Bankruptcy Judge Whacks "Assembly Line" Attorneys For $150K In Sanctions For Misrepresenting Ownership Of Promissory Note In Mortgage Foreclosure

The Wall Street Journal Law Blog reports:

• On Friday, two law firms — Buchalter Nemer and Ablitt & Charlton, along with name partner Robert Charlton — got whacked with a combined $150,000 in sanctions. In a decision regarding an order to show cause in the case, called Nosek v. Ameriquest, bankruptcy judge Joel Rosenthal found that, throughout earlier proceedings, lawyers at both firms, in representing Ameriquest, had continually represented that Ameriquest was the holder of Nosek’s mortgage, when in fact it had been assigned, at least twice, to other lenders.

• Judge Rosenthal held: “At a time when mortgages and notes are bought and sold at a pace so swiftly that the assignor and assignee cannot keep up with the paperwork, had the attorneys at the Ablitt firm checked the firm’s file, they would have seen that Norwest was perhaps the real party interest. . . . The firm cannot shield itself from institutional knowledge.” Rosenthal fined the firm $25,000, and attorney Robert Charlton another $25,000. (The Buchalter firm was fined the remainder, or $100,000.)

According to the court order, the lender/servicer and trustee involved, Ameriquest and Wells Fargo, were also clipped for $250,000 each in sanctions. Judge Rosenthal, however, declined to sanction the two associates who assisted Charlton in the case.

For more, see Judge Has Stern Words (But No Fine) for Associates at Sanctioned Firm.

See also, The Wall Street Journal: Wells Fargo Is Sanctioned For Role in Mortgage Woes:

• Joel B. Rosenthal, a Massachusetts federal bankruptcy judge, wrote in a decision that Wells Fargo "turned all responsibilities over" to the servicer but "turn[ed] a blind eye" to the servicer's mistakes. Had the company "shown even a modicum of oversight or review" of the servicer's behavior, "it should have been able to correct the misrepresentations" made to the court. He added: "This court will not allow Wells Fargo or any other [mortgage holder] to shirk responsibility by pointing fingers at their servicers." A Wells Fargo spokeswoman said in a statement: "We believe the judge failed to appreciate Wells Fargo's limited role as trustee in the servicing of the home loan. As a result, Wells Fargo plans to appeal the order."

For the relevant court documents in this case, see:

• Memorandum Of Decision,
• Order Sanctioning Attorneys.

For other posts that reference the failure of some mortgage lenders and their attorneys to file the required loan documents when starting foreclosures, Go Here, Go Here, Go Here and Go Here. missing mortgage foreclosure docs beta ForeclosureMillAttorneysAlpha