Category Archives: statistical sampling

The Bell Tolls for BofA

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Isaac Gradman

Memorial Day Weekend is always cause for some reflection, but as we draw closer to the May 30, 2013 merits hearing on Bank of America’s (BofA) proposed $8.5 billion settlement of Countrywide mortgage liabilities, this last one seemed particularly appropriate … Continue reading →

Posted in Adam Levitin, AIG, allocation of loss, Alt-A, appeals, Attorneys General, bad faith, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, damages, Federal Home Loan Banks, Flagstar, global catastrophe defense, global settlement, incentives, Investor Syndicate, investors, irresponsible lending, Judge Barbara Kapnick, Judge Eileen Bransten, Judge Jed Rakoff, Judge Paul Crotty, Judge William Pauley, Judicial Opinions, Kathy Patrick, lawsuits, liabilities, litigation, loan files, loss causation, MBIA, MBS, monoline actions, O'Melveny & Myers, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, rep and warranty, repurchase, RMBS, securitization, sellers and sponsors, sole remedy, standing, statistical sampling, successor liability, summary judgment, Trustees, vicarious liability | 3 Comments

Mortgage Lit Roundup: Five Signs That Plaintiffs Are Winning the RMBS War

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

A lot can happen in a few months.  I’ve largely taken a break from blogging over the last quarter, as the demands of becoming a new father and joining a new law firm (see “Legal Practice” link in the header) … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Frankel, allocation of loss, Ally Bank, Alt-A, Attorneys General, Bank of New York, bankruptcy, banks, Bear Stearns, bench trials, BofA, bondholder actions, borrower fraud, Citigroup, Clayton Holdings, conflicts of interest, contract rights, counterparty risk, Countrywide, damages, Deutsche Bank, due diligence firms, emc, FDIC, Flagstar, fraud, global catastrophe defense, Goldman Sachs, improper documentation, Insurance Department, investigations, investors, irresponsible lending, JPMorgan, Judge Barbara Kapnick, Judge Eileen Bransten, Judge Jed Rakoff, Judge Paul Crotty, Judge William Pauley, judicial momentum, Judicial Opinions, lawsuits, lenders, lending guidelines, liabilities, LIBOR manipulation, liquidity, litigation, loan files, loss causation, MBIA, MBS, media coverage, misrespresentation, monoline actions, monolines, mortgage fraud, mortgage insurers, NCUA, pooling agreements, private label MBS, probes, public perceptions, putbacks, quinn emanuel, re-underwriting, Regulators, rep and warranty, repurchase, reserve reporting, RMBS, SEC, securities, securities fraud, securities laws, securitization, sellers and sponsors, sole remedy, standing, stated income, statistical sampling, subpoenas, subprime, successor liability, summary judgment, Trustees, underwriting guidelines, underwriting practices, vicarious liability, Walnut Place, Wells Fargo | 2 Comments

Upcoming Presentation: Trends in MBS Litigation

Posted on November 14, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

I am pleased to announce that I will be speaking in and presenting at an upcoming Strafford live phone/web seminar, “Mortgage-Backed Securities Litigation: Latest Developments” scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, November 15, 1:00pm-2:30pm EST. This will be largely geared towards attorneys … Continue reading →

Posted in bondholder actions, broader credit crisis, class actions, Complaints, conflicts of interest, contract rights, costs of the crisis, counterparty risk, damages, derivative lawsuits, discovery, education, fraud, gatekeeper litigation, global catastrophe defense, global settlement, impact of the crisis, investors, irresponsible lending, Judicial Opinions, jury trials, lawsuits, liabilities, litigation, loss causation, MBS, misrespresentation, monoline actions, pooling agreements, Presentations, private label MBS, putbacks, rep and warranty, repurchase, research, responsibility, RMBS, securities, securities laws, securitization, sellers and sponsors, settlements, standing, statistical sampling, statutes of limitations, summary judgment, The Subprime Shakeout, Trustees, underwriting practices | 1 Comment

Investor End Games: All Is Not Well in the Garden

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

“As long as the roots are not severed, all is well.  And all will be well in the garden.” – Chance the Gardener, Being There (1979) With Judge Barbara Kapnick announcing earlier this month that the approval hearing in Bank … Continue reading →

Posted in AIG, allocation of loss, ASF, Attorneys General, Bank of New York, banks, BlackRock, Bloomberg, BofA, bondholder actions, causes of the crisis, conflicts of interest, consitutionality, contract rights, costs of the crisis, Countrywide, damages, Deutsche Bank, discovery, eminent domain, fiduciary duties, foreclosure crisis, fraud, global settlement, Grais and Ellsworth, impact of the crisis, incentives, investors, irresponsible lending, Judge Barbara Kapnick, Judge Eileen Bransten, junior liens, Kathy Patrick, lawsuits, lenders, lending guidelines, liabilities, LIBOR manipulation, liquidity, litigation, litigation costs, lobbying, MBIA, MBS, misrespresentation, monoline actions, monolines, mortgage fraud, mortgage insurers, mortgage market, negative equity, Neil Barofsky, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, recession, rep and warranty, repurchase, Residential Capital, responsibility, restructuring, RMBS, securities, securitization, sellers and sponsors, settlements, standing, statistical sampling, statutes of limitations, successor liability, summary judgment, The Subprime Shakeout, too big to fail, toxic assets, Treasury, Trustees, underwriting guidelines, underwriting practices, US Bank, vicarious liability, waiver of rights to sue, Wall St., Walnut Place, Way Too Big to Fail, Wells Fargo, William Frey | 2 Comments

MBIA on Winning Streak Heading into Trial on Restructuring Challenge

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

Monoline insurer MBIA, the most influential plaintiff in mortgage crisis litigation, has been on a roll lately in its lawsuits against Bank of America and other institutions over issues stemming from the subprime meltdown.  But MBIA will face its stiffest … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Frankel, allocation of loss, appeals, bailout, Bank of New York, banks, bench trials, BofA, bondholder actions, CDOs, contract rights, costs of the crisis, Countrywide, damages, discovery, global settlement, Government bailout, investors, Judge Barbara Kapnick, Judge Eileen Bransten, Judicial Opinions, lawsuits, liabilities, litigation, loss causation, MBIA, MBS, media coverage, monoline actions, monolines, private label MBS, putbacks, Regulators, rep and warranty, reserve reporting, responsibility, RMBS, settlements, statistical sampling, subprime, successor liability, The Subprime Shakeout, Trustees | 6 Comments

MBIA Celebrates Bransten Decision on Loss Causation; Bondholders Still Looking for Guidance

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

As loyal readers will recall, I laid it on the line a few weeks back and predicted that MBIA would win its loss causation argument against Countrywide/BofA, making the nation’s largest bank wish it had settled this bellwether piece of … Continue reading →

Posted in appeals, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, broader credit crisis, causes of the crisis, contract rights, damages, investors, Judge Jed Rakoff, Judicial Opinions, lawsuits, liabilities, litigation, loss causation, MBIA, MBS, misrespresentation, monoline actions, monolines, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, rep and warranty, repurchase, rescission, RMBS, securitization, statistical sampling, The Subprime Shakeout | 5 Comments

MBS Litigation Update: Why BofA Will Lose the Loss Causation Argument and Wish It Had Settled with MBIA

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Isaac Gradman

With all eyes in the mortgage litigation world glued to the pending decision on Partial Summary Judgment in MBIA v. Countrywide, et al., commentators are beginning to speculate that a settlement may be in the offing between the two MBS … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Frankel, allocation of loss, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, branch hill capital, causes of the crisis, Countrywide, irresponsible lending, lawsuits, lenders, lending guidelines, liabilities, litigation, loss causation, MBIA, MBS, misrespresentation, motions to dismiss, Philippe Selendy, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, quinn emanuel, rep and warranty, repurchase, RMBS, securitization, statistical sampling, Uncategorized, underwriting practices | 10 Comments

Release of “Way Too Big to Fail” Simply Opening Salvo in Efforts to Reform Mortgage Finance

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Isaac Gradman

It’s tempting when you have an enormous task before you to focus all of your attention on completing that task while blocking out any thoughts of what comes next.  For me, that enormous task has been the publication of a … Continue reading →

Posted in allocation of loss, appeals, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, causes of the crisis, contract rights, Countrywide, discovery, FHFA, global settlement, investors, irresponsible lending, lawsuits, liabilities, litigation, lobbying, loss causation, MBIA, monoline actions, mortgage market, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, regulation, Regulators, remand, repurchase, RMBS, securitization, settlements, statistical sampling, successor liability, The Subprime Shakeout, Uncategorized, Way Too Big to Fail, William Frey | 1 Comment

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

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Isaac Gradman

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

FDIC Sues LPS and CoreLogic Over Appraisal Fraud; Shows Investors Leaving Money on the Table

Posted on May 30, 2011 by Isaac Gradman

In another sign that the Federal Government is turning its focus towards prosecuting the securitization players who may have contributed to the Mortgage Crisis, the FDIC filed separate lawsuits against LSI Appraisal (available here) and CoreLogic (available here) earlier this … Continue reading →

Posted in allocation of loss, appraisals, causes of the crisis, Complaints, conflicts of interest, CoreLogic, FDIC, Federal Home Loan Banks, fiduciary duties, irresponsible lending, lawsuits, liabilities, loan files, loss causation, LPS, private label MBS, re-underwriting, rep and warranty, RMBS, statistical sampling, subprime, successor liability, underwriting practices, valuation, WaMu | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments