In re Residential Capital, LLC

518 B.R. 720, 2014 Bankr. LEXIS 4201, 60 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 24, 2014 WL 4854445
United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. New York·Decided October 1, 2014·No. Case No. 12-12020 (MG)·Published·Cited by 12 cases

Opinion

Jointly Administered

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER SUSTAINING IN PART AND OVERRULING IN PART OBJECTION TO CLAIMS 3889, 4129, 4134, AND 4139 FILED BY TIA SMITH

MARTIN GLENN, UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY JUDGE

In 2006, Tia Smith took out a home loan with non-debtor American Mortgage Network, Inc. (“American Mortgage”). Debt- or Residential Funding Company (“RFC”) later bought the loan and transferred it to a securitization trust in 2007. Another Debtor, Homecomings Financial, LLC (“Homecomings”), serviced Smith’s loan from 2006 until April 2008, when it sold the servicing rights to Aurora Loan Servicing (“Aurora”). Smith defaulted on her loan in February 2008, but the Debtors did not initiate a foreclosure action. Rather, Aurora initiated foreclosure after buying the servicing rights to Smith’s loan.

Smith alleges a litany of claims against the Debtors, including claims regarding [726]*726the origination of her loan and claims for wrongful foreclosure. Some of Smith’s claims fail because the Debtors did not originate her loan and did not foreclose on her property, and other claims fail because they are time-barred. But Smith did allege one claim that raises a plausible basis for relief and is not time-barred: Smith asserts that in November 2007, before she defaulted on her loan, she spoke with an employee of Homecomings, who informed her that if she skipped loan payments, she could qualify for a loan modification. Purportedly relying on this advice, Smith claims that she skipped three loan payments, prompting the foreclosure action. Smith alleges that this advice from Homecomings constituted fraud, misrepresentation, and deceptive conduct. The statute of limitations bars Smith from bringing state law fraud or misrepresentation claims, but she may have a viable claim under the California Unfair Competition Law, Cal. Bus. & Prof.Code § 17200 et seq. (the “UCL”).

The majority of Smith’s claims fail to raise a plausible basis for the Debtors’ liability; only her claim under the UCL may proceed. The Court therefore SUSTAINS IN PART the Debtors’ objection to her claims and OVERRULES IN PART the objection.

I. BACKGROUND

Before the Court is the ResCap Borrower Claims Trust’s Sixty-Ninth Objection to Claims (No Liability Borrower Claims) (the “Objection,” ECF Doc. # 7188). The Objection is supported by the Declaration of Deanna Horst (the “Horst Declaration,” ECF Doc. # 7188-2), the Declaration of P. Joseph Morrow IV (ECF Doc. # 7188-8), and the Declaration of Norman S. Rosen-baum (ECF Doc. # 7188-4). Claimant Tia Smith filed an opposition to the Objection (the “Opposition,” ECF Doc. # 7300). The ResCap Borrower Claims Trust (the “Trust”) subsequently filed a Reply (the “Reply,” ECF Doc. # 7410) supported by the Supplemental Declaration of Deanna Horst (the “Supplemental Horst Declaration,” ECF Doc. #7410-1). The Court heard oral argument on the Objection on August 26, 2014 and took the matter under submission. This Opinion relates solely to claims 3889, 4129, 4134, and 4139 filed by Smith (the “Claims”).

A. Procedural History

On May 14, 2012 (the “Petition Date”), each of the Debtors filed a voluntary petition in this Court for relief under chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. On August 29, 2012, this Court entered the Bar Date Order, which established, among other things, (1) November 9, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. (Prevailing Eastern Time) as the deadline to file proofs of claim by virtually all creditors against the Debtors (the “General Bar Date”) and prescribed the form and manner for filing proofs of claim; and (2) November 30, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. (Prevailing Eastern Time) as the deadline for governmental units to file proofs of claim (the “Governmental Bar Date” and, together with the General Bar Date, as applicable, the “Bar Date”). (Bar Date Order ¶¶ 2-3). On November 7, 2012, the Court entered an order extending the General Bar Date to November 16, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. (Prevailing Eastern Time) (ECF Doc. # 2093).

On March 21, 2013, the Court entered the Procedures Order, which authorizes the Debtors to, among other things, file omnibus objections to no more than 150 claims at a time, on various grounds, including those set forth in Bankruptcy Rule 3007(d) and those additional grounds set forth in the Procedures Order (ECF Doc. #3294). The Procedures Order also includes specific protections for Borrowers and sets forth a process (the “Borrower [727]*727Claim Procedures”) for the Debtors — and now the Trust — to follow before objecting to certain categories of Borrower Claims. The Borrower Claim Procedures require that before objecting to certain Borrower Claims, the Trust must send the Borrower a letter (a “Request Letter”) requesting additional documentation in support of the purported claim. (See Procedures Order at 4).

On December 11, 2013, the Court entered an Order Confirming Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan Proposed by Residential Capital, LLC, et al. and The Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors (the “Confirmed Plan,” ECF Doc. #6065). The Confirmed Plan became effective on December 17, 2013. (ECF Doc. # 6137.)

B. Smith’s Claims

The Court has already expunged certain of Smith’s proofs of claim, but she still has four Claims pending against the Debtors. Smith’s pending Claims are asserted against Debtors GMAC Mortgage, LLC (“GMACM”), Homecomings, RFC, and Residential Accredit Loans, Inc. (“RALI.”). Each Claim asserts $3 million in liability based on “predatory lending, wrongful foreclosure.” Additionally, Smith attached to each of her Claims a caption of a lawsuit (the “California Action”) she filed against the Debtors and certain other defendants in the Superior Court of California (the “California Court”).

Smith filed a complaint in the California Action on July 19, 2011. (Reply ¶ 35.) The Debtors filed a demurrer to the complaint, which was sustained with leave to amend on May 22, 2012. (Id. ¶ 36; see Suppl. Horst Decl. Ex. V.) The Debtors filed a notice of bankruptcy on June 1, 2012, and the California Action was stayed only as to the Debtors. (Reply ¶ 36.) Smith filed a second amended complaint on July 23, 2012. (Id.) The non-debtor defendants filed a demurrer that was sustained with leave to amend on or around May 22, 2013. (Id.) Smith filed a third amended complaint (the “Third Complaint”) on July 13, 2013. (Id.) The California Court dismissed the Third Complaint with prejudice as to the non-debtor defendants on August 16, 2013. (Id.; see Suppl. Horst Decl. Ex. W.)

C. The Trust’s Objection

The Trust objects to each Claim on the basis that the Debtors have no liability on such Claims. (See Objection Ex. 1 at 7-10.) According to the Trust, Smith entered into a loan agreement (the “Loan”) with American Mortgage on November 13, 2006. (Id.) RFC bought the Loan from American Mortgage, and on or about January 30, 2007, RFC sold the Loan to a RALI securitization trust (the “RALI Trust”), with Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (“Deutsche Bank”) serving as the trustee. (Id.; Suppl. Horst Decl. ¶ 19.) Homecomings serviced the Loan from December 29, 2006 until transferring the servicing rights to Aurora on April 1, 2008. (Objection Ex. 1 at 7-10.)

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In re Residential Capital, LLC, 518 B.R. 720, 2014 Bankr. LEXIS 4201, 60 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (CRR) 24, 2014 WL 4854445 (N.Y. 2014).

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