MSFraud's Fall 2014 HEADLINES

Homeowner Wins by Default - Rescinding and Nullifying the Loan
Luther v. Caliber Home Loans
Five minutes into the hearing, the judge asked homeowner's counsel for an Order.

CFPB Proposes Rules To Protect Consumers
From Shoddy Foreclosure Practices
Clarification To Prevent Servicers’ Dual-Tracking,
WRONGFUL FORECLOSURES
Currently CFPB rules prohibit servicers from proceeding to foreclosure once they receive a complete loss mitigation application from a borrower more than 37 says prior to a scheduled sale. But in some cases, borrowers are not receiving this protection and servicers’ foreclosure counsel may not be taking adequate steps to delay foreclosure proceedings or sale. The Bureau’s proposal clarifies what steps servicers and their foreclosure counsel must take to protect borrowers from a wrongful foreclosure sale. Servicers who do not take reasonable steps to prevent the sale must dismiss a pending foreclosure action. The proposed clarifications would aid servicers in complying with, and assist courts in applying, the dual-tracking prohibitions in foreclosure proceedings to prevent wrongful foreclosures.

Notice to Potential Bidders:
You will be bidding on a lien, not on a property
Most foreclosure buyers still think they are bidding on actual property. They aren’t; they are bidding on a debt that the current owner can’t collect on. When a big powerful collection agency gives up on a debt, they auction it off on the Courthouse steps just as though real property were involved. It is well known, yet never discussed, that the mortgage-backed securities are backed by nothing at all. The same mortgages were used over and over again. The investors are mostly pension funds which, as a result, are substantially underfunded. The only people who don’t know about this are the pensioners themselves.

NJ court says 6 year statute of limitation bars enforcement of residential note
In Re: Washington v. SLS, BONY
“No one gets a free house.” This Court and others have uttered that admonition since the early days of the mortgage crisis, where homeowners have sought relief under a myriad of state and federal consumer protection statutes and the Bankruptcy Code. Yet, with a proper measure of disquiet and chagrin, the Court now must retreat from this position, as Gordon A. Washington (“the Debtor”) has presented a convincing argument for entitlement to such relief. So, with figurative hand holding the nose, the Court, for the reasons set forth below, will grant Debtor’s motion for summary judgment.

Foley v. Wells Fargo
Foley sued Wells Fargo for failing to consider him for a mortgage loan modification, which a class action settlement agreement required the bank to do before attempting to foreclose on Foley's home.
We find that the district court improperly considered evidence outside of the pleadings to resolve Wells Fargo's motion to dismiss, warranting a revival of Foley's common law claims. Accordingly, we vacate in part the judgment entered in Wells Fargo's favor.

Borrowers, Beware:  The Robosigners Aren’t Finished Yet
“It’s bad enough that Fannie Mae and their collectors are pursuing consumers many years after they’ve lost their homes,” Mr. Parker said. “But the fact that these lawsuits may be built on a foundation offoreclosure fraud is galling.” The problem, experts say, arises whenrobo-signed documents enabled banks to foreclose even when they didn’t have legal standing to do so.
Amazing, isn’t it, how the effects of the foreclosure crisis go on and on?

Judgments REVERSED: Assigned Mortgage ONLY
Pennington v. Ocwen
"the final assignment from Freddie Mac to Ocwen was only for the mortgage; Ocwen's own records custodian admitted as much below. Notwithstanding the lack of evidence to prove the Countrywide assignment, even if Ocwen did have standing at the commencement of the suit, it would have lost such standing when it no longer was legally entitled to own or enforce the note. See Lindsey v. Wells Fargo Bank(reversing summary judgment for lack of standing because assignment was only for the mortgage and not the note)."

How JPMorgan Chase Helped Wreck the Economy,
Avoid Prosecution

For Immediate Release
WELLS FARGO Made False Statements of Material Fact to FANNIE MAE
The Discovery documents reveal the False Statements of Material Facts submitted to Fannie Mae (Investor) on behalf of Crowley, which included a false “projected foreclosure date” during the time that Crowley was under a Special Forbearance agreement. Soon thereafter, Wells Fargo submitted a check request to Fannie Mae for $114,716.64 – Paragraph 164 of complaint “…the evidence of payment from Fannie Mae to Wells Fargo in the amount of $114,716.64, in preparation of foreclosure, suggests that Wells Fargo never intended to offer a permanent loan modification;” Johnson will explore on what basis was Wells entitled to a payout on Crowley’s loan.

The trial court granted judgment in an amount exceeding the face value of the Note.
FV-1 in Trust for Morgan Stanley v. Lackey
"The trial court erred by awarding judgment in excess of the face value of the Note and that the error is prejudicial to appellant and clearly apparent from the record. Given the stakes in a foreclosure action, this type of error seriously affects the basic fairness and public reputation of the judicial process."

The $9 Billion Witness:
Meet JPMorgan Chase's Worst Nightmare
Back in 2006, as a deal manager at the gigantic bank, Fleischmann first witnessed, then tried to stop, what she describes as "massive criminal securities fraud" in the bank's mortgage operations. Six years after the crisis that cratered the global economy, it's not exactly news that the country's biggest banks stole on a grand scale. That's why the more important part of Fleischmann's story is in the pains Chase and the Justice Department took to silence her.

United States Supreme Court
Oral Argument in Jesinoski v Countrywide
The narrow question in this case is whether the Truth in Lending Act rescission provision in 1635(a) requires borrowers to file a lawsuit to exercise their right to rescind.  The answer is no, and the court of appeals should be reversed for three reasons:

Judge Throws Out $16M Verdict Against PHH for Servicing Errors
The judge did acknowledge that PHH had acted as a "bad party" to the loan modification contract. PHH made "inconsistent demands for payment arguably repudiating the modification contract, threatened [Linza] with foreclosure, refused to return his many calls or to apologize for or correct its errors, refused to enter into a new agreement and even ridiculed his plight."

Court denies US Bank Motion to Dismiss on 8 of 9 Counts!
BUFFINGTON v. US BANK/OCWEN
The Order is a damning indictment of the mortgage industry!
What is telling is the Court agreed that the Plaintiff’s note probably received shared loss payments and that the Plaintiffs may in fact OWE NO MONEY! (Thanks Ken)

Judge: “It is regrettable that we accommodated the financial institutions because of their importance. It sickens me. But that is not before us here.”
Pierce County lender Kandi gets 5 years for mortgage fraud

The Court: The NOTE & MORTGAGE ARE VOID,
and the homeowner gets all their payments back.
BANK OF AMERICA, BACHLS v. NASH

...because the alleged Lender, America's Wholesale Lender, stated to be a New York Corporation, was not in fact incorporated in the year 2005 or subsequently, at any time, by either Countrywide Home Loans, or Bank of America, or any of their related co1porate entities or agents.

REPORT:  Wells Fargo Wins, Homeowners, AG and Courts Lose

“This Wells Fargo case study exposes the legal maneuvering by banksto keep their crimes hidden while continuing to strip communities of their wealth. Wells Fargo preyed on these communities then negotiated away the rights of homeowners to take legal action. Homeowners deserve their day in court."

Ocwen Backdated Thousands of Foreclosure Notices
The systems failures that Ocwen outlined previously as "isolated" are much greater in scope than what the company had previously disclosed.

Ohio Supreme Court Update: The Kuchta case
Kuchta Motion for Reconsideration

Amicus Memorandum in Support

Another Reversal of Foreclosure to add to the growing pile...
DELIA v. GMAC
In this case, the bank failed to present any evidence on the issue of adequate protection. Accordingly, we are constrained to reverse the foreclosure judgment and to remand this matter for establishment of the lost note and mortgage. See Guerrero v. Chase Home Fin., LLC, 83 So. 3d 970, 974 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012) (remanding for establishment of the lost note and mortgage when the bank failed to sustain its burden presenting evidence proving that the homeowners would be adequately protected against loss).

REPLAY: Let's not forget...
Clouded Title: The Gross Illegality of MERS
No longer would the traffickers in mortgages have to document their transactions with county clerks, nor would they have to pay the many and varied courthouse fees for such transactions. Instead, MERS was listed in local recording offices as the “mortgagee of record,” the in-name-only owner, a so-called nominee for the lender, so that MERS would effectively “own” the loan where the public record was concerned, while the lenders traded it back and forth.

HOW DO THESE CASES GET PAST A TRIAL COURT?
Lacombe v. Deutsche Bank
The evidence presented at the bench trial was insufficient to support the trial court’s judgment because Deutsche Bank’s documents and witness did not prove the bank’s standing to bring the foreclosure action.

This is what foreclosure courts FAIL to consider...
We conclude that in determining whether a judgment should be vacated for a violation of § 455(a), it is appropriate to consider the risk of injustice to the parties in the particular case, the risk that the denial of relief will produce injustice in other cases, and the risk of undermining the public's confidence in the judicial process. We must continuously bear in mind that "to perform its high function in the best way `justice must satisfy the appearance of justice.' "
In re Murchison, 349 U. S. 133, 136 (1955)

Fannie's Fraud
The Hurts’ case is the first one we’ve seen where Fannie is an active participant in the homeowner fraud. In 2011, the Hurts were sued for foreclosure by their loan servicer. A cursory review of the promissory note and mortgage attached to the Complaint quickly demonstrated that the servicer was not the proper party to be seeking foreclosure. The Note lacked a critical endorsement, and the Mortgage had a fatal break in the chain of assignments. For this reason, that case was dismissed, only to be revived by Fannie Mae in the way of a brand new foreclosure complaint in the past several months.

Dissenting opinion: Instead of affirming the Ninth District, this court goes to great lengths to preserve a void judgment. And in so doing, it undermines this court’s own rule in Schwartzwald and creates uncertainty in foreclosure cases that will operate in favor of careless banks while eroding the rule of law in Ohio.
Bank of America v. Kuchta
"the appropriate recourse for challenging a void judgment is to file acommon-law motion to vacate".

Since the 80s, the mortgage industry has been manipulating accounts to get free houses, equity and mineral rights. They are still doing it, and still getting away with it. No penalty - no reason to stop.
Mortgage servicers are still wrecking lives
They made all their payments on time after having a loan modification approved by Bank of America, only to learn their new mortgage servicer, Nationstar, had sold their home into foreclosure anyway, and they had three days to leave.

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY LAW REVIEW
Third-Party Defenses to Mortgages
Another source of confusion in these cases is the morass of facts involved in each case. Because the cases almost always involve fraud or other wrongful conduct, the facts are often quite complicated. Wrongdoers often act through a series of nominees, designees, straw people, and shell corporations; engage in conduct that wrongfully enables them to collect payments on loans they no longer own or to sell the same loan more than once; and otherwise act to obfuscate and cover their tracks.

 90 year old woman facing Wells Fargo Eviction
Citibank bought it at sale for $100.

SIGN the PETITION
ERIC HOLDER: ARREST A U.S. BANKER
Over five million families were foreclosed on since the financial crisis,many MOST of them illegally. But despite defrauding so many Americans, Holder has failed to jail a single U.S. banker. He’s also failed to criminally prosecute a single U.S. bank.

Racketeering case against foreclosure-mill Lerner Sampson, 
Bank of America, and MERS allowed to proceed
Slorp v. Lerner Sampson and Rothfuss
We alleged the law firm directed one of its paralegals to fraudulently robo-sign mortgage assignments, and then used one of those mortgage assignments to foreclose on our client’s home months earlier. After Mr. Slorp retained our firm, we filed a federal lawsuit alleging their actions violated several laws, including the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”). The Sixth Circuit’s federal appellate decision allowed our racketeering claim to proceed – a major victory for people wrongly foreclosed on by banks using robo-signed documentation. The decision also found in favor of consumers on a very important issue surrounding their ability to challenge documents in foreclosure cases.
"If Bank of America had no right to file the foreclosure action, it makes no difference whether Slorp previously had defaulted on his mortgage."

Court VACATES (Two) Default Judgments per Schwartzwald
National Collegiate Student Loan v. Beverly
The complaints did not allege that the Trusts held any interest in the loans whether by assignment or any other means... and the Notes make no reference to the Trusts.

No foreclosure is ‘perfected’ and/or ‘complete’ until the Original Promissory Note is either returned to the signor or canceled by the court.
"In the case of original mortgages and promissory notes, they are not merely exhibits but instruments which must be surrendered prior to the issuance of a judgment. The judgment takes the place of the promissory note. Surrendering the note is essential so that it cannot thereafter be negotiated."- Johnson v. Hudlett

Consumer Agency Penalizes Flagstar Bank $37.5 Million Over Mortgage Servicing
In its first enforcement action under mortgage-servicing rules that went into effect at the start of this year, the agency reached a settlement with Flagstar Bank over accusations that it prevented thousands of homeowners from averting foreclosure.
Flagstar Stipulation
Flagstar Consent Order

It's refreshing to see reporting that tells it like it truly is...
Eric Holder didn't send a single banker to jail for the mortgage crisis. Is that justice?
US attorney general’s tenure has proven unhelpful to the millions of victims of mortgage abuses in the US. As for homeowners, they received a raw deal, in the form of little or no compensation for some of the greatest consumer abuses in American history.

Foreclosure that happened over 4-YEARS AGO
is VOID and never happened. Trustee deed VOID too.
Utah Homeowner Wins Lawsuit Against Bank of America in Illegal Foreclosure Action
This ruling is significant because it renders ReconTrust foreclosure action invalid as if it never happened. For years Utah homeowners have battled Bank of America and its subsidiary ReconTrust Company over the validity of the bank’s foreclosure actions in Utah.

Pro Se Wins Reversal of Dismissed Mod-Fraud Case 
Court Agrees to Publish
FLEET v. BANK OF AMERICA
Appellants in this case alleged just such a pattern in their first amended complaint against respondent Bank of America. Because they are representing themselves, their complaint is not in the form to which courts are accustomed. Nevertheless, allegations of viable causes of action can be sufficiently discerned to defeat a demurrer. We therefore reverse the judgment dismissing their case against BofA and return them to the trial court for further proceedings.

Kelseyville man tells story of attempted foreclosures
After conducting three securitization audits on property, it was found that Seattle Mortgage Company was paid off in full in 2006 by Ginnie Mae, Larry said. "Bank of America and RMS don't have anything to do with loan," he added. The county can pursue an audit to determine if fraudulent recordings have occurred.

US Government Plays Robin Hood Under Guise Of National Mortgage Settlements
While the settlements promise billions in consumer relief, average consumers – and not the banks – are picking up a significant share of the tab.
For evidence of the trend, look no further than Bank of America‘s (BofA) recent $17 billion settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ). BofA promised to pay off more than 41 percent of the fine by providing consumer relief, which includes lowering mortgage payments for certain borrowers. The catch is that BofA doesn’t have to actually own the mortgages it intends to write down.
The question at hand is, if BofA doesn’t own these mortgages, who does? And the most likely answer is, you.

Judge Orders Deposition of 'Robo-Riley', JPM and PennyMac
The Note bears an origination date of 2005, and contains a stamp “signed” by robo-signer Cynthia Riley who testified in a deposition taken in a Florida foreclosure case that she never endorsed any notes or put any endorsement stamps on notes from 2004 through 2006

Looking for a lead Plaintiff
Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP Files Class Action Suit against Ocwen Financial Corporation
If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from August 12, 2014. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff’s counsel, Darren Robbins of Robbins Geller at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at djr@rgrdlaw.com.
Elm Tree Investments v. OCWEN

Title Insurer Owes $4.9M for Failure of Mortgages
A title insurer owes $4.9 million for contributing to the failure of mortgages that caused the defunct Washington Mutual Bank to lose millions of dollars, a federal judge ruled.
FDIC v. Attorney's Title Insurance Fund

Replay: Former Prosecutor Mark J. Malone on MERS
MERS functions to disguise the true owners of mortgages and promissory notes around the country. If an organized crime family set up a shell company to disguise ownership of its assets in the same manner MERS does, a prosecutor would label the incorporation an overt act in furtherance of a money-laundering conspiracy. (Then shut down MERS, send the officers and facilitators to prison, and return the property rights to the homeowners.)
Full Deposition of MERS William Hultman

Many homeowners struggling to save their homes have lost faith in Florida’s RIGGED legal system, and for good reasons.
Losing Your House When the Bank
Already Lost Your Paperwork
Even though it was the banks that came to the courts with forged documents, it’s almost impossible to find an example of a Florida judge ruling against a bank. Judge Raul Zambrano has never ruled in favor of a homeowner.

With all this criminal activity, it is stunning that there could be a judge in the entire country that would rule against a homeowner and in favor of a bank.
The Biggest Lie of the New Century
Foreclosure fraud: Of all the crimes committed during the financial crisis and in its aftermath, this is one that should have been the easiest to identify and prosecute.

Judge: "I wish this Note could talk to us."
Wells Fargo Summary Judgment DENIED
The Court also made note of a loan modification to the borrower which was signed by MERS, which was curious as MERS is not a lender and does not have the authority to modify a loan.

Ohio Court of Appeals Reverses Dismissal of FDCPA Claim
US Bank, Ocwen v. Schubert
Specifically, they alleged that they paid off the arrearage amount in full one month, only to be told the following month that they owed an arrearage amount of ten times the previous month’s amount.

Fifth Circuit Opinion Suggests the Default and Force-Placed Insurance were Manufactured
For the last 20 years, Bank of America and other banks have used this scheme to manufacture performing loans into default.
TIELKE v. BANK OF AMERICA/BACHLS
"We are stymied in our effort to understand the cause of the Tielkes’ alleged default, if indeed they ever were in default."... "These checks were either returned to the Tielkes or placed in a suspense account because the bank viewed them as insufficient to cure the default, but the propriety of that view depends on whether there was a valid default in the first place."

BACHLS: Out of Business and still Stealing Homes
BACHLS wanted to know what was owed on the mortgage, and what the Torrenga's monthly payment amount was. Kathy was confused. Why didn't they know these things already? Hadn't someone been keeping an accounting of what they had been paying for years? It was at this time that they were told they were in FORECLOSURE! They were in a PANIC. They were not behind! Their payment to the old company wasn't even due yet. That was when the nightmare started.

Florida Activists Help Depose Terrible Foreclosure Judge :-) 
One judicial election certainly does not make up for the outrage and human tragedy that has defined this foreclosure crisis era. But it feels good to see some measure of justice prevail, at least by subtracting one of the worst of the worst in bank-loving judges. It does show that the spirit of the movement that gave its best shot at forcing accountability on the most powerful forces in America remains alive.

Short and Simple:
HSBC Bank v. Gilbert
The plaintiff failed to demonstrate its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, because it did not eliminate triable issues of fact regarding whether it had standing as the lawful holder or assignee of the subject note on the date it commenced the action.

Appellate Court Orders Surplus Funds to Homeowner
The circuit court ordered the surplus to be disbursed to Wells Fargo, and the Devers appealed. We reverse and remand for the circuit court to order the surplus disbursed to the Devers.

Victory on Appeal – "Lack of Prosecution"
Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal just reversed a Final Judgment of Foreclosure because the trial court improperly denied a motion to dismiss for lack of prosecution.
Garcia v. BAC Home Loan

Bank of America Papers Show Conflict and 
Trickery in Mortgages
One Bank of America employee describes trying to “trick” a system that screened mortgages that the Federal Housing Administration agreed to insure. When using this system, Bank of America sometimes changed an applicant’s financial information and resubmitted the loan many times to try for approval. In at least one case, a Bank of America underwriter tried to pass the F.H.A. screening more than 40 times, according to the documents. In other cases, “underwriters regularly changed the relevant data and resubmitted the loans more than 20 times,” the documents said.

Retired Police Officer Files Motion to Vacate Void Order Alleging Judicial Corruption in Dallas Court
LNV v. BREITLING
A judicial order that grants LNV permission to deprive us of our property when the judge issuing that judgment has not even read our pleadings, and when no credible witness has testified, when no discovery has been permitted, and when we were intentionally denied a continuance to obtain another attorney and thereby forced to proceed pro-se is a gross violation of our right to due process.

Homeowner can sue for Mod-Fraud
Alvarez v. BACHLS
The court concluded that plaintiffs have alleged a cause of action for fraud against defendants where the complaint alleged that the loan documents concealed the terms of plaintiffs' loans and plaintiffs have alleged facts establishing defendants' liability for the alleged fraud.

Knecht Trilogy: Court Rules Majority of Claims 
to be Resolved at Trial
MERS Falsely Declared Itself the Beneficiary of Mr. Knecht’s Deed of Trust, and Purported to Convey to DB Rights MERS Never Held.
Knecht v. Fidelity Title
From its inception, Mr. Knecht’s deed of trust ran afoul of the Deed of Trust Act by designating MERS as its beneficiary. The Act declares that the beneficiary of a deed of trust is “the holder of the instrument or document evidencing the obligations secured by the deed of trust .

Time to Get Serious About RESPA/TILA Compliance
*First Tier Penalties - $5,000 per day.
*Second Tier Penalties - for reckless engagement in violations, $25,000 per day.
*Third Tier Penalties - for knowing violation, maximum penalty of $1,000,000 per day.
Officers, directors and employees of non-compliant lenders also face cease and desist orders as well as a prohibition from recovering fines and penalties from insurance; a prohibition from offsetting borrower claims with amounts paid for penalties; and other monetary damages as well as restitution, rescission, reformation of contracts, refunds, and return of compensation.

BUSTED!
Ex A.G.s Mark Shurtleff, John Swallow face civil lawsuit over Bank of America case
"We knew what Bank of America did was wrong in leading my brother and other homeowners into default," Kevin McBride said. "But the whole connection between the attorney general giving protection for that kind of activity never became clear until the criminal case was filed just a few weeks ago." Shurtleff and Swallow personally benefitted from their involvement in the case at the expense of Utah homeowners, including the McBrides, whose houses Bank of America had foreclosed on. The couple says the bank forced them into default as a condition of modifying their loan and then tried to take their home.
Some felony charges against Shurtleff and Swallow, including receiving or soliciting a bribe and accepting gifts when prohibited by law, are connected to the Bank of America case.

2010 REPLAY: Dismissed with prejudice for FRAUD...
JPMorgan Brings Foreclosure Case In Mortgage In Which It Was Just A Servicer, Court Finds Bank Committed Fraud
Here the Judge got really angry: "The court finds WAMU, with the assistance of its previous counsel, Shapiro and Fishman, submitted the assignment when [they] knew that only Fannie Mae was entitled to foreclose on the Mortgage, and that WAMU never owned or held the note and Mortgage." And, oops, "the Court finds by clear and convincing evidence that WAMU, Chase and Shapiro & Fishman committed fraud on this Court" and that these "acts committed by WAMU, Chase and Shapiro amount to a "knowing deception intended to prevent the defendants from discovery essential to defending the claim" and are therefore fraud.
JPMORGAN CHASE v.POCOPANNI

Dust off the pitchforks -  Home Foreclosure racket continues
Not only did the original mortgage holder get back all its money from the loan, plus all missed payments, out of pocket expenses and various generous fees, it also made a very respectable profit on the convoluted but perfectly 'legal' slight of hand. All paid for by you -- the US tax-payer.

Our sham of a democracy has been hijacked by a political mafia and its corporate paymasters. Changing President or the control of Congress will not stop this and other corporate rackets. Voters need to start asking some serious questions of potential candidates for the 2016 elections unless they wish to keep subsidizing the financial losses of the establishment. Alternatively, they can just dust off their pitchforks.

Court reversed the judgment as to the fraud, unfair competition and negligence causes of action.
ALVAREZ v. BAC Home Loan Servicing
Although poorly drafted, we agree that potentially meritorious claims can be distilled from the allegations of the complaint.

Another Texas Win in First District
BRUESS v. RESIDENTIAL CREDIT SOLUTIONS
In one issue, the Bruesses argue that the trial court erred in granting judgment because (1) neither of them signed the settlement agreement, (2) they withdrew their consent before judgment was entered, preventing judgment on a motion to enforce, (3) dismissal of their claims with prejudice had no basis in law, and (4) the settlement agreement mandated that any disputes would be resolved by returning to mediation, not a judgment.

HAMP Load Mod Scandal: Bankers did not act in good faith
US Bank N.A. v Sarmiento
The court granted the motion of the defendant Jose Sarmiento to bar the plaintiff from collecting interest or fees that accrued on the subject loan since December 1, 2009, to bar the plaintiff from recovering from him any costs or attorneys' fees it incurred in this action.
From the New York Law Journal:
Panel Addresses 'Bad Faith' in Foreclosure Negotiations
Fuster said the ruling gave borrowers "a sword against the lenders and they can use it immediately."

Copies of documents Not good enough to get a free house
Bank of America v. Smith
- Bank of America has cited no case law in support of its proposition that a photocopy of a promissory note is self-authenticating when no evidence has been presented that it is a true and accurate copy.
- R.C. 1301.307 addresses the authentication of entire documents, and that statute is limited to certain document types, of which a photocopied promissory note is not one.
- We must reverse the decision of the trial court granting summary judgment in favor of Bank of America.
Concurring Opinion: It is fundamental that “[d]ocuments that have not been sworn, certified, or authenticated by way of affidavit ‘have no evidentiary value.’ ” Simply attaching the note and mortgage to the complaint does not make them proper for consideration on summary judgment.

(Violation of CPA and DOT Act claims are now going to trial.)
Recording of False or Deceptive Documents
BofA argue that they did not record any "false" or "deceptive" documents. The Washington Supreme Court has held that "characterizing MERS as the beneficiary has the capacity to deceive", and such a characterization presumptively satisfies the unfair act or practice element of a CPA claim. Here, certain documents, such as the Appointment of Successor Trustee, characterize MERS as the beneficiary of the Deed of Trust. Thus, the act of recording that document presumptively satisfies the first CPA element.
NIEUWEJAAR v. BANK OF AMERICA

Notaries, Attorneys and Judges who witness the crimes
and cover them up are GUILTY...
Misprision can lead to prison
Knowing about a crime and not reporting it is just about as bad as actually committing one. The official term for this act is misprision, or the failure to report a known felony to authorities even though the person reporting the offense is not directly involved.
18 USC-4: Misprision of Felony

Unlawful Notary is a Felony
Ms. Hagan was also prosecuted criminally by the Attorney General’s office and eventually pled guilty to a third class felony for tampering with public records. A California notary public pled guilty to a felony violation of Penal Code Section 115, offering a forged instrument to be registered in a public office within the state, and Penal Code Section 118, for perjury.

Another pro se wins reversal
New Mexico Court of Appeals:
"We agree with homeowner and Reverse."
BONY v. Lopes
A note with an undated indorsement in blank, which was not produced at the time the complaint was filed, but only at trial, was insufficient to establish a bank's standing to foreclose.

Pro se wins reversal of breach of contract claim in JPMorgan's patterned loan mod scam.
Topchian v. JPMorgan
Our holding should not be read as imposing any sweeping duty upon district courts to devise legal theories for pro se plaintiffs. Rather, a complaint should be found to raise a claim only “if the essence of an allegation is discernable, even though it is not pleaded with legal nicety[.]” Stone, 364 F.3d at 915. Here, the essence of Topchian’s breach of contract claim was discernable because he attached the Agreement—a contract—to his pleadings and alleged that Chase had not complied with that contract.

Fair v. Kaufman (1994)
(h/t Matt Weidner) On appeal appellant argues, inter alia, the final judgment of foreclosure must be reversed because the appellees did not introduce into evidence the original note and mortgage.
We agree and reverse.

Texas First Circuit COA
Deutsche Bank to pay costs and SJ Reversed
Vasquez v. Deutsche Bank
The Opinion and Appellant's Brief
Deutsche’s void deed assignment places a cloud on Vasquez’s title.That cloud does not require Vasquez to establish the superiority of her claim despite Deutshce’s contention. Rather the law requires her to establish her interest in the property, that her title to the property is affected by a claim by the defendant, and the claim, although facially valid, is invalid or unenforceable.

Delaware Judge Faults Ocwen for Pushing Homeowners to Bankruptcy
The Williams were never materially behind on their mortgage payments, the judge said, but they were pushed into bankruptcy to keep Ocwen from taking their home in foreclosure.
Williams v. Ocwen