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Posts tagged as “Ninth Circuit”

9th Cir. Holds Temporary Stay of Foreclosure Not Enough to Satisfy Diversity ‘Amount in Controversy’

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that the trial court did not have subject matter jurisdiction based upon diversity over claims which sought a temporary stay of a foreclosure sale pending the review of a loan modification application because the amount of controversy did not exceed $75,000. In so ruling, the Court held that, for claims which merely seek a temporary stay of a foreclosure sale, the amount in controversy is not the value of the underlying loan. A copy of the opinion in Corral v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc. is available at:  Link to Opinion.…

9th Cir. Holds FDCPA Preempts State Judgment Execution Laws

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act preempted state judgment execution law insofar as it permitted debt collectors to execute on FDCPA claims. In so ruling, the Court held that debt collectors cannot evade the restrictions of federal law by obtaining a collection judgment against the debtor, and then forcing the debtor’s FDCPA claims to be auctioned, acquiring the claims, and dismissing them. A copy of this opinion Arellano v. Clark Cty. Collection Serv. is available at:  Link to Opinion. The debtor incurred a medical debt, and then failed…

9th Cir. Holds No Remand When Only Portion of Putative Class Met CAFA’s Home-State Controversy Exception

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a plaintiff cannot force remand of a federal Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) removal under the home-state controversy exception when only a portion of the putative class met the two-thirds citizenship requirement. A copy of the opinion Brinkley v. Monterey Financial Services, Inc. is available at:  Link to Opinion. A financial services company (“defendant”) allegedly recorded or monitored its telephone conversations with the plaintiff without giving her notice.  The plaintiff brought this action in California state court “alleging (1) invasion of privacy in violation of California and Washington state law; (2) unlawful…

9th Cir. Holds TCPA Claim Not Covered Due to ‘Invasion of Privacy’ Exclusion

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a liability insurance policy that broadly excluded coverage for invasion of privacy claims also excluded coverage for claims for violations of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act. A copy of the opinion in L.A. Lakers v. Federal Ins. Co. is available at:  Link to Opinion. In 2012, a class action complaint was filed against the Los Angeles Lakers for allegedly sending text messages using an automatic telephone dialing system in violation of the TCPA, 47 U.S.C. § 227, et seq.  The Lakers asked their insurer to defend them against…

9th Cir. Limits Subsequent Good-Faith Transferee Exception in Bankruptcy Fraudulent Transfer Actions

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a debtor corporation’s sole shareholder and third parties who sold real property and services to the sole shareholder could be liable for fraudulent transfers. In so ruling, the Ninth Circuit held that the third parties were initial transferees of the debtor corporation’s funds because the sole shareholder paid the third parties with checks directly from a corporate account, even though the third parties did not have a pre-existing relationship or an ongoing relationship with the sole shareholder, his family, or any of his businesses. A copy of this…

9th Cir. Holds Nevada Deficiency Limitation Preempted as to Transferees of FDIC

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently affirmed final judgments against corporate borrowers and guarantors in three separate cases, holding that: (a)  the Nevada statute limiting the amount of the deficiency recoverable in a foreclosure action was preempted by federal law as applied to transferees of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); (b)  the plaintiff bank had standing to enforce the loans it acquired from the FDIC; (c)  the bank was not issue-precluded from showing that the subject loans had been transferred to it; (d)  the bank did not breach the implied covenant of good faith and…

9th Cir. Holds Creditor in Fraudulent Transfer Action May Recover Amounts Above Collateralized Debt

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that, where husband and wife debtors fraudulently transferred assets, the creditor was entitled to the full sum the creditor would have recovered and was not limited to the amount of the collateralized debt. In so ruling, the Ninth Circuit reversed a bankruptcy court and trial court judgment in the creditor’s favor that the debt was non-dischargeable due to the debtor’s fraud, but improperly limiting the non-dischargeable debt to only the collateralized amount. A copy of the opinion in DZ Bank AG Deutsche Zentral-Genossenschaft Bank v. Meyer is available at:  Link to Opinion.…

9th Cir. Holds Federal Foreclosure Bar Preempts Nevada HOA Superpriority Statute

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that the Federal Foreclosure Bar’s prohibition on nonconsensual foreclosure of assets of the Federal Housing Finance Agency preempted Nevada’s superpriority lien provision and invalidated a homeowners association foreclosure sale that purported to extinguish Freddie Mac’s interest in the property. A copy of the opinion in Berezovsky v. Bank of America is available at:  Link to Opinion. In 2013, an investor purchased a home at a homeowners association foreclosure sale for $10,500 and recorded a deed in his name. The purchaser argued that Nevada’s superpriority lien provision, Nev. Rev. Stat. § 116.3116,…

9th Cir. Holds Defendant Not Vicariously Liable Under TCPA

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a defendant could not be held vicariously liable under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) because the phone calls at issue were made by a company whose telemarketers were independent contractors, and thus were not acting as the defendant’s agents under the federal common law of agency. A copy of the opinion in Jones v. Royal Admin. Svcs. is available at:  Link to Opinion. A company that sold automobile service contracts, sometimes called extended warranties, contracted with a telemarketing company to sell its products. The agreement set forth…

9th Cir. Rules Mortgage Underwriters Not Exempt Under FLSA

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that mortgage underwriters were not exempt under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and were therefore entitled to overtime compensation for hours worked in excess of 40 per week. After analyzing the specific details of the underwriters’ responsibilities, the Ninth Circuit panel concluded that, because the underwriters’ primary job duty did not relate to their employer bank’s management or general business operations, the administrative employee exemption to the FLSA’s overtime requirements did not apply. Recognizing that there was a split between the Second Circuit and Sixth Circuit as…

9th Cir. Holds ‘Free and Clear’ Bankruptcy Sale Was Not Rejection of Unexpired Leases, Did Not Implicate 11 U.S.C. § 365(h)

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a bankruptcy trustee was authorized to sell real estate free and clear of unexpired leases under 11 U.S.C. § 363(f), and the sale was not a rejection of the unexpired leases and therefore did not implicate 11 U.S.C. § 365(h). In so ruling, the Ninth Circuit adopted the minority approach established in Precision Indus., Inc. v. Qualitech Steel SBQ, LLC, 327 F.3d 537 (7th Cir. 2003), which held that sections 363 and 365 may be given full effect without coming into conflict with one another. By allowing the…

9th Cir. Holds Bankruptcy Cram-Down Valuations to Use ‘Replacement Value’ Not ‘Foreclosure Value’

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that for cram-down valuations, 11 U.S.C. § 506(a)(1) requires the use of “replacement value” based upon the adoption of the replacement value standard in Associates Commercial Corp. v. Rash, 520 U.S. 953, 956 (1997). In so ruling, the Ninth Circuit interpreted Rash to instruct that valuation of collateral in a cram down must be based on the debtor’s desires (i.e., the proposed use of the collateral in the debtor’s plan of reorganization), and without consideration of the value that the secured creditor would realize in an immediate sale. Accordingly,…