A fast, easy, free, and non-violent way to drive the big banks out of their greedy little minds is sitting in your mailbox right now. You just don’t know it yet.

Funny, I personally was told about this a few months ago. This woman was getting 2-3 of these mailers from the same institution each week. She told me she did this! Brilliant!

Remember that it’s not just a bunch of AGs at the table here. It’s also the Obama Administration. And therein lies the problem…

Credit Slips-

A new report details how big business and corporate lobbyists are packing courts with judges who put special interests ahead of the public interest

TIME-

The Occupy Wall Street movement is shining a spotlight on how much influence big-money interests have with the White House and Congress. But people are not talking about how big money is also increasingly getting its way with the courts, which is too bad. It’s a scandal that needs more attention. A blistering new report details how big business and corporate lobbyists are pouring money into state judicial elections across the country and packing the courts with judges who put special interests ahead of the public interest.

A case in point: West Virginia. In 2007, the West Virginia Supreme Court, on a 3-2 vote, threw out a $50 million damage award against the owner of a coal company. Funny thing: the man who would have had to pay the $50 million had spent $3 million to help elect the justice who cast the deciding vote. The West Virginia ruling was so outrageous that in 2009 the United States Supreme Court overturned it. But that was unusual. In most cases, judges are free to decide cases involving individuals and groups that have paid big money to get them elected.

.

I had to post this and sorry if off topic… this goes to show that no one is above the law.

Miami Police going 120mph to an off duty job… Trooper isn’t having it!

Now for those who are still working in these firms, keep in mind this won’t last much longer.

HW-

The Law Offices of Marshall C. Watson, a Florida-based foreclosure law firm that paid $2 million to settle an attorney general investigation into the firm’s operational processes earlier this year, is laying off staff members and hiring new employees for its compliance division.

“To streamline our processes and minimize inefficiencies, the firm has had to eliminate temporary and overlapping positions,” according to a spokesperson for the firm. “We are, however, adding positions to our compliance department as part of our continuing commitment to providing quality service to our clients.”

[HOUSING WIRE]

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.

Obama and the AGs still balk at the only solution to the housing-driven recession

Salon-

There is $700 billion in negative equity in the U.S. housing market. That means Americans owe $700 billion more than their homes are worth. Any plan for the housing sector or the U.S. economy, that doesn’t take a serious bite out of negative equity isn’t serious.

Yet un-serious is what we continue to get from elected officials. This week the Obama Administration announced a new plan to help underwater homeowners refinance their mortgages to lower rates.  The plan, really an expansion of an existing program, is the latest in a series of programs designed to deal with the moribund housing market. Each has proven a more dismal disappointment than the next.

So too with the latest version of the proposed settlement between the state Attorneys General, led by Iowa’s Tom Miller, and the mortgage servicing industry. Yes, the deal has been sweetened by the addition of some interest rate reductions for underwater homeowners who are current on their payments. But that’s small potatoes.

[SALON]

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Civil Division

COUNTY OF WASHINGTON,
PENNSYLVANIA, on behalf of itself and all
other similarly situated Pennsylvania Counties,

Plaintiff

vs.

U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,

Defendant

[ipaper docId=70965013 access_key=key-168o3025pdbk6qyzs3ct height=600 width=600 /]

Dear friends,

I am taking the gloves off, its that time! Attorney General Beau Biden did us all proud and right yesterday, despite the political reality that he faces in a state that hosts as corporations, the banks, Wall St. firms, and system he is attacking. I would ask that each of you kindly read the entirety of this letter and to assist me help each of you and this nation of ours and force the other AGs and elements of our government and the media to be as bold and brave as Beau Biden!

Beau knows MERS! LOL He certainly not only vindicated me and my decade-ol fight against MERS and my predictions, but all of us, especially Max, April, Judges Logan and Gordon (would love to interview each now) and let me not forget our favorite jurist, Judge Schack!

Let us not forget the crooked judges too, like Craig Schwall and Louis Levenson in Fulton Co who will be getting their comeuppance next month in both courts of law and public opinion (the media). We need to have media focus on the Judges who get it and the judges we have evidence of corruption on. (including our tapes) This will be one of our new objectives. We also need to expose Robo-Judges™ who issue Robo-Orders™!

We’re starting a new movement in America. Our new movement will complement the Occupy Wall Street and Occupy the Internet movements by assisting those trying to help or most importantly IGNORING TO HELP our nation and states. That is the media who is trying to help and some in government like Beau Biden. The other AGs and regulators that ignore us will be publicly noticed and later publicly embarrassed if they fail to act, since a “record” of notices, warnings, and actions or inactions will be publicly displayed now and for the years to come that anyone can access. We shall begin with Names!!

The name for these new movements shall be Occupy The Government & Occupy The Media! As for the media, we shall and I request that you respect their time and their space.

The first step is that I want each of you to provide me, Lisa, Michael, Matt and everyone of our colleagues and comrades in arms with an email list of ALL media and government contacts you have in two separate email address books for Outlook or AOL. We will then discuss content to send by each of us to these contacts. For the media, we will target great story ideas for each journalist and editor we have befriended and has supported the cause. We will also provide a host of information, facts, and evidence for their investigative needs. The media is not only our friend, but our greatest ally in this movement, next to the Internet!

For government, we will create letters and petitions and forward to them in masse! Also, we will document and forward complaints, and evidence of fraudulent bank behavior. They are either with us, or against us! They get to choose and so do we, by a vote. It’s time to stop picking leaders by social issues, but real life issues. You’re either a bank bitch and for them or you’re not (like Beau).

I want to do to the AGs, all regulators, and politicians, what I did to CEOs and boards years ago, paper them and “put them on notice” to act. Let’s see if they ignore our warnings this time around since doing so, will surely jeopardize their political and/or professional aspirations. As they move up the political food chain, we will have a record of what they were warned of and what they did or didn’t do so that their prior actions can be judged by voters and regulators alike.

I am reminded of Gandhi’s quote “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” We’re now winning, so it’s time to pile in on as the bankster’s lawyers would say. Over the years, I have created a “hit list” and “target list” of enemies and foes and have guarded carefully very personal information about them. While information is power, knowledge of what to do with that information, and the wisdom to know when its right to use, is key. I suggest you each do the same!

Next, I will begin writing more letters and more warnings based on my experience and I will start doing some polling with the help of supporters and sponsors I will seek from law firms. This will accomplish a few goals. First, it will bring national media attention and coverage to the issues and second, media attention, business and leads to the law firms than sponsor my research. My research has traditionally garnered national media attention and the front pages of virtually every newspaper as well as television and radio. It will once more, do so again.

As for Beau Biden, his complaint is a masterpiece and must read and pins the tail on the ASS (sorry, Donkey was way too kind) so to speak in MERS. In effect, he is not only seeking to shut down every MERS foreclosure in DE, but seeking to foreclose on MERS itself! I wonder what ASSet protection MERSCORP and its enablers have in place.

I have previously called the racketeering acts of the servicers the “default servicing enterprise.” However, Beau kept it simple and called it the “foreclosure enterprise.” I agree. From this day forward, when we discuss or refer to this racketeering enterprise, let’s all agree to call it and refer to it as the FORECLOSURE ENTERPRISE! Let’s get that mantra up and explain it for what it is, an enterprise which is key for RICO actions, both state and federal, which is where we will be going next with the evidence we have all uncovered. Make Foreclosure enterprise as widely known and accepted as robo-signing and fraudclosure!

In his complaint and his exhibits, Beau Biden has laid the foundation for attacking MERS and every lender. In every case where MERS is ANYWHERE in the chain (current or prior loans) you must file his complaint and exhibits with the court with a notice for the Court to take “judicial notice” of the complaint. Next, you must also file all of the county recorder lawsuits. Remember, building a record is the most important thing you can do in a case. This is how we will also expose the corrupt judges we have evidence on. An analysis of their record and rulings will assist media and also how we vote them out. We shall approve and disprove of judges and politicians and make our voices known, regardless of party affiliation. We will make them sign pledges and contracts, so we know where stand.

We will get our friends in person, email, and on Facebook, to work with us, petition, send emails, make phone calls and focus attention on issues and those who fight and oppose us. We will gather lists of names too and personal and email addresses for protesters.

Our first petition will be the abolishment of MERS and I am drafting Lisa Epstein to create the first draft using the relief that Beau seeks in his lawsuit to be the first petition of our group. Lisa, please copy me, Jacqs, April, Dan, and Max on it and we’ll get out soon!

Friends, its time! 2012, the Mayans predicted would be the end of the world “as we know it!” I’m reminded of the song “its the end of the world as we know it, its the end of the world as we know it. If we believe and act, we can do it! I know we can and i know we will!

It’s time my friends, time to get immediate attention and use the legal strategy the the banks and foreclosure mills created called “piling on” after football piling on. Let’s get to the media, get to the government, get to judges, and get to the people. Let’s Occupy Government and The Media and take control of the destiny God has given each of us! 2012 is upon us. The Mayans were right, its the end of the world as we know it, and the start of a new world, not new world order, as we desire and want it to be free of banks, political influence, and corruption!

Nye

Dear Attorneys General:

Recently, the Office of Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Agency released reports about a special counsel investigation by Fannie Mae and that a shareholder had warned and provided Fannie Mae and others as far back as 2003 about robo-signing and foreclosure abuses. This story was picked up by the NYTimes’ Gretchen Morgenson and a plethora of other news media. While Gretchen and the FHFA didn’t name me, I was nonetheless outed since she and many others, including some of you, knew this shareholder was me.

I have been working hard behind the scenes to warn and stop the catastrophic events of the past few years which I first forecast in 1996! I have spent almost $1 million and spent over 40,000 hours since 1994 investigating, researching, and documenting these frauds. I have millions of pages of documents and a history like a bear in the woods who has left a trail all the way up to personally warning and communicating to the CEOs of virtually every bank, servicer, and Wall Street firm of these abuses. I took shares in each of these companies in the late 90s to warn them. Jaime Dimon, William Harrison, Kerry Killinger, Ace Greenberg, and James Cayne are just a few. However, the ratings agencies were warned as well as law firms and accounting firms, especially Deloitte!

As the shareholder that in 2003 warned Fannie Mae and worked with the independent counsel they appointed, Mark Cymrot, of Baker Hostetler in Washington DC, I have a unique perspective as well as set of facts that each of you could never obtain due to the cost and time limitations, that I have accumulated since 1993, almost 20-years!

However, as you will see by the attached letter to FHFA and links to reports and warnings I have authored since the mid-nineties, many were warned, including some of your offices since the mid to late nineties. I am also the individual that first discovered robo-signing and foreclosure fraud in the mid-nineties and authored reports documenting such abuses starting in the mid-nineties, until a “visiting judge” in Dallas, TX gagged me from telling this story.

It wasn’t until 2000, at the National Consumer Law Center conference in Colorado when I released reports on these frauds and abuses. Some of your lawyers were in attendance and were provided two reports. Only Max Gardner, a bankruptcy lawyer from North Carolina, took the reports to heart and began a decade-old fight to expose this corruption.

Robo-signing and foreclosure fraud and the intentional fraudulent filing of lawsuit complaints, advertisements of sale, assignments of mortgage, satisfactions of mortgage, and affidavits, as you will see from my well-documented reports, are not a recent phenomon or the result of the securitization craze that swept America and the world from the late nineties to mid-2000s.

They were carefullly planned and orchestrated after the RTC debacle in the late 80s wherein a select group of “special servicers,” commonly referred to in the industry as the industry’s “toxic waste dumps,” were created to push these newly developed and even “patented” foreclosure factory processes that the four major special servicers “tested” and then “perfected” for the rest of the industry. These special servicers are known to many of you, but their names were EMC Mortgage, SPS f/k/a Conti-Fairbanks Capital, Ocwen, and Litton Loan.

Through “partnerships” with firms like the Barrett Burke operation in Texas, the LOGs group (Shapiro) out of Illinois, the McCalla Raymer group in Georgia and many others, they created an automated foreclosure machine that threw all caution to the wind when it not only came to ethics, but the law. In a newly expanding “virtual” world, they, along with vendors and third parties such as title insurers Fidelity National and First American created patented and marketable “cradle-to-grave” systems and processes to expand the housing and mortgage markets and cover-up and conceal the known fraud to all of them perpetrated mostly by aggressive loan brokers and occasionally borrowers and factored such losses and circumstances into their system. I can provide each of you with mens rea and scienter to prosecute for frauds.

As they tested these systems and perfected their fraud via such practices as intentionally concealing the real ownership of a promissory note and first foreclosing in the names of servicers who claimed to “own” the notes and then MERS, they really were double and multi-pledging the promissory notes to themselves and others to obtain servicing advances as well as take gain on sale accounting treatments on the notes they originated with no risk to them, since they had already forward sold the notes to our respective mutual, trust, and pension funds.

As you each take your own collective and individual approaches towards your investigations, I would whole-heartedly agree with Attorneys General Scheiderman, Biden, Harris, and others who want to continue this investigation. If you don’t continue and right the wrongs, I will boldly predict that each of you will have blood on your hands. I say this as no threat of any means whatsoever, but as a warning based on my understanding as a social scientist and advocate of the human psyche that for some is weak, but for others is broken. If you look at my forecasts and predictions over the years, I have one heck of a batting average in getting it right. As my former partner, Dr. Roy Stout who was featured in the book Blink, would say, I see things and data that others want to ignore. For the first time in my life, I am scared – – scared, not for me, but for our nation and our nation’s youth and those who might have to endure the consequence of the excesses of my generation.

Today, its mortgages, but when these young students, like an ex-girlfriend who at 22 left school with $150,000 in student debt realize what has occurred, all bets will be off. Today, they are peaceful – – tomorrow, they may be vengeful! The Occupy Wall Street movement is only the start. The American public and world, want to see accountability. They want to see perp walks. They want the intentional bankers, hedge funds, and Wall Street executives who intentionally created and manipulated this world-wide financial debacle prosecuted. If you don’t do it, I fear as the nation and the world’s economy suffers even more, there will be total anarchy in the streets as well as assaults and even “non-political” assassinations against banking CEOs, Wall St executives, and foreclosure lawyers, by para-military right and left wing extremists that were former Army Rangers and Navy Seals who are not only disenchanted with the current situation, but disenfranchised. Living in Savannah, GA last year, I met many Rangers each evening who were angry, very angry for fighting a war that they realized was not for Americans, but for other interests. The discussions I would have in the evenings were illuminating and gave me a great respect for our nation’s military men and women.

However, as they lose more friends, limbs, spouses, their sanity and now their homes, a combustible mixture that is not only flammable, but toxic is spreading. You can see it in the OWS movement and some of the videos. I say these things not to scare you, but to warn you once again and most importantly, to EMPOWER EACH OF YOU, collectively or individually.

You have each been give a god-given opportunity at a vital point in our nation and the world’s history. Each of you, if you do your jobs and ignore the politics, political influence, and lobbying from both banks and the federal government, have a special moment in time to leave a mark. A mark that historians will one day write was the day America and the world decided to be free of political and banking influence and truly helped create a world democracy.

The money now, whether it is $20 billion or $50 billion in the scheme of trillion dollar losses is really not what the people are angry at. They was to see accountability and those who not only created the situation, but manipulated it or ignored it to their personal gain be prosecuted. I hear their voices each day and that’s why I am coming out of the closet, so to speak, despite the threats against my family and I to offer my help and assistance in doing what is right for this nation, our people, and those youths protesting for what they know, that many in our generation simply ignored as they drove their BMWs, put dope up their noses, and lived it up at the expense of their children and grand children.

Now is the time. I can give you the goods on many of these if you want to really follow the patented fraud. Have you all read the patents as yet of all these so-called “processes?” The most human element in the entire automated factory were the actual ignorant robo-signers! In fact, when I discovered and reported on robo-signing, I did so just to give one “minor example of the overall fraudulent scheme that was designed not to defraud borrowers who were only pawns in the “game” as it was called, but our respective pension funds and extraction of our so-called excess wealth.
Think about it, for a moment if you will. Robo-signing is such an elementary fraud, so simple, so stupid, so petty! The real fraud and why the banks want to settle with you so quickly is the securization and the fact that none of these deals were “true sales,” but the financing of receivables whereby investors were defrauded and multi-pledging of paid off notes occurred to inflate their earnings, stock prices, and bonuses.

How many of you have had your original wet-ink promissory note returned to you canceled and paid in full upon its payoff or refinancing? Ask around the office? Then, check your lien release or satisfaction and see if it was robo-signed? Who is your real lender?
Open the black pandora’s box of financial alchemy in securitization and you will find the multi-pledging and sale of paid off notes, the same notes, and even “ghost notes” that were created with Photoshop and never even executed by a real live borrower. I will save the death threats, break-ins, arsons, computer hacks, and millions of dollars of vexatious litigation by the banks and its foreclosure lawyers against my family, myself, our trusts, and the select group of advocates who were the first to take the batton from my hand for another day. I will even save the bribery of judicial officers, court reporters, and local judges for another day. All I ask is for each of you to think long and very hard, before letting the banks, their servicers, vendors, and lawyers off the hook.

I’ll come to see any of you and give any of you my deposition as well as access to whatever I possess in terms of evidence. I would also suggest that you ask each bank you are investigating and law firm to preserve all evidence and provide to you everything they have in their possession that contains my name “Nye Lavalle” or “Aneurin Lavalle” or this email address that I have had since the mid-nineties. I am also more than willing to take polygraph exams, should you find that necessary.

In essence, all I personally want is the real and true story told by a real and true investigation and the subsequent civil and criminal prosecution of those responsible for this nation’s morass.

I pray some, or all of you, will take me up on my offer. Please feel free to call or email me at any time if I can be of assistance to you or any of your collective or respective investigations!

Nye Lavalle
561/860-7632

[ipaper docId=70943393 access_key=key-fjtdy93l2w0kfrsuamu height=600 width=600 /]

PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION HERE:  http://wh.gov/TVZ

We have 30 days to get 25,000 signatures – I know we can do it.
Pass this out to everyone you know and ask them to please sign.

I realize that it is an effort to sign in and sign the petition but we need to take the opportunity to be heard.  I’d like to see us get 250,000 or 2,500,000 in 30 days!

When we have 150 signatures it gets posted on the White House Petition page.

Thank you in advance for participating!

Dear friends and family,

I wanted to let you know about a new petition I created on We the People, a new feature on WhiteHouse.gov, and ask for your support. Will you add your name to mine? If this petition gets 25,000 signatures by November 25, 2011, the White House will review it and respond! We the People allows anyone to create and sign petitions asking the Obama Administration to take action on a range of issues. If a petition gets enough support, the Obama Administration will issue an official response. You can view and sign the petition here: http://wh.gov/TVZ

Here are a few tips to help us promote the STOP FORECLOSURES AND EVICTIONS petition and get to 25,000 signatures:

1. Email: Email your petition to your friends, family and others who care about this issue. Below is a sample email you can forward to your friends right now.

2. Facebook: Post your petition to your Facebook wall to let folks know about it. Here’s a sample message you can cut and paste into your Facebook status:

I just signed a petition on the White House petitions site, We the People.
Will you sign it? http://wh.gov/TVZ

3. Twitter: Tweet about your petition. Here’s a sample tweet you can use:

I just signed a STOP FORECLOSURE petition on the White House Petitions site, We the People. Will you sign it? http://wh.gov/TVZ

By now, I hope you fully understand, if your AG has yet to join The State AG’s that are holding the bankers feet to the fire, than they’re working hand by hand with the bankers against you.

AG’s are there to serve the peoples interest not those that commit fraud on a massive level.

NYTimes-

Cutting to the chase: if you thought this was the deal that would hold banks accountable for filing phony documents in courts, foreclosing without showing they had the legal right to do so and generally running roughshod over anyone who opposed them, you are likely to be disappointed.

[NEW YORK TIMES]

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.

Now this has to be an all time low and I warn you it will not be taken lightly by either Judge Schack who slammed his cases or by Attorney Susan Chana Lask who successfully settled the Class Action against his firm.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman now has a bit more ammo to work with.

Tell Steven J. Baum what u think 716-204-2400!

Lets see who’ll have the last laugh.

NYTimes-

On Friday, the law firm of Steven J. Baum threw a Halloween party. The firm, which is located near Buffalo, is what is commonly referred to as a “foreclosure mill” firm, meaning it represents banks and mortgage servicers as they attempt to foreclose on homeowners and evict them from their homes. Steven J. Baum is, in fact, the largest such firm in New York; it represents virtually all the giant mortgage lenders, including Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

[NEW YORK TIMES]

image: New York Times

“Other States Will Follow Suit, Similar Laws”

Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden sued the private national mortgage registry MERS, alleging a slew of deceptive trade practices that prevent homeowners from staving off foreclosure.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

so they decided to privitize it, on their own. and in doing so, they did two things. they avoided millions upon millions of fees, and are able to more nimbly secure ties to mortgage backed securities. but they forgot to keep track of mortgages. and in Delaware, in 72% of the cases we’ve investigated, and this is just the beginning, they’ve literally foreclosed on behalf of the wrong entity. so they exercise the right to foreclosure on an entity, and in one case in Delaware that we have, they foreclosed on behalf of an entity that no longer existed. so that’s how screwed up this has become. they don’t follow their own rules, and that’s why we think they violated the Delaware deceptive trade practices act.

Decided on October 28, 2011

 The Bank of New York Mellon F/K/A THE BANK OF NEW YORK, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE CERTIFICATE HOLDERS CWABS, INC., ASSETBACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-IMI 400 Countrywide Way Simi Valley, CA 93065, Plaintiff,

against

Nancy Martinez, ET.AL., Defendant.

21097/09

Attorney for Plaintiff:
Megan B. Szeliga, Esq.
Steven J. Baum, P.C.
220 Northpointe Parkway – Suite G
Amherst, New York 14228

Attorney for Defendant:
Steven Beispel, Esq.
20 W. 86 Street
New York, New York 10024

Phyllis Orlikoff Flug, J.

[*2]The following papers numbered 1 to 5 read on this motion

Notice of Motion1 – 2

Affirmation in Opposition3

Reply Affirmation (2)4 – 5

Defendant, Nancy Martinez, moves for summary judgment dismissing plaintiff’s complaint as asserted against her.

This is an action to foreclose a mortgage on the real property located at 37-54 98th Street, in the County of Queens, City and State of New York.

On a motion for summary judgment, the proponent “must make a prima facie showing of entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, tendering sufficient evidence to eliminate an material issues of fact from the case . . .” (Winegrad v. New York Univ. Med. Center, 64 NY2d 851, 852 [1985]). Once the proponent has made this showing, the burden of proof shifts to the party opposing the motion to produce evidentiary proof in admissible form to establish that material issues of fact exist which requires a jury trial (Alvarez v. Prospect Hospital, 68 NY2d 320, 324 [1986]).

Defendant contends she is entitled to judgment on the ground that plaintiff lacked standing at the time the action was commenced. Defendant, however, has waived this defense as she did not raise it in her answer or in a pre-answer motion to dismiss (See HSBC Bank, USA v. Dammond, 59 AD3d 679, 680 [2d Dept. 2009]). Notably, defendant has also failed to move to amend her answer to assert this as a defense (See Aurora Loan Services, LLC v. Thomas, 70 AD3d 986, 987 [2d Dept. 2010]).

Defendant also contends she is entitled to summary judgment and dismissal of the action due to a conflict of interest on behalf of plaintiff’s attorneys. An attorney employed by Steven J. Baum, the law firm representing plaintiff, Elpiniki Bechakas, executed an assignment in favor of plaintiff, on behalf of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (“MERS”), a defendant in this action.

These actions undoubtedly raise the appearance of impropriety. Indeed, these practices were the subject of the October 6, 2011 settlement agreement between Steven J. Baum and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Nevertheless, defendant has failed to establish that these actions breached a specific duty to plaintiff and require a dismissal of the action as a matter of law (See, e.g., Swift v. Ki Young Choe, 242 AD2d 188, 192 [1st Dept. 1988]). [*3]

Accordingly, plaintiff is hereby ordered to submit waivers of any potential conflict of interest from plaintiff, Bank of New York, and MERS no later than December 2, 2011. In addition, plaintiff shall refrain from relying on any documents that raise the appearance of impropriety, including the aforementioned assignment, in its prosecution of this action.

Defendant’s motion for summary judgment is denied, with leave to renewal, upon plaintiff’s failure to comply with this order or upon the completion of discovery and on the presentment of proper papers.

October 28, 2011 ____________________

J.S.C.

[ipaper docId=70693071 access_key=key-19lqjzi414aw7ehddkff height=600 width=600 /]

IN THE COURT OF CHANCERY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE

STATE OF DELAWARE,
Plaintiff,

v.

MERSCORP, Inc., a Delaware corporation, and
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc.,
a Delaware Corporation,
Defendants.

VERIFIED COMPLAINT

Excerpt:

17. Since January 1, 2008, MERS has filed over 1,600 foreclosure
actions in Delaware. Thousands more foreclosures on MERS-registered mortgages
have been filed in Delaware after assignments out of the MERS System that were
based on the unreliable data in MERS’ records. Many more thousands of
mortgages associated with outstanding loans remain recorded in the Delaware
county land records in the name of MERS without appropriate indications or
avenues to ascertain the identity of the true mortgagee in interest.

[…]

51. Many foreclosed-upon mortgage loans have previously been
securitized and are purportedly owned at the time of foreclosure by a securitization
trust. Under the law governing the creation of many securitization trusts, the
contractual arrangements setting forth the manner and conditions under which
mortgage loans were to be sold into a securitization is crucial to whether the
securitization succeeded in owning the mortgages it purportedly bought.

[…]

C. Defendants committed and continue to commit deceptive trade
practices by assigning or foreclosing upon mortgages for which
MERS did not possess authority to act because the mortgage loan
was never properly transferred to the purported beneficial owner.

55. The MERS System is designed to reflect the intended transfer
of the beneficial ownership of a mortgage loan, but does not have adequate
safeguards to ensure that the transfer recorded in MERS System accurately reflects
an actual transfer of ownership. Where MERS seeks to assign a mortgage or
foreclose on a mortgage loan on behalf of a securitization trust that, despite being
registered as the mortgage owner in the MERS System, does not own the loan,
MERS acts without authority. This is a deceptive trade practice within the meaning
of 6 Del. C. § 2532(a)(2), (3), (5) and (12).

[…]

[ipaper docId=70612403 access_key=key-2oeq0yol9d3j7iccdyb height=600 width=600 /]

I think MERS’ Janice Spokeswoman needs to be updated on all that happened from 1998-2002 before she comments.

Just like the others who have resigned when the company is on the brink of exposure. Wait until they get a hold of those who were involved from the beginning (X-CEO and X-VP/Treasurer)… who know what’s up.

But they will be reeled back in because they knew all along this was bound to happen. You ain’t so smart now… are you?

REUTERS-

New York’s attorney general has subpoenaed MERS, the electronic registry of mortgages used by the banking industry, seeking information about how it is used by major banks, a person familiar with the matter said.

Delaware also took action by filing a lawsuit on Thursday that accuses MERS of taking unlawful shortcuts in dealing with the foreclosure crisis.

The registry used by the banking industry is “unreliable” and “frequently inaccurate,” Beau Biden, the state’s attorney general said in the lawsuit, which seeks penalties of $10,000 per violation.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman issued a subpoena earlier this week demanding documents from MERS about how it is used by major banks, a source told Reuters.

The subpoena is part of a joint New York-Delaware mortgage probe, the source said.

On October 27, 2011 Attorney General Beau Biden filed a lawsuit against the mortgage registry MERS that is at the center of the housing crisis. The suit charges that MERS has repeatedly violated the Delaware’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

If you are a Delaware resident and believe you have been harmed by MERS, contact the Attorney General’s Office by e-mail at mortgage@state.de.us or call the Attorney General’s Mortgage Hotline at 800-220-5424.

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Press Release

[ipaper docId=70554826 access_key=key-1w6hmtk43ew2n54fk3xz height=600 width=600 /]

DELAWARE

V.

MERS

What is MERS: In 1995, banks and others in the mortgage lending industry created the Mortgage Electronic Registration System (“MERS”) – a national registry to track ownership and servicing rights for residential mortgages. This system is designed to facilitate mortgage securitizations and circumvent the traditional county Recorders of Deeds offices. The rapid rise in popularity of mortgage backed securities and their subsequent decline in value is a major cause of the housing crisis that sent America’s economy into the largest collapse since the Great Depression.

Foreclosure crisis in Delaware: Delaware is experiencing a record rate of foreclosures. The
foreclosure rate tripled from 2008 to 2009, rising from 2,000 homes annually to 6,000. A record
6,457 homes were foreclosed on in 2010.

Who owns/uses MERS: There are more than 5,500 members representing the most significant
players in the mortgage industry, including: mortgage lenders and servicers (Bank of America,
CitiMortgage, Inc., GMAC Residential Funding Corporation, and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.);
government-sponsored entities (e.g., Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac); insurance and title
companies and the Mortgage Bankers Association.

MERS in Delaware: MERS purports to hold more than 30% of Delaware mortgages. Since
January 1, 2008, MERS has filed more than 1,600 foreclosure actions in its own name against
Delaware homeowners. Additionally, thousands of other homeowners whose mortgages have
been tracked in the MERS system were foreclosed on by entities whose right to the property was
unclear because of the unreliability of MERS’ records. Thousands more Delaware homeowners
currently hold mortgages with MERS listed as the owner, but with no way to actually determine
the true owner.

What is Attorney General Biden alleging: MERS violated Delaware’s Deceptive Trade
Practices Act by creating an unregulated shadowy registry that is unreliable and inaccurate and
blocks homeowners from learning which entity truly owns their mortgage. The complaint
highlights three major deficiencies:

• MERS obscures important information from borrowers and what is available to
borrowers is frequently inaccurate.
• MERS acts without authority
• MERS is a “front” organization that does not enforce its own rules

How the mortgage industry works: A mortgage loan taken out by a homeowner is really two
documents – the first is a promissory note requiring the borrower to repay the holder of the note.
The second document (the mortgage instrument) allows the holder to foreclose on the property if
the loan is not repaid. The person or entity holding the note receives the money from the
borrower’s monthly mortgage payments.

How securitization works: Banks that make the mortgage loans to homeowners sell the
mortgage notes to other financial institutions. Several times over, the loans are bundled into
investments known as mortgage-backed securities and the notes are sold to large investment
groups, such as pension funds.

Where MERS comes in: As the notes are sold in the securitization process, someone has to
service the loans and hold legal title to the mortgage instrument. Servicers do all the work
involved with a mortgage loan on the lender side – physically collecting and distributing
payments, answering borrowers’ questions, etc. MERS acts as passive place-holder on the
County Recorder of Deeds public registry. Additionally, MERS can also file foreclosure actions
on behalf of the note-holders in foreclosure proceedings. MERS allows its members to sell
mortgages many times over without recording the transactions at the local Recorders of Deeds
offices, thereby avoiding fees, eliminating any official paper trail and creating significant
confusion that has led to improper foreclosures.

What the lawsuit seeks: The suit asks the Court of Chancery to impose various sanctions on
MERS, including requiring it to audit its records to ensure accuracy, stop foreclosing on homes
without divulging the true owner of the mortgage, and correct records filed with county Recorder
of Deeds that do not list the entity that owns the mortgage. The suit seeks a civil penalty against
MERS of up to $10,000 for each willful violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act, as well
as restitution to borrowers who were harmed by these violations. The exact amount will be
determined during trial.

[ipaper docId=70553803 access_key=key-114tbnge9pb2rw37t1c9 height=600 width=600 /]

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

CHARLES J. and DIANE GILES, and
LAURINE SPIVEY,
individually and on behalf of all
others similarly situated,

Plaintiffs,

v.

PHELAN HALLINAN & SCHMIEG, LLP,
PHELAN HALLINAN & SCHMIEG, P.C.,
LAWRENCE T. PHELAN, FRANCIS S. HALLINAN,
DANIEL G. SCHMIEG, ROSEMARIE DIAMOND,
FULL SPECTRUM SERVICES, INC., and
LAND TITLE SERVICES OF NEW JERSEY, INC.,
WELLS FARGO & COMPANY, and
WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A.

Defendants

[ipaper docId=70530593 access_key=key-1u6fxel6bh9mmojxw7ja height=600 width=600 /]

Some saw this coming in the last few weeks. Now all HELL is about to Break Loose.

This is one of the States I mentioned MERS has to watch…why? Because the “Co.” originated here & under Laws of Delaware…following? [see below].

Also look at the date this TM patent below was signed 3-4 years after MERS’ 1999 date via VP W. Hultman’s secretary Kathy McKnight [PDF link to depo pages 29-39].

New York…next!

Delaware Online-

Delaware joined what is becoming a growing legal battle against the mortgage industry today, charging in a Chancery Court suit that consumers facing foreclosure were purposely misled and deceived by the company that supposedly kept track of their loans’ ownership.

By operating a shadowy and frequently inaccurate private database that obscured the mortgages’ true owners, Merscorp made it difficult for hundreds of Delaware homeowners to fight foreclosure actions in court or negotiate new terms on their loans, the suit filed by the Attorney General’s Office said.

[DELAWARE ONLINE]

[ipaper docId=70528719 access_key=key-2d3d8493odiku19mmpgx height=600 width=600 /]

Mortgage lenders contributed to the financial crisis by issuing or underwriting loans to people who would have a difficult time paying them back, inflating a housing bubble that was bound to pop. Lax regulation allowed banks to stretch their mortgage lending standards and use aggressive tactics to rope borrowers into complex mortgages that were more expensive than they first appeared. Evidence has also surfaced that lenders were filing fraudulent documents to push some of these mortgages through, and, in some cases, had been doing so as early as the 1990s. A 2005 Los Angeles Times investigation of Ameriquest – then the nation’s largest subprime lender – found that “they forged documents, hyped customers’ creditworthiness and ‘juiced’ mortgages with hidden rates and fees.” This behavior was reportedly typical for the subprime mortgage industry. A similar culture existed at Washington Mutual, which went under in 2008 in the biggest bank collapse in U.S. history.

Countrywide, once the nation’s largest mortgage lender, also pushed customers to sign on for complex and costly mortgages that boosted the company’s profits. Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo was accused of misleading investors about the company’s mortgage lending practices, a charge he denies.  Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank both purchased subprime mortgage lending outfits in 2006 to get in on the lucrative business. Deutsche Bank has also been accused of failing to adequately check on borrowers’ financial status before issuing loans backed by government insurance. A lawsuit filed by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara claimed that, when employees at Deutsche Bank’s mortgage received audits on the quality of their mortgages from an outside firm, they stuffed them in a closet without reading them. A Deutsche Bank spokeswoman said the claims being made against the company are “unreasonable and unfair,” and that most of the problems occurred before the mortgage unit was bought by Deutsche Bank.

Where they are now: Few prosecutions have been brought against subprime mortgage lenders. Ameriquest went out of business in 2007, and Citigroup bought its mortgage lending unit. Washington Mutual was bought by JP Morgan in 2008. A Department of Justice investigation into alleged fraud at WaMu closed with no charges this summer. WaMu also recently settled a class action lawsuit brought by shareholders for $208.5 million. In an ongoing lawsuit, the FDIC is accusing former Washington Mutual executives Kerry Killinger, Stephen Rotella and David Schneider of going on a “lending spree, knowing that the real-estate market was in a ‘bubble.’” They deny the allegations.

Bank of America purchased Countrywide in January of 2008, as delinquencies on the company’s mortgages soared and investors began pulling out. Mozilo left the company after the sale. Mozilo settled an SEC lawsuit for $67.5 million with no admission of wrongdoing, though he is now banned from serving as a top executive at a public company. A criminal investigation into his activities fizzled out earlier this year. Bank of America invited several senior Countrywide executives to stay on and run its mortgage unit. Bank of America Home Loans does not make subprime mortgage loans. Deutsche Bank is still under investigation by the Justice Department.

Mortgage securitizers

In the years before the crash, banks took subprime mortgages, bundled them together with prime mortgages and turned them into collateral for bonds or securities, helping to seed the bad mortgages throughout the financial system. Washington Mutual, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and others were securitizing mortgages as well as originating them. Other companies, such as Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and Goldman Sachs, bought mortgages straight from subprime lenders, bundled them into securities and sold them to investors including pension funds and insurance companies.

Where they are now: This spring, New York’s Attorney General launched a probe into mortgage securitization at Bank of America, JP Morgan, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley during the housing boom. Morgan Stanley settled with Nevada’s Attorney General last month following an investigation into problems with the securitization process.

As part of a proposed settlement with the 50 state attorneys general over foreclosure abuses, several big banks were offered immunity from charges related to improper mortgage origination and securitization. California and New York have withdrawn from those talks.

The people who created and dealt CDOs

Once mortgages had been bundled into mortgage-backed securities, other bankers took groups of them and bundled them together into new financial products called Collateralized Debt Obligations. CDOs are composed of tiers with different levels of risk. As we’ve reported, a hedge fund named Magnetar worked with banks to fill CDOs with the riskiest possible materials, then used credit default swaps to bet that they would fail. Magnetar says that the majority of its short positions were against CDOs it didn’t own. Magnetar also says it didn’t choose what went its own CDOs, though people involved in the deals who spoke to ProPublica contradict this account.

American International Group’s London-based financial products unit was among the entities that provided credit default swaps on CDOs. Though the business of insuring the risky securities made AIG large short-term profits, it eventually brought the company to the brink of collapse, prompting an $85 billion government bailout.

Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan all made CDO deals with Magnetar. The hedge fund invested in 30 CDOs from the spring of 2006 to the summer of 2007. The bankers who worked on these deals almost always reaped hefty bonuses. From our story:

Even today, bankers and managers speak with awe at the elegance of the Magnetar Trade. Others have become famous for betting big against the housing market. But they had taken enormous risks. Meanwhile, Magnetar had created a largely self-funding bet against the market.

When banks found CDOs hard to sell, some of them, notably Merrill Lynch and Citibank, bought each other’s CDOs, creating the illusion of true investors when there were almost none. That was one way they kept the market for CDOs going longer than it otherwise would have. Eventually CDOs began purchasing risky parts of other CDOs created by the same bank. Take a look at our comic strip explaining self-dealing, and our chart detailing which banks bought their own CDOs.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley also made similar deals in which they created, then bet against, risky CDOs. The hedge fund Paulson & Co helped decide which assets to put inside Goldman’s CDOs.

Where they are now: Overall, the banks and individuals involved in CDO deals haven’t been convicted on criminal charges. The civil suits against them have produced fines that aren’t very big compared to the profits they made in the leadup to the financial crisis. JP Morgan paid $153.6 million to settle an SEC suit alleging they hadn’t disclosed to investors that Magnetar was betting against Morgan’s CDO. Citigroup just agreed to pay a $285 million fine to the SEC for betting against one of its mortgage-related CDOs. The lawsuit doesn’t mention dozens of similar deals made by Citi.

Magnetar is still thriving (the deals they made weren’t illegal according to the rules at the time). In 2007, Magnetar’s founder took home $280 million, and the fund had $7.6 billion under management. The SEC is considering banning hedge funds and banks from betting against securities of their own creation. As of May 2010, federal prosecutors were investigating Morgan Stanley over their CDO deals, and Goldman Sachs paid $550 million last year to settle a lawsuit related to one of theirs. Only one Goldman employee, Fabrice Tourre, has been charged criminally in connection to the deals.

Though recorded phone calls suggest that former AIG CEO Joseph Cassano misled investors about the credit default swaps that contributed to his company’s troubles, the evidence wasn’t airtight, and federal probes against him fell apart in 2010. Cassano’s lawyers deny any wrongdoing.

The ratings agencies

Standard and Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch gave their highest rating to investments based on risky mortgages in the years leading up to the financial crisis. A Senate investigations panel found that S&P and Moody’s continued doing so even as the housing market was collapsing. An SEC report also found failures at 10 credit rating agencies.

Where they are now: The SEC is considering suing Standard and Poor’s over one particular CDO deal linked to the hedge fund Magnetar. The agency had previously considered suing Moody’s, but instead issued a report criticizing all of the rating agencies generally. Dodd-Frank created a regulatory body to oversee the credit rating agencies, but its development has been stalled by budgetary constraints.

The regulators

The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission [PDF] concluded that the Securities and Exchange Commission failed to crack down on risky lending practices at banks and make them keep more substantial capital reserves as a buffer against losses. They also found that the Federal Reserve failed to stop the housing bubble by setting prudent mortgage lending standards, though it was the one regulator that had the power to do so.

An internal SEC audit faulted the agency for missing warning signs about the poor financial health of some of the banks it monitored, particularly Bear Stearns. [PDF] Overall, SEC enforcement actions went down under the leadership of Christopher Cox, and a 2009 GAO report found that he increased barriers to launching probes and levying fines.

Cox wasn’t the only regulator who resisted using his power to rein in the financial industry. The former head of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, reportedly refused to heighten scrutiny of the subprime mortgage market. Greenspan later said before Congress that it was a mistake to presume that financial firms’ own rational self-interest would serve as an adequate regulator. He has also said he doubts the financial crisis could have been prevented.

The Office of Thrift Supervision, which was tasked with overseeing savings and loan banks, also helped to scale back their own regulatory powers in the years before the financial crisis. In 2003 James Gilleran and John Reich, then heads of the OTS and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation respectively, brought a chainsaw to a press conference as an indication of how they planned to cut back on regulation. The OTS was known for being so friendly with the banks — which it referred to as its “clients” — that Countrywide reorganized its operations so it could be regulated by OTS. As we’ve reported, the regulator failed to recognize serious signs of trouble at AIG, and didn’t disclose key information about IndyMac’s finances in the years before the crisis. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which oversaw the biggest commercial banks, also went easy on the banks.

Where they are now: Christopher Cox stepped down in 2009 under public pressure. The OTS was dissolved this summer and its duties assumed by the OCC. As we’ve noted, the head of the OCC has been advocating to weaken rules set out by the Dodd Frank financial reform law. The Dodd Frank law gives the SEC new regulatory powers, including the ability to bring lawsuits in administrative courts, where the rules are more favorable to them.

The politicians

Two bills supported by Phil Gramm and signed into law by Bill Clinton created many of the conditions for the financial crisis to take place. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 repealed all the remaining parts of Glass-Steagall, allowing firms to participate in traditional banking, investment banking, and insurance at the same time. The Commodity Futures Modernization Act, passed the year after, deregulated over-the-counter derivatives – securities like CDOs and credit default swaps, that derive their value from underlying assets and are traded directly between two parties rather than through a stock exchange. Greenspan and Robert Rubin, Treasury Secretary from 1995 to 1999, had both opposed regulating derivatives.  Lawrence Summers, who went on to succeed Rubin as Treasury Secretary, also testified before the Senate that derivatives shouldn’t be regulated.

It’s worth noting the substantial lobbying efforts that accompanied the deregulation process. According to the FCIC [PDF], between 1999 and 2008 the financial industry spent $2.7 billion lobbying the federal government, and donated more than $1 billion to political campaigns. While deregulation took place mainly under Clinton’s watch, George W. Bush is faulted for not doing more to catch the out-of-control housing market.

As president of the New York Fed from 2003 to 2009, Timothy Geithner also missed opportunities to prevent major financial firms from self-destructing. As we reported in 2009:

Although Geithner repeatedly raised concerns about the failure of banks to understand their risks, including those taken through derivatives, he and the Federal Reserve system did not act with enough force to blunt the troubles that ensued. That was largely because he and other regulators relied too much on assurances from senior banking executives that their firms were safe and sound.

Henry Paulson, Treasury Secretary from 2006 to 2009, has been criticized for being slow to respond to the crisis, and introducing greater uncertainty into the financial markets by letting Lehman Brothers fail. In a 2008 New York Times interview, Paulson said he had no choice.

Where they are now: Gramm has been a vice chairman at UBS since he left Congress in 2002. Greenspan is retired. Summers served as a top economic advisor to Barack Obama until November 2010; since then, he’s been teaching at Harvard. Geithner is currently serving as Treasury Secretary under the Obama administration.

Executives of big investment banks

Executives at the big banks also took actions that contributed to the destruction of their own firms. According to the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission report [PDF], the executives of the country’s five major investment banks — Bear Stearns, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley – kept such small cushions of capital at the banks that they were extremely vulnerable to losses. A report compiled by an outside examiner for Lehman Brothers found that the company was hiding its bad investments off the books, and Lehman’s former CEO Richard S. Fuld Jr. signed off on the false balance sheets. Fuld had testified before Congress two years before that the actions he took prior to Lehman Brothers’ collapse “were both prudent and appropriate” based on what he knew at the time. Other banks also kept billions in potential liabilities off their balance sheets, including Citigroup, headed by Vikram Pandit.

In 2010, we detailed how a group of Merrill Lynch executives helped blow up their own company by retaining supposedly safe – but actually extremely risky –  portions of the CDOs they created, paying a unit within the firm to buy them when almost no one else would.

The New York Times’ Gretchen Morgenson described how the administrative decisions of some top Merrill executives helped put the company in a precarious position, based on interviews with former employees.

Where they are now: In 2009, two Bear Stearns hedge fund managers were cleared of fraud charges over allegedly lying to investors. A probe of Lehman Brothers stalled this spring. Merrill Lynch was sold to Bank of America in the fall of 2008. As for the executives who helped crash the firm, as we reported in 2010, “they walked away with millions. Some still hold senior positions at prominent financial firms.” Dick Fuld is still working on Wall Street, at an investment banking firm. Vikram Pandit remains the CEO of Citigroup.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

The government-sponsored mortgage financing companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bought risky mortgages and guaranteed them. In 2007, 28 percent of Fannie Mae’s loans were bought from Countrywide. The FCIC found [PDF] that Fannie and Freddie entered the subprime game too late and on too limited a scale to have caused the financial crisis. Non-agency-securitized loans had an increased share of the market in the years immediately preceding the crisis.

Many believe that The Community Reinvestment Act, a government policy promoting homeownership for low-income people, was responsible for the growth of the subprime mortgage industry. This idea has largely been discredited, since most subprime loans were made by companies that weren’t subject to the act.

Still, Fannie and Freddie engaged in reckless behavior and sustained heavy losses as a result. The SEC slammed Fannie Mae for improper accounting under the leadership of Frank Raines in the years preceding the financial crisis. A report by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight found that Fannie and Freddie didn’t accurately disclose the risks they were taking and “deliberately and intentionally manipulat[ed] accounting to hit earnings targets.” [PDF]

Richard Syron and Daniel Mudd were at the helm of Freddie and Fannie, respectively, when they began to buy large numbers of subprime loans. Current and former Freddie Mac employees have accused Syron of ignoring warnings about the health of the loans the company was buying. Syron and Mudd maintain they could not have foreseen the rapid decline in the housing market.

Where they are now: As borrowers defaulted on mortgages they’d insured, Fannie and Freddie received a nearly $200 billion federal government bailout, and the government took over their operations. They are close to a settlement in an SEC lawsuit, and will neither admit nor deny that they failed to inform investors about risks of exposure to subprime mortgages. The Dodd Frank financial reform law stated that serious reforms of Fannie and Freddie are needed, but didn’t address how they should be carried out. A report from Treasury Secretary Geithner called for the government to “ultimately wind down” the two mortgage giants. [PDF] In the meantime, taxpayers have been shouldering their legal fees. Former Freddie and Fannie executives Richard Syron and Daniel Mudd received Wells notices this spring, a sign that the SEC is considering legal action against them.

Via NewsTsar on Oct 26, 2011