The Maryland Court of Appeals, the highest court in the State, recently held that the plaintiffs owners and tenants of residential properties set forth a cause of action under Md. Code Real Prop. 7-113 against a mortgage servicer and real estate broker for supposedly posting eviction notices without first ascertaining the occupancy status, even though the notices did not cause the occupants to vacate the properties.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of a homeowner-borrower’s action for wrongful foreclosure, violation of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (MMPA), and negligent misrepresentation against his mortgagee.
The California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, recently affirmed a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a mortgage servicer in a suit filed under the California Homeowner Bill of Rights seeking to enjoin foreclosure proceedings.
In an action by a general contractor against a bank arising out of a construction loan, the Wisconsin Supreme Court recently held that the trial court properly exercised its discretion when it imposed a default judgment against the defendant bank as a sanction for discovery violations.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently reversed and remanded a trial court’s certification of a class under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3).
The Appellate Court of Illinois, Second District, recently affirmed the trial court’s entry of judgment in favor of the plaintiff mortgagee in a commercial mortgage foreclosure case, and against two corporate officers of two corporate guarantors.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed summary judgment in favor of debt collectors over claims of purported violations of the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently held that a bank services agreement and its subsequent amendments were invalid to the extent that they materially changed the terms of the original agreement.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently affirmed in part and vacated and remanded in part a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs who brought a class action suit alleging that the pressure tactics used by the defendants on home appraisers to raise the appraisal values on the plaintiffs’ homes constituted conspiracy, breach of contract and unconscionable inducement under the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act.
The Supreme Court of the United States recently held that the Federal Trade Commission Act allows permanent injunctions to prevent future violations but does not authorize the Federal Trade Commission to seek, or a court to award, equitable monetary relief such as restitution or disgorgement, except that the FTC may obtain monetary relief by first invoking its administrative procedures and then Section 19’s redress provisions (which includes limitations).
On April 21, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued a decision holding that the transmittal of consumer information to a letter vendor constitutes a communication with an unauthorized third party in connection with the collection of a debt in violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1692c(b).
The Appellate Court of Illinois First District, Sixth Division, recently reversed in part and affirmed in part a trial court’s dismissal of a putative class action plaintiff’s claim that one of the defendants, a healthcare provider from whom the plaintiff received medical treatment following a personal injury, attempted to unlawfully assign its statutory lien against the plaintiff’s personal injury settlement to the other defendant, a financial services company and non-healthcare provider.