Mealey's Mortgage Lending
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August 10, 2023
Federal Judge Adopts Recommendation To Dismiss RICO Claim Against Wells Fargo
NEW YORK — A New York federal judge adopted a report and recommendation from a magistrate judge and dismissed a complaint alleging that a lender violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) by engaging in a racketeering scheme during a mortgage foreclosure action for failure to state a claim.
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August 08, 2023
Dismissal Affirmed By Nevada Court In Mediation Decision For Foreclosure
LAS VEGAS — A Nevada appeals court affirmed a lower court’s dismissal of a request for appropriate relief in a foreclosure mediation matter in a long-running case, finding that the lender complied with all of Nevada's Foreclosure Mediation Program (FMP) requirements.
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August 04, 2023
Louisiana Panel Reverses Ruling For Insurer In Suit Alleging Insured Stole Files
BATON ROUGE, La. — A Louisiana appeals panel held that a residential mortgage broker’s electronic loan files are “tangible” under state law and, therefore, can be defined as “‘property’ that is susceptible to ‘loss of use’” under a competitor’s business liability insurance policy, reversing a summary judgment ruling in favor of an insurer that intervened in the broker’s lawsuit alleging that its insured used stolen files to broker mortgage loans for its customers.
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August 04, 2023
Judge: Lender’s Motion To Dismiss Granted But Borrower Can Amend TILA Claims
PHOENIX — An Arizona federal judge granted a lender’s motion to dismiss but allowed a borrower to amend his complaint that alleges that the lender purports to offer home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) but in fact offers home equity loans.
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August 03, 2023
4th Complaint Fighting Foreclosure Again Dismissed On Res Judicata Grounds
ATLANTA — A federal magistrate judge in Georgia recommended that a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a pro se borrower asserting the same claims against a mortgage servicer and a bank over the foreclosure of her home that were made in three previously dismissed cases be granted and the case be dismissed with prejudice.
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July 31, 2023
Maryland Court: Mortgage Servicer Entitled To Portion Of Fire Insurance Proceeds
BALTIMORE — A lower court in Maryland erred in awarding the full proceeds of a fire insurance policy to the estate of a man killed in a house fire, a state appeals court ruled, finding that the mortgage loan servicer was entitled to a portion.
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July 26, 2023
6th Circuit: Dismissal Of Suit On Effort To Assume, Modify Mortgage Proper
CINCINNATI — The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on July 25 held that a widow’s claims were properly dismissed in her suit against a bank and debt collector regarding her attempts to assume and modify her late husband’s mortgage and rejected her argument that the district court judge should have been recused.
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July 26, 2023
10th Circuit: Dismissal Of Suit Against Lender Affirmed, State Law Inapplicable
DENVER — The 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed that mortgagors cannot sue a mortgage loan servicer for charging borrowers pay-to-pay convenience fees for making mortgage payments by telephone under the Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act (UCSPA) and denied a borrower’s request to certify questions on the act’s scope to the state Supreme Court.
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July 21, 2023
Magistrate: Dismissal Of Amended Complaint Alleging Wrongful Foreclosure Proper
ATLANTA — A federal magistrate judge in Georgia recommended dismissal of a borrower’s second amended complaint after finding that he failed to cure deficiencies in his wrongful foreclosure claim against a mortgage servicer.
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July 21, 2023
Borrowers Appeal Summary Judgment Award To Loan Servicers To 10th Circuit
DENVER — Two borrowers filed an appeal in the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals a day after a Kansas federal court awarded summary judgment to their loan servicers after finding that the claims for violations of the Kansas Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) fail.
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July 20, 2023
3rd Circuit Affirms Dismissal In Quiet Title Claim Against Mortgage Servicer
PHILADELPHIA — The Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals found no error in a lower court’s decision to dismiss a complaint alleging that a bank had no claim to a mortgage in a foreclosure proceeding, agreeing that a borrower’s claims are barred under res judicata and statutes of limitations.
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July 19, 2023
Hispanic Wells Fargo Workers Allege Discriminatory Practices, Lost Opportunities
SAN ANTONIO — A group of current and former employees of Wells Fargo Bank N.A. allege in a class complaint filed in a Texas federal court that the bank forces its employees to offer predatory mortgage lending options to Spanish-speaking customers and excludes members of a bilingual team from opportunities within the company.
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July 19, 2023
Bank: Woman Alleging Improper Fees For Mortgage Payments Has No Standing
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Bank of America N.A. (BANA) asserts that “[n]either federal law nor West Virginia law prohibit BANA from charging a fee for an extra service requested and agreed to by the borrower” in its motion to dismiss a woman’s class action complaint alleging that the bank improperly charged and collected illegal payment processing fees when borrowers made their monthly mortgage payments by telephone or online.
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July 18, 2023
Texas Supreme Court To Determine Status Of Loan Re-Acceleration
NEW ORLEANS — The Texas Supreme Court accepted two certified questions submitted by the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to determine whether a lender can simultaneously rescind and re-accelerate a loan under Texas law.
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July 18, 2023
Kansas Appeals Court Affirms Statute Of Limitations Applies To Homeowners’ Claims
TOPEKA, Kan. — A Kansas appeals court affirmed summary judgment for homeowners on statute of limitations grounds, rejecting an appeal from a loan servicer that did not foreclose on the mortgage or collect on the note for more than 16 years after the homeowners defaulted on the loan.
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July 12, 2023
5th Circuit Asks Texas Supreme Court To Determine Status Of Loan Re-Acceleration
NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals certified two questions to the Texas Supreme Court to determine whether a lender can simultaneously rescind and re-accelerate a loan under Texas law.
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July 12, 2023
Mortgage Company Agrees To Pay $23.75M To Settle FCA Violations For Federal Loans
ALBANY, N.Y. — Movement Mortgage LLC will pay $23.75 million to resolve allegations that it failed to comply with program requirements when it originated and underwrote mortgages insured by federal programs in violation of the False Claims Act (FCA), the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York announced.
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July 12, 2023
Settlement Reached In Suit Alleging Consumer Fraud In Loan Modification Row
CHICAGO — A jury trial in an Illinois federal court has ended after Wells Fargo NA and a couple agreed to settle claims that the lender violated an Illinois consumer fraud statute by failing to provide the borrowers with a loan modification under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) before foreclosing on their home.
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July 05, 2023
Borrowers Say Amended Complaint Corrects Deficiencies, Argue Against Dismissal
RALEIGH, N.C. — A couple urges a district court to deny motions filed by a mortgage lender and a realty company for dismissal of a first amended complaint alleging that the companies engaged in an unlawful kickback scheme in which the realty company would steer all of its clients to the mortgage company for their loans.
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July 05, 2023
Judgment, Foreclosure Order Affirmed By Ohio Appeals Court
DAYTON, Ohio — An Ohio appeals court panel found no reversible error in a trial court’s judgment awarding a mortgage servicing company summary judgment and decree of foreclosure, rejecting the homeowner’s appeal.
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June 30, 2023
TILA Doesn’t Apply To Business Loans, Federal Judge Says, Dismisses Claims
SACRAMENTO, Calif — A California federal judge granted a motion to dismiss after finding that the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) does not apply to loans made for business purposes.
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June 28, 2023
TILA Claim Fails But Judge Grants Leave To Amend Complaint On Other Violations
LOS ANGELES — A borrower’s claim against his home equity loan holder for a Truth in Lending Act (TILA) violation is barred under statute of limitation grounds, but he may file an amended complaint asserting reformation of contract and unjust enrichment claims, a California federal judge ruled.
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June 27, 2023
Judge: FCRA Claim Fails Because Credit Report Contained No False Information
CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois found that because there is no false information in a consumer reporting agency’s report that reflected that a woman had “‘historic late [mortgage] payments in 2018 and 2019,’” there is no Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) violation and awarded the agency summary judgment.
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June 27, 2023
6th Circuit Finds No Valid Reason For Woman’s Attempts To Block Foreclosure
CINCINNATI — A woman’s claims against a mortgage servicing company in an attempt to block a foreclosure are barred by res judicata, the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said, affirming a district court’s order awarding summary judgment.
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June 23, 2023
Borrowers Appeal Order Dismissing Claims Against Loan Servicer To 9th Circuit
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Borrowers who say their mortgage loan servicer failed to properly notify them that it had assumed the servicing responsibilities of their loan on June 22 filed notice in a district court that it will appeal to Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals a California federal judge’s ruling that dismissed their claims for a third time, this time with prejudice.