Ohio Lawsuit Alleging Title Insurance Homeowner Ripoff Certified As Class Action

In Toledo, Ohio, the Toledo Blade reports:

• A federal judge in Toledo granted class-action status [last week] in a lawsuit that could result in refunds for tens of thousands of Ohio homeowners who may have been overcharged for title insurance. A lawyer for defendant Fidelity National Title Insurance Co., which is among the nation's largest issuers of policies to protect buyers and lenders from hidden liens and other deed problems, declined to comment on the development.

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• In a practice that is the subject of suits nationwide, the [plaintiffs] allege that Fidelity failed to give them and other customers posted discounts on policies issued in mortgage refinancing transactions that took place within 10 years of the original home purchase. Typical discounts at Fidelity were supposed to be $100 to $250 a customer, the [plaintiffs'] lawyer said previously. If they win their case, up to 94,000 homeowners who bought policies from Fidelity since Feb. 15, 2000, could be affected.

For more, see Class action granted in Ohio case against title firm (Judge in Toledo cites interest of fairness).

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Editor's Note: Fidelity Title is reportedly part of Jacksonville, Florida-based Fidelity National Financial Inc., a Fortune 500 company which, coincidentally, is located at the same street address as Fidelity National Information Services Inc., the alleged "secret puppetmaster" of creditors' lawyers recently accused in an unrelated lawsuit of ripping off bankrupt homeowners in foreclosure (see Class Action Suit Alleges Conspiracy To Squeeze Bankrupt Homeowners In Foreclosure; Fidelity An Alleged "Secret Puppetmaster" Of Creditors' Lawyers).

I wonder if there's any connection between the two companies??? title insurance legal issues