Petra Martinez v. America's Wholesale Lender

446 F. App'x 940
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedAugust 15, 2011
Docket10-15843
StatusUnpublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 446 F. App'x 940 (Petra Martinez v. America's Wholesale Lender) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Petra Martinez v. America's Wholesale Lender, 446 F. App'x 940 (9th Cir. 2011).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM **

In this appeal, Petra Martinez contends that the district court erroneously granted summary judgment in favor of Defendants. As the facts and procedural history are familiar to the parties, we do not recite them here except as necessary to explain our disposition. For the reasons explained below, we affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment in part and reverse it in part.

We review a district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo. See Florer v. Congregation Pidyon Shevuyim, N.A., 639 F.3d 916, 921 (9th Cir.2011). In doing so, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, and determine both whether any genuine dispute as to any material fact exists and whether the district court correctly applied the substantive law. See id.

In her Complaint, Martinez brought a number of causes of action against Defendants based on their alleged role in foreclosing on a property over which she held a mortgage interest. The relevant causes of action were to quiet title, for an accounting, for tortious violation of statute (the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act), for unfair competition, for unfair debt-collection practices, for declaratory relief, for slander of title, for intentional infliction of emotional distress, and for negligent infliction of emotional distress.

Although the district court separately analyzed each of these causes of action, as well as two implicit “overarching claims” of a “right to initiate foreclosure proceedingfs]” and “deficient notice,” Martinez abandons all but two of them on appeal. Specifically, in her opening brief, Martinez only addresses her claim under California Civil Code Section 2923.5 (though her Complaint does not identify it as a discrete cause of action) and her *943 action to quiet title on the basis that Defendants lacked authorization to carry out the foreclosure. She either ignores or gives mere passing reference to her other causes of action, and so she has waived them. See United States v. Graf, 610 F.3d 1148, 1166 (9th Cir.2010) (citing United States v. Williamson, 439 F.3d 1125, 1138 (9th Cir.2006)); Rattlesnake Coal. v. U.S. Envtl. Prot. Agency, 509 F.3d 1095, 1100 (9th Cir.2007).

We affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Defendants on Martinez’s Section 2923.5 claim. Although a private right of action exists under this section, the remedy “is a simple postponement of the foreclosure sale, nothing more.” Mabry v. Superior Court, 185 Cal.App.4th 208, 110 Cal.Rptr.3d 201, 204 (2010). It follows that a claim under Section 2923.5 necessarily fails if a foreclosure sale has occurred. See Hamilton v. Greenwich Investors XXVI, LLC, 195 Cal.App.4th 1602, 126 Cal.Rptr.3d 174, 185-86 (2011). Defendants observe that the relevant property was sold in foreclosure on April 28, 2010, and Martinez concedes this fact in her reply. Martinez’s Section 2923.5 claim therefore fails.

The final issue concerns Martinez’s quiet-title claim. The district court granted summary judgment to Defendants on this claim because “[ujndisputed facts show that plaintiff has an outstanding loan on the property, and that defendant BNYM [Bank of New York Mellon] holds the promissory note. Plaintiff cannot quiet the title until she repays the mortgage.” It is generally true that, in California, “ ‘an action to set aside a trustee’s sale for irregularities in sale notice or procedure should be accompanied by an offer to pay the full amount of the debt for which the property was security.’ ” Ferguson v. Avelo Mortg., L.L.C., 195 Cal.App.4th 1618, 126 Cal.Rptr.3d 586, 591 (2011) (quoting Arnolds Mgmt. Corp. v. Eischen, 158 Cal.App.3d 575, 205 Cal.Rptr. 15, 17 (1984)). In the present case, however, Martinez has alleged that the purported trustee, ReeonTrust Company, N.A. (“Re-conTrust”), had no interest in the subject property and thus lacked authorization to attempt, or effect, a nonjudicial foreclosure. If Martinez were to prove this allegation, the foreclosure sale would be void under California law. See Dimock v. Emerald Props., L.L.C., 81 Cal.App.4th 868, 97 Cal.Rptr.2d 255, 261-63 (2000). The tender rule does not apply to a void, as opposed to a voidable, foreclosure sale. See Ferguson, 126 Cal.Rptr.3d at 592; Dimock, 97 Cal.Rptr.2d at 262-63; 4 Miller & Starr, Cal. Real Estate § 10:212 (3d ed.).

There would have been no error if Defendants had introduced admissible evidence establishing that there is no genuine dispute that ReeonTrust was authorized to carry out the foreclosure sale, such that the sale was not void. Cf., e.g., Ferguson, 126 Cal.Rptr.3d at 595 (distinguishing Di-mock and holding that trustee’s sale conducted by authorized party is “merely voidable,” not void). In moving for summary judgment, however, Defendants relied on documents attached to declarations including those of Kalama M. Lui-Kwan, George Merziotis, and Eva Tapia. Martinez, in opposing Defendants’ motion for summary judgment, filed evidentiary objections to these declarations, which the district court overruled without explanation. We conclude that the district court abused its discretion in doing so.

A declarant must lay a proper foundation for evidence considered on summary *944 judgment. Bias v. Moynihan, 508 F.3d 1212, 1224 (9th Cir.2007). For documentary evidence submitted on summary judgment, however, “a proper foundation need not be established through personal knowledge but can rest on any manner permitted by Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b) or 902.” Secs. & Exch. Comm’n v. Phan, 500 F.3d 895, 913 (9th Cir.2007) (quoting Orr v. Bk. of Am., NT & SA, 285 F.3d 764, 774 (9th Cir.2002)). Put differently, “[t]he documents must be authenticated and attached to a declaration wherein the declar-ant is the ‘person through whom the exhibits could be admitted into evidence.’ ” Bias, 508 F.3d at 1224 (quoting Hal Roach Studios, Inc. v. Richard Feiner & Co., 896 F.2d 1542, 1551 (9th Cir.1990)).

Lui-Kwan sought to introduce title documents, a variety of deeds, notices, and other evidence relevant to the present case. His declaration presents numerous authentication problems. First, he declared that he had reviewed title documents that “appear” to have been recorded with the Monterey County Recorder’s office.

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Bluebook (online)
446 F. App'x 940, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/petra-martinez-v-americas-wholesale-lender-ca9-2011.