Smith v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

158 F. Supp. 3d 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10653, 2016 WL 370697
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedJanuary 29, 2016
DocketNo. 3:15-cv-89 (SRU)
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 158 F. Supp. 3d 91 (Smith v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Smith v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 158 F. Supp. 3d 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10653, 2016 WL 370697 (D. Conn. 2016).

Opinion

RULING ON DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO DISMISS

Stefan R. Underhill, United States District Judge

This case arises out of a mortgage refinancing agreement between Allyson Smith and Wells Fargo, N.A. Smith seeks to enforce her right to rescission under the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1601, et seq., and receive damages for Wells Fargo’s failure to honor her request for rescission. Smith also seeks damages under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (“CUTPA”), Conn. Gen. Stat. § 42-110a, et seq., alleging that Wells Fargo engaged in deceptive acts or practices in connection with the refinancing agreement.

Wells Fargo moves to dismiss Smith’s second amended complaint (“SAC”) in its entirety. It argues that Smith’s TILA claims should be dismissed because she was given adequate notice of her right to rescind and failed to exercise that right within the allotted three-day period. Wells Fargo asserts that Smith’s CUTPA claims should be dismissed because Smith has failed to adequately allege a deceptive act or practice. Furthermore, to the extent that CUTPA requires Wells Fargo to provide additional disclosures, such a requirement would be preempted by TILA, the National Banking Act (“NBA”), and the Real Estate Settlement Practices Act (“RESPA”).

For the following reasons, I grant Wells Fargo’s motion to dismiss. Smith has failed to plead facts indicating that she exercised her right to rescission before that right had expired. Furthermore, Smith cannot make out a CUTPA claim because she fails to allege a deceptive act or practice. To the extent that CUTPA would require disclosures in excess of those required by TILA, NBA and RESPA, those claims are preempted.

I. Background

Allyson Smith filed the instant action against Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., on January 21, 2015. Counts I and II allege violations of the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1601, et seq. Count III alleges a violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (“CUTPA”), Conn. Gen. Stat. § 42-110a, et seq. Through those claims, Smith seeks to enforce her right to rescind the consumer credit transaction, void the security interest in her home, and recover statutory damages, actual damages, punitive dam[96]*96ages, and-reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs.

Smith’s claims arise out of a refinancing agreement between her and Wells Fargo. Beginning in February 2012, Smith and Wells Fargo conversed about Smith’s eligibility to refinance her current mortgage (“Raveis Loan”) through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (“HARP”). As a result of those discussions, Wells Fargo sent Smith a “Close at Home® Mortgage Kit” (“Mortgage Kit”) on March 9, 2012.

The Mortgage Kit included: (1) a Note ,from Smith to Wells Fargo, dated March 31, 2012, in the principal amount of $126,648.85; (2) an Open-End Mortgage Deed from Smith to Wells Fargo, dated March 31, 2012; (3) two copies of a “Notice of Right to Cancel,” providing that Smith had three business days from the date of the transaction or until March 29, 2012, whichever occurred later, to rescind the refinancing agreement; (4) a Federal Truth-in-Lending Disclosure Statement dated March 8, 2012; (5) a HUD-1 Settlement Statement (“HUD-1”), which identified the “Settlement Date” as March 31, 2012, and contained the amount of escrow balance that the refinanced loan would require; (6) a two-page letter from Kristie Lewis, a representative of Wells Fargo (“Lewis Letter”), which stated that “[t]here are no closing costs or hidden fees with the Wells Fargo Three-Step Refinance SYSTEM”; and (7) a one-page document titled “Frequently Asked Questions About the Wells Fargo Three-Step Refinance SYSTEM®,” which provided that a “standard fee associated with the recording of the satisfaction of your existing mortgage will be included in the total payoff of your existing loan.”

Smith alleges that she executed all of the documents in the Mortgage Kit on March 13, 2012, and returned them to Wells Fargo soon thereafter. On March 30, 2012, Wells Fargo notified Smith that she had been approved for the loan and that Smith could skip her interest payment on the Raveis Loan, due April 1, 2012.

Smith alleges that the principal balance on the Raveis Loan as of March 30, 2012, was $125,957.92. The amount that Wells Fargo financed was $126,648.85, which represented the principal balance on the Raveis loan and an additional $690.93. Smith alleges that the $690.93 amount represents $53 for a recording fee and $637.93 for the April 1, 2012, interest payment on the Raveis Loan.

Smith alleges that the escrow balance on the Raveis Loan was $2,118.35. The new escrow balance on the refinanced loan, Smith contends, was $2,613.90.

On October 21, 2014, Smith notified Wells Fargo of her desire to rescind the refinanced loan. A week later, Wells Fargo notified Smith that it would not honor her request. Shortly after receiving the notice, Smith filed the instant action.

II. Standard of Review

A motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) is designed “to assess the legal feasibility of a complaint, not to assay the weight of evidence which might be offered in support thereof.” Ryder Energy Distribution Corp. v. Merrill Lynch Commodities, Inc., 748 F.2d 774, 779 (2d Cir.1984). Thus, when deciding a motion to dismiss, the court must accept the material facts alleged in the complaint as true, draw all reasonable inferences in ■ favor of the plaintiff, and decide whether it is plausible that the plaintiff has a valid claim for relief. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678-79, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009); Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555-56, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007); [97]*97Leeds v. Meltz, 85 F.3d 51, 53 (2d Cir.1996).

Under Twombly, “[fjactual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative" level,” and assert a cause of action with enough heft to show entitlement to relief and “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” 550 U.S. at 555, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955; see also Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (“While legal conclusions can provide the framework of a complaint, they must be supported by factual allegations.”). The plausibility standard set forth in Twombly and Iqbal obligates the plaintiff to “provide the grounds of his entitlement to relief’ through more than “labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a' cause of action.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955 (quotation marks omitted).

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Bluebook (online)
158 F. Supp. 3d 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10653, 2016 WL 370697, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-wells-fargo-bank-na-ctd-2016.