Sealink Funding, Ltd. v. Deutsche Bank AG (In re Residential Capital, LLC)

489 B.R. 36
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMarch 20, 2013
DocketBankruptcy No. 12-12020 (MG); Adversary No. 12-02051 (MG)
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 489 B.R. 36 (Sealink Funding, Ltd. v. Deutsche Bank AG (In re Residential Capital, LLC)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sealink Funding, Ltd. v. Deutsche Bank AG (In re Residential Capital, LLC), 489 B.R. 36 (N.Y. 2013).

Opinion

PROPOSED FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW ON PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO REMAND

MARTIN GLENN, Bankruptcy Judge.

This case is one of many similar cases originally filed in state court alleging exclusively state law fraud claims arising from the sale of residential mortgage backed securities (“RMBS”). Many similar RMBS cases, some following remand from federal courts, are currently pending in the Commercial Division of the New York Supreme Court in Manhattan. That court is experienced in handling complex civil cases such as this one. Like other similar cases, this case was removed by defendants from state court based on bankruptcy “related to” subject matter jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b). Such jurisdiction exists because there are pending bankruptcy proceedings for certain mortgage originators (that are not defendants in the action) who issued mortgages that collateralize the RMBS. Residential Capital, LLC and 50 of its affiliates (“Res-Cap” or “Debtors”) are Debtors in chapter 11 cases in this Court; that is the hook that was used to remove this case to federal court, even though only three of the nineteen securitization trusts involved in this case include mortgages originated or deposited by ResCap. After the case was removed to the district court on November 19, 2012, it was transferred on that same day to this Court pursuant to the Amended Standing Order of Reference, M-431 (dated January 31, 2012) as related to the ResCap chapter 11 cases.

Removal of similar RMBS state court cases has invariably been followed by motions to remand to state court. With a few exceptions that are easily distinguishable, such motions to remand have been granted based on either mandatory or permissive abstention under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1334(c)(1) or (c)(2).1

As explained below, with respect to the pending remand motion, the Court files; these proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law pursuant to Fed. R. Bankr.P. 9033, recommending that the district court — before which a motion to withdraw the reference remains pending — enter an order remanding the case to state court.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Procedural Posture

On June 22, 2012, Plaintiff Sealink Funding Limited (“Plaintiff’ or “Sealink”) [40]*40filed its New York state court complaint against Deutsche Bank AG (“DBAG”), Deutsche Bank Securities, Inc. (“DBSI”), ACE Securities Corp., Deutsche Alt-A Securities, Inc. and DB Structured Products, Inc. (collectively, “Deutsche Bank” or “Defendants”) alleging state law causes of action in connection with RMBS created, issued and sold by Defendants to Plaintiff. On October 19, 2012, Plaintiff filed and served an amended complaint (“Complaint”) asserting the same claims. Defendants removed the action to the district court on November 19, 2012, which referred the case to this Court as related to the ResCap bankruptcy.

On December 19, 2012 Plaintiff filed a motion in this Court to remand the case to state court.2 (“Motion,” ECF Doc. # 9.) The Motion is supported by a Memorandum of Law (the “Remand Memo,” ECF Doc. # 10) and the Declaration of David L. Wales (the “Wales Deck,” ECF Doc. # 11). The Defendants filed an opposition to the Motion (the “Opposition,” ECF Doc. # 19), which is supported by the Declaration of Jason C. Hegt (the “Hegt Deck,” ECF Doc. #20). Plaintiff filed a reply (the “Reply,” ECF Doc. #24), which is supported by the Reply Declaration of David L. Wales (the “Wales Reply Deck,” ECF Doc. # 22). The Court heard argument on the Motion on March 5, 2013.3

Plaintiff argues the Court should remand the case because the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the action and, even if jurisdiction exists, either mandatory or permissive abstention is warranted. While the Court concludes that it has “related to” jurisdiction over the action, the Court concludes that the case should be remanded to state court because the permissive abstention factors weigh in favor of remanding this case to state court.4

B. Plaintiffs Claims Based on the Purchase of RMBS

Plaintiffs assignors purchased approximately $960 million of Defendants’ RMBS in nineteen issuing trusts between 2006 and 2007. These securities were ultimately downgraded to junk status, and Plaintiff filed a complaint in New York Supreme Court on June 22, 2012 asserting claims for fraud, fraudulent inducement, and aiding and abetting fraud under New York law. On October 19, 2012, Plaintiff filed and served an amended complaint (the “Complaint”) asserting the same claims for fraud.

As alleged in the Complaint, Defendants created, issued, and/or sold RMBS that they claimed were supported by underlying mortgages that complied with stated [41]*41underwriting guidelines and were prudent investments. The Defendants allegedly knew the underlying mortgages violated these standards and that the RMBS were not prudent investments. According to the Complaint, Defendants, as the sponsors and underwriters of the RMBS, had exclusive access to information about the quality of the underlying mortgage pools, including access to the loan files and the results of their own due diligence. In contrast, Plaintiff alleges that it did not have access to the loan files or due diligence results and reasonably relied on Defendants’ representations regarding the quality of the mortgage pools backing the RMBS.

In the Complaint, Plaintiff asserts claims against the Deutsche Bank entities that purchased the underlying loan pools, deposited those loan pools into trusts that they controlled, structured the trusts into RMBS, and sold the RMBS to Plaintiff. Plaintiff farther alleges that Defendant DBAG controlled the activities of the other defendants, had knowledge of the faulty practices of the originators whose loans were ultimately included in the securitiza-tions at issue, and closely oversaw the massive bet against the housing market that was maintained by the global head of RMBS trading for DBSI. None of the numerous originators of the underlying loans, including the ResCap entities that entered into underwriting agreements with the trusts, are named defendants in this action.

C. Relationship to the Residential Capital Bankruptcy Proceeding

On May 14, 2012, various Residential Capital entities (the “ResCap Entities”) filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code (the “ResCap Chapter 11 Proceeding”). On November 19, 2012, Defendants removed this action to the District Court on the basis that eight of the nineteen trusts are “related to” the bankruptcy proceedings of two groups of non-defendants: the ResCap Entities acted as sponsor, depositor and/or issuer for three of the nineteen securitization trusts involved in this case (the “ResCap Trusts”); and American Home Mortgage Holdings, Inc. (“AHM”) originated and sold loans to Deutsche Bank that were securitized in five of the nineteen trusts.5 Eleven of the trusts include mortgages originated by entities that are not debtors in any bankruptcy case.

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Bluebook (online)
489 B.R. 36, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sealink-funding-ltd-v-deutsche-bank-ag-in-re-residential-capital-llc-nysb-2013.