Welte v. Wells Fargo Bank National Ass'n

189 F. Supp. 3d 965, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129109
CourtDistrict Court, C.D. California
DecidedMay 27, 2016
DocketCase No. EDCV 13-463 JGB (SPx)
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 189 F. Supp. 3d 965 (Welte v. Wells Fargo Bank National Ass'n) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, C.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Welte v. Wells Fargo Bank National Ass'n, 189 F. Supp. 3d 965, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129109 (C.D. Cal. 2016).

Opinion

Proceedings: Judgment and Order GRANTING Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. No. 75)

Present: The Honorable JESUS G. BERNAL, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Before the Court is Defendant Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.’s Motion for Summary Judgment. (Dkt. No. 75.) After consideration of the papers filed in support of and in opposition to the motion, and the argument presented at the May 23, 2016 hearing, the Court GRANTS the motion.

I. BACKGROUND

On March 12, 2013, Plaintiff Clarisa A. Welte (“Plaintiff’ or “Clarisa”) filed a complaint against Defendants Wells' Fargo Bank, N.A (“Wells Fargo”), Federal National Mortgage , Association (“Fannie Mae”), and Shaun Donovan, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”). (Complaint, Dkt. No. 1.) Plaintiffs claims relate to a reverse mortgage that her now-deceased husband, Kenneth Welte, purchased from Wells Fargo in 2005. .

[968]*968On April 18, 2013, Defendants filed a motion to dismiss the Complaint, (Dkt. No. 8), which the Court granted in part and denied in part on May 29, 2013, (May 29, 2013 Order, Dkt. No. 16). After Plaintiff filed a First Amended Complaint, (Dkt. No. 17), Defendants filed another motion to dismiss, (Dkt. No. 19), which the Court granted in part and. denied in part, (Dec. 18, 2014 Order, Dkt. No. 24). On December 30, 2014, Plaintiff filed a Second Amended Complaint. (“SAC,” Dkt. No. 25.)

On February 28, 2014, Plaintiff voluntarily dismissed Shaun Donovan from the SAC, (Dkt. No. 34), and on May 29, 2015, she voluntarily dismissed Fannie Mae. (Dkt. No. 47.) Then on June 3, 2015, Plaintiff dismissed several of her claims against Wells Fargo. (Dkt. No. 49.) Wells Fargo brought a third motion to dismiss the remaining claims, (Dkt. No. 50), which the Court denied on July 14, 2015, (Dkt. No. 54). Thus, Plaintiff maintains the following claims against Wells Fargo: negligence, deceit by concealment or nondisclosure, constructive fraud, and financial elder abuse. (SAC ¶¶ 47-73.)

On April 11, 2016, Wells Fargo filed a motion for summary judgment as to all four remaining claims. (“Mot.,” Dkt. No. 75.) In support of its motion, Wells Fargo filed the following documents:

• Statement of Uncontroverted Facts and Conclusions of Law, (“DSUF,” Dkt. No. 75-2);
• Request for Judicial Notice,1 (“RJN,” Dkt. No. 75-3);
• Declaration of Jeffrey Taylor, (“Taylor Decl.,” Dkt. No. 75-4); •
• Declaration of Cathy K. Robinson, (“Robinson Deck I,” Dkt. No. 75-5);
• Excerpts of the Deposition of Cynthia Savala, (“Savala Dep.,” Dkt. No. 75-6);
• Excerpts of the Deposition of Carole Sparrow, (“Sparrow Dep.,” Dkt. No. 75-7); and
• Excerpts of the Deposition of Clarisa A. Welte, (“Welte Dept.,” Dkt. No. 75-8);

Plaintiff opposed Wells Fargo’s motion on April 18, 2016. (“Opp.,” Dkt. No. 78.) In support of her opposition, Plaintiff submitted the following documents:

• Declaration of Michael R. Weinstein, (‘Weinstein Deck,” Dkt. No. 78-3 at 41), attached to which are 31 exhibits, (Dkt. Nos. 78-2 to 78-3);
• Statement of Genuine Disputes of Material Facts (“SGD”) and Statement of Additional Material Facts (“PSUF”), (Dkt. No. 78-4); and
• Evidentiary Objections, (Dkt. No. 78-5). .

On April 25, 2016, Wells Fargo filed a reply memorandum in support of its motion. (“Reply,” Dkt. No. 79.) Wells Fargo also replied to Plaintiffs statement of additional facts, (“PSUF Reply,” Dkt. No. 79-3), and Plaintiffs evidentiary objections, (Dkt. No. 79-1); submitted its own eviden-tiary objections to Plaintiffs evidence, (Dkt. .Nos. 79-2, 79-4); and filed two additional declarations: the declaration of Linda Bridges, (“Bridges Deck,” Dkt. No. 79-5), and a second declaration from Cathy Robinson, (“Robinson Deck II,” Dkt. No. 79-6). The Court held a hearing on the motion on May 23, 2016.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

A motion for summary judgment shall be granted when there is no genuine issue [969]*969as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). The moving party must show that “under the governing law, there can be but one reasonable conclusion as to the verdict.” Anderson, 477 U.S. at 250, 106 S.Ct. 2505.

Generally, the burden is on the moving party to demonstrate its entitlement to summary judgment. Margolis v. Ryan, 140 F.3d 850, 852 (9th Cir.1998); Retail Clerks Union Local 648 v. Hub Pharmacy, Inc., 707 F.2d 1030, 1033 (9th Cir.1983). The moving party bears the initial burden of identifying the elements of the claim or defense and presenting evidence that it believes demonstrates the absence of an issue of material fact. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). When the non-moving party has the burden at trial, however, the moving party need not produce evidence negating or disproving every essential element of the non-moving party’s case. Id. at 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548. Instead, the moving party’s burden is met by pointing out an absence of evidence supporting the non-moving party’s case. Id. The burden then shifts to. the non-moving party to show that there is a genuine issue of material fact that must be resolved at trial. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e); Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548; Anderson, 477 U.S. at 256, 106 S.Ct. 2505. The non-moving party must make an affirmative showing on all matters placed in issue by the motion as to which it has the burden of proof at trial. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548; Anderson, 477 U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505; see also William W. Sehwarzer, A. Wallace Tashima & James M. Wagstaffe, Federal Civil Procedure Before Trial, 14:144. “This burden is not a light one. The non-moving party must show more than the mere existence of a scintilla of evidence.” In re Oracle Corp. Sec. Litig., 627 F.3d 376, 387 (9th Cir.2010) (citing Anderson, 477 U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505). “The non-moving party must do more than show there is some ‘metaphysical doubt’ as to the material facts at issue.” Id. at 387 (citing Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986)).

A genuine issue of material fact exists “if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-moving party.” Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct.

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189 F. Supp. 3d 965, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129109, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/welte-v-wells-fargo-bank-national-assn-cacd-2016.