Category Archives: banks

BREAKING NEWS: Judge Determines BofA $8.5 bn Settlement Belongs in Federal Court

Though Bank of America (BofA) has taken its share of lumps over the past six months, this may be the one that leaves the biggest mark.  In an opinion issued today in the Southern District of New York (available here … Continue reading →

Posted in Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, class actions, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, damages, fiduciary duties, global settlement, Grais and Ellsworth, Greenwich Financial Services, investors, lawsuits, litigation, loss estimates, MBS, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, remand, removability, repurchase, RMBS, securities, securities laws, securitization, settlements, The Subprime Shakeout, Trustees, Uncategorized, William Frey | 4 Comments

Originator Business Models Led Inevitably to Housing Crash

by Steve Ruterman, guest blogger It has been four years since the onset of the epic economic and capital markets fiasco known as the housing crash, and this crisis is far from over.  Because the housing and mortgage finance industries … Continue reading →

Posted in AIG, banks, broader credit crisis, causes of the crisis, Complaints, Countrywide, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, guest posts, incentives, interest rates, irresponsible lending, lawsuits, lenders, lending guidelines, MBIA, MBS, mortgage market, private label MBS, research, RMBS, securitization, The Subprime Shakeout, Uncategorized, Way Too Big to Fail, William Frey | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Government Giveth and It Taketh Away: The Significance of the Game Changing FHFA Lawsuits

It is no stretch to say that Friday, September 2 was the most significant day for mortgage crisis litigation since the onset of the crisis in 2007.  That Friday, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), as conservator for Fannie Mae … Continue reading →

Posted in acquisitions, Ambac, bailout, banks, Bear Stearns, BofA, bondholder actions, Complaints, contract rights, Countrywide, damages, Deutsche Bank, emc, Fannie Mae, Federal Home Loan Banks, FHFA, Freddie Mac, freeriders, Goldman Sachs, Government bailout, investors, irresponsible lending, JPMorgan, jury trials, lawsuits, lending guidelines, liabilities, litigation, litigation costs, loan files, loss causation, loss estimates, LTV, MBS, media coverage, Merrill Lynch, misrespresentation, monoline actions, mortgage fraud, motions to dismiss, negligence and recklessness, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, quinn emanuel, ratings agencies, rep and warranty, repurchase, RMBS, securities, securities laws, securitization, shareholder lawsuits, sole remedy, sophistication, stability, standing, statistical sampling, statutes of limitations, subpoenas, successor liability, too big to fail, Trustees, underwriting practices, Wall St., WaMu | 6 Comments

RMBS Legal Roundup: The Top Five Developments You Might Have Missed While Obsessing Over the BoNY/BofA Settlement

With interesting developments occurring almost daily in the proposed Bofa/Countrywide settlement with Bank of New York, it has been hard to focus on anything else.  Indeed, since the last time I posted on the settlement (discussing New York AG Eric … Continue reading →

Posted in AIG, Attorneys General, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, CDOs, class actions, Complaints, contract rights, costs of the crisis, Credit Unions, damages, Deutsche Bank, Fannie Mae, FHFA, Freddie Mac, global settlement, Goldman Sachs, investigations, investors, JPMorgan, lawsuits, litigation, loss causation, MBS, misrespresentation, mortgage market, motions to dismiss, NCUA, Paulson and Co., private label MBS, probes, procedural hurdles, research, reserve reporting, responsibility, RMBS, SEC, securities fraud, securitization, settlements, sophistication, standing, subpoenas, subprime, too big to fail, Treasury, Trustees, Uncategorized, Wall St. | 2 Comments

New York AG Schneiderman Comes out Swinging at BofA, BoNY

This is big.  Though we’ve seen leading indicators over the last few weeks that New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman might get involved in the proposed Bank of America settlement over Countrywide bonds, few expected a response that might dynamite … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, bad faith, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, chain of title, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, discovery, fiduciary duties, global settlement, improper documentation, investigations, investors, litigation, loan files, LPS, MBS, mortgage fraud, private label MBS, RMBS, robo-signers, servicer defaults, servicers, settlements, standing, successor liability, Trustees, Uncategorized, underwriting practices, Wall St. | 11 Comments

Six Challenges to Countrywide RMBS Settlement Already; Rundown Shows Pact Will Be No Easy Sell for BofA

The BofA settlement blowback has already begun.  If you’ve been following my recent posts (here and here) about the proposed Bank of America (“BofA”) settlement involving the Bank of New York (“BoNY”) and the Kathy Patrick-led investor group (the “Investor … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, Federal Home Loan Banks, FHFA, global settlement, Grais and Ellsworth, improper documentation, incentives, investigations, investors, lawsuits, lenders, liabilities, litigation, MBS, oversight, pooling agreements, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, rep and warranty, repurchase, RMBS, securities fraud, servicers, settlements, standing, statutes of limitations, subpoenas, toxic assets, Trustees | 9 Comments

Creditor Rights: Use Them All!

by Steve Ruterman, guest blogger Much of the focus of mortgage crisis-related litigation and news coverage has been directed at put-back rights as a potential source of loss mitigation for mortgage creditors, including investors and bond insurers.  However, far less … Continue reading →

Posted in auditing, banks, bondholder actions, chain of title, contract rights, due diligence firms, Event of Default, firing servicers, freeriders, guest posts, improper documentation, incentives, investors, irresponsible lending, lenders, lending guidelines, loan files, MBIA, MBS, negligence and recklessness, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, re-underwriting, rep and warranty, RMBS, robo-signers, securitization, servicer defaults, servicers, standing, The Subprime Shakeout, Trustees, underwriting practices | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

$8.5 Billion BofA Settlement of Countrywide Trusts Raises Questions for Investors on Sidelines

As more details emerge about Bank of America’s proposed $8.5 billion settlement with Kathy Patrick’s bondholder group and Bank of New York Mellon (“BoNY”) as Trustee, the deal looks even worse for Countrywide RMBS investors.  Now, it is apparent that … Continue reading →

Posted in allocation of loss, Bank of New York, banks, BlackRock, BofA, bondholder actions, chain of title, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, damages, Federal Home Loan Banks, Federal Reserve, fiduciary duties, Freddie Mac, global settlement, Goldman Sachs, improper documentation, incentives, investors, irresponsible lending, Kathy Patrick, lawsuits, lenders, lending guidelines, liabilities, litigation, litigation costs, loss causation, loss estimates, MBS, MetLife, PIMCO, pooling agreements, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, re-underwriting, rep and warranty, repurchase, responsibility, RMBS, securities, securitization, sellers and sponsors, settlements, standing, subprime, successor liability, The Subprime Shakeout, TIAA-CREF, Trustees, underwriting practices, valuation, waiver of rights to sue, William Frey | 17 Comments

Breaking News: BofA Close to Reaching $8.5 bn Settlement with BlackRock, PIMCO (100th Post)

As part of the Subprime Shakeout’s 100th Post (woo-hoo!), I bring you an analysis of some big, breaking news: today, the Wall Street Journal reported that Bank of America was closing in on an agreement with the investor group led … Continue reading →

Posted in allocation of loss, balance sheets, banks, BlackRock, BofA, bondholder actions, contract rights, Countrywide, damages, demand letter, Freddie Mac, investors, Kathy Patrick, lawsuits, liabilities, loss estimates, PIMCO, private label MBS, putbacks, RMBS, settlements | 3 Comments

MBS Lawsuit Drivers Part II: Two More Reasons Why MBS Cases Should Jump in 2011

by Josh Silverman, guest blogger Mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”) litigation should expand this year, as Isaac Gradman correctly pointed out on The Subprime Shakeout in his Top 5 Reasons That MBS Lawsuits Are Just Beginning.   The sheer number of lawsuits continues … Continue reading →

Posted in Allstate, banks, bondholder actions, class actions, Countrywide, Federal Home Loan Banks, guest posts, IndyMac, lawsuits, litigation, MBS, mortgage fraud, private label MBS, securities, securities fraud, statutes of limitations | Tagged , , | Leave a comment