In this relatively straightforward foreclosure action, the Supreme Court of Maine had the occasion to address the rules on establishing standing in a mortgage foreclosure action in that state and the effect of pay-off letter that contemplates the further accrual of fees. In Bank of America, N.A. v. Greenleaf, 2014…
Read More »BAC Home Loans Servicing, LP v. Fulbright, 88853-1 (Wash. June 26, 2014) concerns the interplay between Washington’s Condominium Act, its redemption statute, and its recording act. The borrower purchased a condominium with a loan from Plaintiff-lender. The condominium association recorded its declaration in 2006 and lender recorded its deed of…
Read More »The court in Lucien v. Federal National Mortgage Ass’n, 13-CV-62399 (S.D. Fla. May 23, 2014) was called upon to construe TILA’s confusing and often conflicting statutory scheme, which has resulted in fractured decisions in this district. In Lucien, the mortgagor sued the holder of her loan and its loan servicer…
Read More »The Eleventh Circuit recently joined several circuits in holding that filing a proof of claim in a bankruptcy action based on a debt that is time-barred under state law violates the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In Crawford v LVNV Funding, LLC, No. 13-12389 (11th Cir. July 2014)…
Read More »An assignee’s bona fide purchaser status may not save it from losing its right to enforce a security agreement. In First Mortgage Co., LLC v. Dina, 2-13-0567 (1st Dist. Ill. App. Ct. Mar. 31, 2014), the mortgagors appealed a mortgage foreclosure judgment arguing that the loan originator was not a…
Read More »The Plaintiff in McFarland v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, EDCV 13-01838-JGB, (C.D. Cal. Apr. 28, 2014) brought suit under the California Homeowner’s Bill of Rights, (CHBR) against her mortgagee and loan servicer. Plaintiff alleged that after she fell into default she made a loan modification deal but after three years…
Read More »In another CHBR case, Bingham v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC, 13-CV-04040-LHK, (N.D. Cal. Apr. 16, 2014) a Northern District of California court held that even where the facts in the complaint showed that relief under the CHBR is unavailable, dismissal was not warranted because there were still equitable considerations to…
Read More »In JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. First Am. Title Ins. Co., 12-2094 (6th Cir. Apr. 24, 2014), one of First American’s agents issued a title policy and a closing protection letter (CPL) to Washington Mutual Bank (WaMu) on a $4 million dollar loan. In the CPL, First American agreed to…
Read More »In EnTitle Ins. Co. v. Darwin Select Ins. Co., 13-3269 (6th Cir. Jan. 29, 2014) the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment for a professional liability (E&O) insurer sued by a title insurer which had reimbursed its agents customers that were victimized by the agent’s fraud. The title…
Read More »Feaz v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 13-10230 (11th Cir. Feb. 2014) involves contract interpretation arising from the interplay of two federal statutes. One is the National Housing Act (NHA), 12 U.S.C. § 1701, which is intended to promote home ownership; the other is the National Flood Insurance Act (NFIA), 42…
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