There is never a dull moment in Bank of America’s attempt to resolve its Countrywide mortgage-backed securities liability.  In a stunning move on August 26, the law firm leading the fight against Bank of America’s proposed $8.5 billion settlement with Countrywide MBS noteholders removed the case from New York State Supreme Court to  federal court.  “The purpose of removal is to make sure that this proceeding is adjudicated in the proper forum, ” Grais & Ellsworth wrote in a letter to lawyers for Bank of New York Mellon (the Countrywide MBS trustee) and for the big institutional investors who crafted the proposed settlement.  “We believe in good faith that this proceeding is subject to federal jurisdiction as a mass action under the Class Action Fairness Act.”

The removal to federal court plunges the proposed settlement, at least temporarily, into more uncertainty than ever.  Judge Barbara Kapnick, who is presiding over the unusual state court proceeding to evaluate the proposed deal, had imposed an August 30th deadline for Countrywide MBS investors to intervene in the case.  She had also established a preliminary schedule for the discovery Grais & Ellsworth and other objectors’ counsel have demanded from BNY Mellon, BofA, and the institutional investors and their Gibbs & Bruns counsel.  The removal to federal court means that Judge Kapnick isn’t in charge of the case, so it’s not clear whether lawyers are required to abide by her schedule. Continue reading “Bank of America – Countrywide suit removed to Federal Court”

Bank of America Corp. said in its quarterly filing on August 4 that Fannie and Freddie were demanding that it buy back delinquent loans “in numbers that were not expected.”  Bank of America agreed in January to pay the mortgage finance giants $3 billion to settle such claims, an amount it said at the time appeared adequate. Continue reading “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac demand that Bank of America buy back delinquent loans”

I earlier wrote about a number of banks being sued for reordering debit card transactions from high to low in order to increase overdraft fees.  Those suits were all transferred by the multi-district panel to a district court in Florida.

In their latest attempts to ditch the multi-district litigation pending in Florida,  the banks once again argued that the National Banking Act (“NBA”) barred the plaintiffs’ state law claims, pointing to a recent Eleventh Circuit decision holding that the NBA preempted an action based on a state consumer protection law aimed at limiting a bank’s ability to charge fees for certain services. Continue reading “JP Morgan Chase attempt to exit MDL nixed”

A federal judge has denied Bank of America’s motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit that alleges the bank improperly denied loan modifications under the Home Affordable Modification Program.

In her ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Rya Zobel of Massachusetts also clarified which homeowners could continue to pursue legal claims over the bank’s handling of HAMP cases. Continue reading “Bank of America loses bid to dismiss HAMP class action”

I earlier wrote a posting about the excessive overdraft fees cases we filed against several banks that have all been transferred to Florida.  On July 18, 2011, U.S. District Judge James Lawrence King orally ruled in court that he would grant a motion for class certification filed by customers of Union Bank.  In other words, customers may sue as a group over the bank’s overdraft-fee policy of reordering debit transactions to highest to lowest. Continue reading “First class action certified against Union Bank in excessive overdraft cases against banks”

A short while ago, Bank of America entered into an $8.5 billion settlement with a group of institutional investors such as Blackrock, Inc., the Federal Reserve Bank, and Pimco of a lawsuit alleging that Bank of America sold poor-quality mortgage bonds to investors knowing that they were not as represented. Continue reading “Bank of America: Investor group challenges $8.5 billion settlement”

Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch unit must face a class action suit on behalf of at least 1,800 investors over mortgage-backed securities, a federal judge ruled.

U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff in Manhattan certified a class of all investors that purchased the securities from February 2006 through September 2007.  Judge Rakoff also granted the investors’ request to appoint New York-based Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP as lead lawyers for the class. Continue reading “Merrill Lynch to face class action over mortgage-backed securities”

On May 23, a federal district judge in Florida preliminarily approved a settlement in a class action alleging that Bank of America had charged excessive overdraft fees on debit cards.  The bank reordered the processing of the debit charges from highest to lowest, which resulted in more overdraft fees.  Under the settlement, the Bank would pay $410 million.

Bank of America was the first defendant to settle in the case. Roughly 30 defendants remain, including US Bank, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, and Citibank.  Bank of America no longer charges overdraft fees for debit purchases.  Instead, it declines the card if there are not sufficient funds.

Click here to see the order preliminarily approving the settlement.

Bank of America Corp has agreed to pay $410 million to settle lawsuits accusing it of charging customers with excessive overdraft fees.  The largest U.S. bank by assets is among the more than two dozen U.S., Canadian and European lenders named as defendants in these type of class actions, which have been consolidated by the MDL panel in a giant proceeding in Florida. Continue reading “Bank of America Settles Excessive Overdraft Class Action for $410 million”