to settle the dispute. In return, Nobile would give up the right to maintain the roads and allow the homeowners access to the escrow account.

But Robinson's legal victory stops the settlement from being enforced. On Jan. 4, Nobile filed a motion in Westmoreland County Court asking a judge to enforce the settlement agreement. The motion was denied.

Nobile declined comment.

Six months after settling the dispute with Nobile, the homeowners filed for bankruptcy. They claimed they need time to reorganize because of debts they incurred while battling the developer in county, state and federal courts.

According to bankruptcy documents, Nobile still is owed $155,000 under terms of the settlement agreement. The homeowners also owe Buchanan Ingersoll nearly $162,000 and another Pittsburgh attorney more than $16,000 for representing Buchanan Ingersoll against Robinson.

Bankruptcy documents list $527,898.38 in total claims against the association. The Communities of Lago de Vita listed total assets of $4,700 in its bankruptcy petition.

A hearing on a plan submitted by the homeowners that would allow the association to emerge from bankruptcy will be held March 6 in U.S. District Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh.

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