The distinction is crucial. At different stages in the processing of a loan modification application, Nationstar employees enter certain codes into certain databases, and certain information can be stored and accessed through those applications. The cases cited by the Robinsons do not alter the Court's conclusion. A settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit alleging Nationstar Mortgage LLC ("Nationstar" or "Defendant") violated the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act ("RESPA") by failing to adhere to its requirements with respect to its customers' loss mitigation applications and that Nationstar violated Maryland law by not timely responding First, to the extent that there was a period of time during which Nationstar failed to implement procedures to comply with RESPA, the facts establishing such a gap would be highly relevant to a pattern or practice determination and would be common in every case. The Class Action Administrator would then begin distribution of the settlement funds. Plaintiff and Class Representative Demetrius Robinson, along with Class Counsel Tycko & Zavareei LLP and The Bestor Law Firm, respectfully move this Court for an award of $1,300,000 in reasonable attorneys' fees and expenses, as well as a $5,000 service award for Mr. Robinson. Law 13-316(e)(1), and "actual damages," 12 U.S.C. Under subsection (h), if a loan servicer receives a complete loss mitigation application more than 90 days before a foreclosure sale but then denies the application, the servicer must allow the borrower to appeal and must respond to the appeal within 30 days of receiving it. Filed by Janie Robinson. Potentially eligible class members for all of these provisions can be identified through the LSAMS and Remedy data that marks that an application was received, identified as complete, and denied. Because of the need to protect the rights of absent plaintiffs to assert different claims and of defendants to assert facts and defenses specific to individual class members, courts must conduct a "rigorous analysis" of whether a proposed class action meets the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 before certifying a class. Thus, a loan servicer could not have complied with Regulation X for a loss mitigation application submitted before January 10, 2014 because there was no regulation in effect with which to comply. . Gariety v. Grant Thornton, LLP, 368 F.3d 356, 366 (4th Cir. 12 U.S.C. In Washington v. Am. The Final Approval Order, approving the Class-wide Settlement, was entered December 11, 2020. 2d 452, 468 (D. Md. R. Evid. Rules Prof'l Conduct 3.4 cmt. Those claims arose from Nationstar's alleged Id. R. Civ. Id. As for the claims of errors in Oliver's analysis, although this criticism is couched as his "misunderstanding the nature of Nationstar's various databases," Nationstar largely challenges Oliver's failure to use particular data fields, some which were never made available to him. For the foregoing reasons, Nationstar's Motion for Summary Judgment will be GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART. Nelson, 2017 WL 1167230, at *3 (collecting cases). The Robinsons assert that they have suffered damages in the lost opportunity to have their mortgage loan modified and to pursue other loss mitigation options; in the fees, late fees, and interest that Nationstar has assessed since they became delinquent on their loan; in the lost "time and effort" which they expended in "pursuing the loss mitigation process with Nationstar" rather than trying to improve their business; and in administrative costs, including "postage, travel expenses, photocopying, scanning, and facsimile expenses." While she is trained as a bookkeeper, at the time of the Robinsons' 2014 application for a loan modification and in the subsequent months, Mrs. Robinson was not employed in any capacity. While it is not necessary to identify every class member at the time of certification for a class to be "ascertainable," a class cannot be certified if its membership must be determined through "individualized fact-finding or mini-trials." 2010). 2605(f)(1)(B), a borrower cannot recover these additional damages "without first recovering actual damages." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 255 (1986). 1994) (noting that a single common issue is sufficient to meet the commonality requirement). Mr. Robinson then submitted another loan modification application on August 25, 2014. From this approach, Oliver concluded that for approximately 60 percent of the sampled loans, Nationstar failed to comply with the requirement that it inform the borrower of loss mitigation application determination within 30 days of receiving a complete application. Summ. Filing fee paid $ 402, Receipt number AOHNDC-10680087. Nationstar correctly notes that the Robinsons have not identified a false or misleading statement or representation by Nationstar in the record. 2605(f)(2) is not fatal to the predominance inquiry. See id. See 12 C.F.R. 1024.41, a regulation of RESPA that outlines loss mitigation procedures. "Mortgage servicers are entrusted with handling significant financial transactions for millions of Americans, including struggling homeowners. Although the parties have not offered specific details on the nature and timing of those costs and fees, it is reasonable to infer that at least some portion of them were incurred after they submitted their March 7, 2014 loan modification application and after Nationstar had violated Regulation X. A Division of NBC Universal. 1024.41(c) and (d) impose obligations on a loan servicer once it receives a "complete loss mitigation application" and once the completed application is denied. United States v. Valona, 834 F.2d 1334, 1344 (7th Cir. Moreover, even if the fee arrangement violated the ethical rules for attorneys, "it does not follow that evidence obtained in violation of the rule is inadmissible." Nov. 12, 2011), the court held that a plaintiff who signed a deed of trust on a property and was a joint tenant with her son, but did not sign the promissory note, had constitutional standing to bring a RESPA claim because she stood to be injured if a default on her son's loan led to the loss of her equitable interest in the property. Signed by Magistrate Judge Jillyn K Schulze on 9/9/2016 . From January 2014 to the present, the Robinsons have not pursued other loss mitigation options, such as a short sale. If a borrower is experiencing issues or not getting the help needed, contact your state attorneys general. 2010). Ward, 595 F.3d at 180 (quoting Gunnells, 348 F.3d at 430). 1024.41(b)(1), (b)(2)(i)(B), and (c)(1)(ii) and Md. See Krakauer v. Dish Network, L.L.C., 925 F.3d 643, 658 (4th Cir. the same interest in establishing the liability of defendants." Law 13-316(c). that it is improper to pay an expert witness a contingent fee." Code Ann., Com. 1 Nationstar later conceded that at the time the Robinsons submitted their application, it had not yet updated its systems to comply with Section 1024.41. Nationstar filed a notice of settlement and a joint motion to proceed before a magistrate . Where the results of such an analysis would apply to any individual claim, it would be highly inefficient and wasteful to require duplicative analysis in each such case. The Robinsons' expert had written the scripts using data dictionaries and without accessing the databases. While class members would not be eligible for statutory damages unless actual damages are shown, see 12 U.S.C. . 2014))). The lawsuit alleges, however, that Nationstar has not made interest payments to the plaintiffs, nor provided any record that interest was accruing and due to the homeowners, at any time during or after December 1, 2018 to March 22, 2019 or May 1, 2020 through the present. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Id. Code Ann., Com. Thorn v. Jefferson-Pilot Life Ins. 2605(f)(1). The MCPA prohibits the use of an "unfair or deceptive trade practice" in the "[t]he extension of consumer credit" or "[t]he collection of consumer debts" and provides for a private right of action. Deiter, 436 F.3d at 466-67. Since the Rule 23(a) factors are satisfied, the Court will now consider whether the Rule 23(b)(3) predominance and superiority considerations are met. 2018). Law 13-301 and 303. As to the third denial on November 7, 2013, Nationstar informed the Robinsons that the loan modification application was denied because the mortgage loan was not in default. 2018); Renfroe v. Nationstar Mortg., LLC, 822 F.3d 1241, 1247 n.4 (11th Cir. In Frank, due to the state's community property laws, the mortgage was "a community debt," and after her husband died, the plaintiff "was therefore obligated to make the loan payments" because of her interest in the home. Order at 2, ECF No. at 358. McLean I, 595 F. Supp. The Court will not revisit this determination. Id. Fed. Mortgage Servicing Rules Under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act ("Regulation X"), 78 Fed. 1976). Ass'n, 375 F.2d 648, 653 (4th Cir. Whether an application is complete depends on the requirements of the investor who holds the loan. . 17-0982, 2018 WL 4111938, at *5-6 (M.D. Code Ann., Com. . Subsequent Loss Mitigation Application. The company has already paid about $57.5 million in restitution to affected consumers, according to the CFPB. 10696, 10836. Because there are, at a minimum, disputed issues of fact as to what fees, administrative costs, and interest constitute damages, the Court will deny the motion for summary judgment on the issue of actual damages. Finally, a loan servicer "is only required to comply with the requirements" of section 1024.41 "for a single complete loss mitigation application for a borrower's mortgage loan account." Nationstar asserts that Oliver's testimony should be stricken because this fee arrangement includes an unethical contingency fee. 2d 873, 883 (D. Md. Where such statements in no way promise approval, the Robinsons appear to claim that such statements are false or misleading because Nationstar never intended to, and did not, evaluate the Robinsons for the various loss mitigation options. (quoting 7AA Charles Allan Wright et al., Federal Practice and Procedure 1778 (3d ed. Where the deed of trust explicitly states that Mrs. Robinson is not obligated on the loan, the Court finds that she is not a borrower under RESPA and cannot bring the claim against Nationstar under Regulation X. Where the cost of litigation as compared to the potential recovery gives class members little incentive to bring suit, and there is little reason to individually control the litigation, a class action is a superior method to vindicate the rights of class members. 16-0117, 2017 WL 4347826, at *15 (D. Md. This assertion mischaracterizes the burden of proof in a civil case. loan" did not have standing to bring a RESPA claim); Nelson v. Nationstar Mortg. Oliver is the Chief Executive Officer of Hilltop Advisors LLC, a financial services consulting, compliance audit, and accounting advisory firm, and has extensive experience conducting compliance reviews for mortgage servicers, including for compliance with loss mitigation procedures. If a class is ascertainable, it must then satisfy all four elements of Rule 23(a): numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequacy. Thus, Mrs. Robinson is not "obligated" to pay the amount due on the Note and therefore is not a "borrower" for purposes of RESPA. While Mrs. Robinson stated that she was conducting bookkeeping for Green Earth Services during the relevant time frame, she testified that her work was less than six hours per week, and the Robinsons have not shown that her time spent communicating with Nationstar "resulted in actual pecuniary loss" to Mr. Robinson or the business. Code Ann., Com. The Deed specifies that a person who signs it but "does not execute the note" is a co-signer of the Deed in order to mortgage and convey that person's interest in the Property under the terms of the Deed, but "is not personally obligated to pay the sums secured by this Security Instrument," and her consent is not required to alter the terms of the Deed or the Note. Ass'n, No. Since there is no genuine issue of material fact as to whether Nationstar violated subsection (h), summary judgment will be entered for Nationstar on that claim. Although similar to Rule 23(a)'s commonality requirement, the test for predominance under Rule 23(b)(3) is "far more demanding" and "tests whether proposed classes are sufficiently cohesive to warrant adjudication by representation." at 152. See Robinson v. Nationstar Mortg. Therefore, Nationstar was required to comply with section 1024.41 in processing it. See Fed. Although she has worked as a bookkeeper for various companies, she was not employed between March and September 2014. R. Civ. In its Motion to Strike, Nationstar argues that Oliver's methodology has not been peer reviewed, has a high error rate because he used the wrong data fields to identify the dates of events, failed to consider the timing of foreclosure sales relative to the dates of the submission of loan modification applications, and did not propose a specific methodology for calculating damages. 1024.41(a). Robinson v. Nationstar Mortgage, LLC Complaint with jury demand against Nationstar Mortgage, LLC. In 2007, Mr. Robinson obtained a loan with the principal amount of $755,000 to refinance the property. Furthermore, Oliver states that since Nationstar employees used templates to communicate with borrowers, he could determine whether there were violations of certain RESPA provisions based on entries showing that Nationstar employees used templates that did not comply with RESPA. R. Civ. This is not the first time Nationstar has been the subject of federal and state investigations. The trial court granted the motion over the Robinsons' objection, noting in its order that Nationstar had now waived its claim for attorney feesthe claim that had been the sole impediment to a final judgment being entered after the trial court granted Nationstar's request to reopen the evidence after entry of the initial final judgment. When combined with the state settlements, Nationstar is on the hook to pay a total of $91 million overall: $85 million to harmed consumers and $6 million in civil penalties. Id. 20-cv, -2202, 2021 WL 4462909, at *1 (S.D. Am. Id. If the Court approves the Settlement and it becomes final and effective, and you remain in the Settlement Class, you will receive a payment.
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