Lexis Legal News : Mealey's Mortgage Lending : Lawsuit Filings, Litigation, Settlements, Verdicts and Court News

Mealey's Mortgage Lending

February 27, 2019
Judge Orders Servicer To Show Why It Should Not Be Stopped From Foreclosing

LOS ANGELES — After finding that a borrower would likely succeed on the merits of his claims for violations of California’s unfair competition law (UCL), the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act (RESPA) and a claim for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing against a loan servicer, a California federal judge on Feb. 25 ordered the servicer to show cause as to why a preliminary injunction should not be entered enjoining it from foreclosing on the borrower’s property (Garrett Anderson v. Specialized Loan Servicing, LLC, et al., No. 2:18-cv-08352, C.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29707).
February 26, 2019
High Court Denies Borrower’s Petition Seeking Review Of Dismissal

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 25 denied a petition for writ of certiorari filed by a borrower who challenged an appeals court’s decision that affirmed dismissal of his claims for violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act against a bank (John M. Barone v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a.k.a., et al., No. 18-783, U.S. Sup.).
February 21, 2019
Michigan Federal Judge Dismisses FDCPA Claim, Sanctions Borrower

DETROIT — A Michigan federal judge on Feb. 19 adopted a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation that a borrower’s sixth lawsuit related to the foreclosure of his property should be dismissed based on res judicata, dismissing the case and ordering that he be sanctioned by having to obtain leave from the court before filing any additional lawsuits related to the property (Brent Mohlman v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, No. 18-11085, E.D. Mich., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25937).
February 20, 2019
Panel Holds Wells Fargo Was Beneficiary Of Deed, Affirms Dismissal

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A California appeals panel on Feb. 15 affirmed a trial court’s grant of demurrer on claims for violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL), wrongful foreclosure and other causes of action asserted by a borrower against a bank, holding that he failed to show that the bank was not the beneficiary of the deed on his former property (Jim Malone v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., No. E067966, Calif. App., 4th Cir., Div. 2, 2019 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 1135).
February 20, 2019
Judge Grants Dismissal Of TILA, RESPA Claims In Favor Of Wells Fargo

OMAHA, Neb. — A Nebraska federal judge on Feb. 15 granted a bank’s motion to dismiss a borrower’s claims against it as barred by res judicata and denied her request for a temporary restraining order, holding that the borrower failed to show that she would suffer any immediate harm that would entitle her to immediate relief (Lisa A. Rabbe v. Wells Fargo, et al., No. 8:18CV561, D. Neb., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25019).
February 14, 2019
Texas Federal Judge Holds Ocwen Can Foreclose On Property

GALVESTON, Texas — A Texas federal judge on Feb. 12 granted summary judgment for a loan servicer, holding that it met all of the prerequisites for foreclosing on a property (Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC v. Su Thana Nguyen, et al., No. 3:15-cv-00010, S.D. Texas, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 22666).
February 12, 2019
Federal Judge Holds Borrower’s TILA Rescission Claim Is Untimely

FRESNO, Calif. — A California federal judge on Feb. 11 granted a motion filed by various mortgage entities to dismiss a borrower’s claim for violation of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), holding that his claim for rescission under TILA was barred by a statute of limitations and that his alternative argument that the loan was never actually consummated failed (Marvin R. Wennekamp v. Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC, et al., No. 1:18-cv-01374, E.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21963).
February 11, 2019
Panel Holds 20-Year Limitations Period Applied To Foreclosure, Affirms Ruling

PHILADELPHIA — A panel of the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Feb. 6 affirmed a trial court’s decision that a 20-year statute of limitations applied to a bank’s foreclosure and that a borrower failed to show that the bank owed him any duty that went beyond the terms of their mortgage agreement (In Re: James Hartman, No. 17-2162, 3rd Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 3745).
February 11, 2019
8th Circuit Reverses Dismissal Of Claims Based On Reduced Interest Plan

ST. LOUIS — A panel of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Feb. 7 partially reversed a summary judgment ruling on claims asserted by a borrower against a bank, holding that the bank failed to show that the statute of frauds barred claims related to an interest reduction payment plan offered in the borrower’s mortgage agreement (John Calon v. Bank of America, N.A., et al., No. 17-3263, 8th Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 3778).
February 7, 2019
Judge Allows Challenges To HUD-Insured Reverse Mortgage To Proceed

CHICAGO — An Illinois federal judge on Feb. 5 allowed the majority of a widow’s cross-claims to proceed against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), finding that she alleged an injury in fact and had standing to assert various challenges to a reverse mortgage insured by HUD (Reverse Mortgage Solutions, Inc. v. United States of America-Department of Housing and Urban Development, et al., No. 18-2149, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18097).
February 6, 2019
Borrower Failed To Comply With Loan’s Notice, Cure Provision, Judge Holds

CHICAGO — An Illinois federal judge on Feb. 4 granted a loan servicer’s motion to dismiss a borrower’s complaint, holding that she failed to comply with the notice and cure provision in her mortgage contract before filing her lawsuit (Patricia Rodriguez v. Rushmore Loan Management Services LLC, No. 18-cv-1015, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17202).
February 5, 2019
Panel Holds Borrower Lacked Standing To Bring Discriminatory Lending Case

CINCINNATI — After holding that a bankruptcy trustee was the real party in interest to a lawsuit in which a borrower asserted that a bank engaged in discriminatory lending practices, the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Feb. 1 dismissed his appeal of an order dismissing the case for lack of standing (Jesse Strickland v. Mercantile Bank Mortgage Company, LLC, No. 16-2653, 6th Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 2955).
February 5, 2019
Judge Holds Lender Is Exempt Under Missouri Law, Grants Motion

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Missouri federal judge on Feb. 1 dismissed a borrower’s claims for negligent misrepresentation and violation of Missouri law against a mortgage company and ordered that she must seek leave from the court before filing any more frivolous cases (Gwendolyn Gill Caranchini v. Nationstar Mortgage LLC, No. 4:17-CV-00775, W.D. Mo., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16048).
February 4, 2019
Borrower Failed To Properly Challenge Dismissal On Appeal, Panel Holds

NEW YORK — A panel of the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Jan. 31 affirmed a district court’s dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a borrower who was attempting to enjoin the foreclosure of his property, holding that he had abandoned any of his challenges to the underlying decision (Linval Cooke v. U.S. Bank National Association, et al., No. 17-2558, 2nd Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 3131).
February 1, 2019
Panel Reverses Dismissal, Holds Allegations Support UCL, Negligence Claims

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California appeals court panel on Jan. 29 reversed a trial court’s dismissal of claims for negligence and violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL), holding that borrowers’ allegations that a bank unreasonably delayed and subjected them to a fraudulent loan modification process are sufficient to support the claims (Flag Billings, et al. v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., et al., No. C084369, Cal. App., 3rd Dist., 2019 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 684).
February 1, 2019
Judge Refuses To Reconsider Order For New Trial In Discriminatory Lending Suit

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A New York federal judge on Jan. 17 refused to reconsider a decision that vacated a jury’s award of damages for property owners and a holding that certain owners waived their claims by entering into a loan modification agreement, finding that enforcement of the waiver would be against public policy (Jean Robert Saint-Jean, et al. v. Emigrant Mortgage Company, et al., No. 11-CV-2122, E.D. N.Y.).
January 31, 2019
5th Circuit Panel Holds Borrower Failed To Prove FDCPA, Texas Law Claims

NEW ORLEANS — A panel of the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Jan. 28 affirmed dismissal of a borrower’s claims for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and Texas law, holding that a loan servicer abandoned its notice of acceleration of a loan and, therefore, reset the statute of limitations on foreclosure under Texas law (Nathalie D. Sims v. RoundPoint Mortgage Servicing Corp., No. 18-40332, 5th Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 2803).
January 30, 2019
Panel Affirms Dismissal Of UCL, HBOR Claims Against Banks, Purchaser

LOS ANGELES — A California appeals panel on Jan. 29 affirmed a lower court’s decisions in favor of the purchaser of a property at a trustee’s sale and banks, holding that a borrower failed to submit the required allegations of tender in support of his claim for violation of the California Homeowners Bill of Rights (HBOR) and his cause of action for violation of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) failed as derivative to that claim (Jorge Rojas v. Bank of America, N.A., et al., No. E068405, Calif. App., 4th Dist., Div. 2, 2019 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 680).
January 29, 2019
FDCPA Does Not Apply To Servicer, Lender, 2nd Circuit Holds

NEW YORK — The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Jan. 24 affirmed a district court’s dismissal of claims asserted by a borrower, holding that he failed to show that the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) applied to the servicer of loan or a mortgage entity (Shahnewaz Qurashi v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC, et al., No. 18-1045, 2nd Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 2283).
January 25, 2019
Federal Judge Refuses To Strike Loan Documents, Converts Motion To Dismiss

NEW ORLEANS — After converting a loan servicer’s motion to dismiss to a summary judgment motion, a Louisiana federal judge on Jan. 24 ordered the parties to submit additional evidence relevant to a summary judgment motion and denied the borrowers’ motion to strike various documents because the attachments are relevant to the case (John Baxa, et al. v. Seterus, Inc., No. 17-5434, E.D. La., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11230).