Gaudin v. Saxon Mortgage Services, Inc.

297 F.R.D. 417, 2013 WL 4029043, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110727
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. California
DecidedAugust 5, 2013
DocketCase No. 11-cv-01663-JST
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 297 F.R.D. 417 (Gaudin v. Saxon Mortgage Services, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gaudin v. Saxon Mortgage Services, Inc., 297 F.R.D. 417, 2013 WL 4029043, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110727 (N.D. Cal. 2013).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION AND APPOINTMENT OF CLASS COUNSEL, SETTING CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE

Re: ECF No. 81

JON S. TIGAR, United States District Judge

Plaintiff Marie Gaudin (“Plaintiff’) alleges that Defendant Saxon Mortgage Services, Inc. (“Defendant”) offered her a Trial Period Plan (“TPP”) loan modification document pursuant to the federal Homeowners Affordable Modification Program (“HAMP”), and then unjustifiably failed to deliver on promises contained within the document. First Amended Complaint (“FAC”), ECF No. 39, at ¶¶ 1-6. Plaintiff now moves to certify a class of California borrowers who entered into HAMP TPPs with Defendant through October 1, 2009, and made at least three trial period payments, but did not receive HAMP loan modifications (the “Proposed Class”). [421]*421Plaintiffs Notice of Motion and Motion for Class Certification and Appointment of Class Counsel; Memorandum of Points and Authorities (“Motion”), ECF No. 81, at 1:21-28.

After considering the papers, the arguments of the parties at oral argument, and good cause appearing, the Court now GRANTS the motion.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Factual Background1

In October 2008, Congress enacted the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, P.L. 110-343, 122 Stat. 3765. “The centerpiece of the Act was the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), which required the Secretary of the Treasury, among many other duties and powers, to ‘implement a plan that seeks to maximize assistance for homeowners and ... encourage the servicers of the underlying mortgages ... to take advantage of ... available programs to minimize foreclosures.” Wigod v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 673 F.3d 547, 556 (7th Cir.2012) (citing 12 U.S.C. § 5219(a)). “Pursuant to this authority, in February 2009 the Secretary set aside up to $50 billion of TARP funds to induce lenders to refinance mortgages with more favorable interest rates and thereby allow homeowners to avoid foreclosure.” Id. This program, the Making Home Affordable program, included HAMP as one of its central components.

HAMP is a voluntary program designed to induce servicers to provide permanent loan modifications to borrowers who are in default or at risk of default. Wigod, 673 F.3d at 556; see also U.S. Department of the Treasury, Supplemental Directive 09-01 (April 6, 2009), available at https://www.hmpadmin.com/ portal/programs/docs/hamp_servicer/sd0901. pdf. Under HAMP, mortgage servicers receive financial incentives from the government for each permanent modification they provide. Id. The program is designed to authorize modifications when it is (1) possible to create an alternate payment schedule that is affordable for the borrower given his or her income, and (2) financially profitable for the investor. Id. To accomplish these goals, the program provided that a modification was warranted only if the borrower met certain income requirements and other criteria, and if a net present value assessment showed that a modified mortgage would produce a greater return to the servicer than the unmodified mortgage. Id.

Defendant Saxon entered into an agreement with the Treasury Department to participate in HAMP in April 2009. Declaration of Veronica Monsivais in Opposition to Plaintiffs Motion for Class Certification and Appointment of Class Counsel (“Monsivais Deck”), ECF No. 89, at ¶¶6-7 & Exh. 1. Defendant received written and verbal direction in implementing the program from the Treasury Department, including a form TPP that Defendant utilized through at least October, 2009. Deposition of Tim Lightfoot, ECF No. 88-1, at 10:20-12:15, 21:12-22:3, 30:7-17, 43:6-14.

Plaintiff Marie Gaudin owns a condominium subject to a mortgage loan that has been serviced by Defendant since December 2006. Monsivais Deck, at ¶ 23; Declaration of Plaintiff Marie Gaudin in Support of Motion for Class Certification (“Gaudin Deck”), ECF No. 74, at ¶ 4. In April 2009, Plaintiff pro[422]*422vided income and other information to Defendant’s representatives for a potential HA MP modification. Monsivais Decl., at ¶ 24; Gaudin Deck, at ¶¶ 6-7. In May 2009, Saxon sent Plaintiff the subject TPP offer as part of a standard HAMP application package. Monsivais Deck, at ¶ 24; Gaudin Deck, at ¶ 8. The Court described the provisions of the TPP in a previous order:

Gaudin’s TPP bears an “effective date” of June 1, 2009, and is titled, “Home Affordable Modification Trial Period Plan.” Immediately below the title is a parenthetical stating, “Step One of Two-Step Documentation process.” The first full paragraph of text provides, in relevant part, “if I am in compliance with this Trial Period Plan (the “Plan”) and my representations in Section 1 continue to be true in all material respects, then the Lender will provide me with a Home Affordable Modification Agreement....” (Emphasis added.) The second paragraph continues, “I understand that after I sign and return two copies of this Plan to the Lender, the Lender will send me a signed copy of this Plan, if I qualify for the Offer or will send me written notice that I do not qualify for the Offer. This plan will not take effect unless and until both I and the Lender sign it and Lender provides me with a copy of this Plan with the Lender’s signature.” (Emphasis added.) The TPP is in fact signed by both Gaudin and the lender, thereby implying that the lender found Gaudin to be qualified for a permanent loan modification.

Paragraph 2 G of the TPP is also relevant to evaluating Saxon’s potential obligations. It provides:

I understand that the Plan is not a modification of the Loan Documents and that the Loan Documents will not be modified unless and until (i) I meet all of the conditions required for modification, (ii) I receive a fully executed copy of the a Modification agreement, and (iii) the Modification Effective Date has passed. I further understand and agree that the Lender will not be obligated or bound to make any modification of the Loan Documents if I fail to meet any one of the requirements under this Plan. I understand and agree that the Lender will not be obligated or bound to make any modification of the Loan Documents or to execute the Modification Agreement if the Lender has not received an acceptable title endorsement and/or subordination agreements from other lien holders, as necessary, to ensure that the modified mortgage Loan retains its first Lien position and is fully enforceable. (Emphasis added).
Finally, paragraph 3 of the TPP provides that the lender will make certain specified adjustments to calculate the new monthly payment amount. Then, “[i]f I comply with the requirements in Section 2 and my representations in Section 1 continue to be true in all material respects, the Lender will send me a Modification Agreement for my signature which will modify my Loan Documents as necessary to reflect this new payment amount and waive any unpaid late charges accrued to date.” The paragraph concludes by explaining that upon execution of the Modification Agreement the TPP terminates and that the modified loan agreement thereafter governs the relationship between the parties.

Order Denying Motion to Dismiss Amended Complaint (“Second Order”), ECF No.

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Bluebook (online)
297 F.R.D. 417, 2013 WL 4029043, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110727, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gaudin-v-saxon-mortgage-services-inc-cand-2013.