Wong v. Mortgage

918 F. Supp. 2d 941, 2013 WL 149709, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5140
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedJanuary 14, 2013
DocketNo. 10-1038-CV-W-FJG
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 918 F. Supp. 2d 941 (Wong v. Mortgage) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wong v. Mortgage, 918 F. Supp. 2d 941, 2013 WL 149709, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5140 (W.D. Mo. 2013).

Opinion

ORDER

FERNANDO J. GAITAN, JR., Chief Judge.

Pending before the Court are (1) The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 398); and (2) The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation’s Motion to Strike (Doc. No. 430).

Also before the Court are the various parties’ briefs regarding the impact of Rashaw v. United Consumers Credit Union, 685 F.3d 739 (8th Cir.2012) (Doc. Nos. 415, 423, and 424). Notably, defendants have filed a Motion for Leave to File Reply Brief Regarding the Impact of Rashaw v. United Consumers Credit Union (Doc. No. 428), and plaintiffs have filed no opposition. Therefore, for good cause shown, defendant’s motion for leave to file reply brief (Doc. No. 428) is GRANTED, and the Court will consider the proposed reply brief, attached as Exhibit A to Doe. No. 428, as properly filed.

I. Background

Plaintiffs John and Jeannette Schwartz and James G. Wong filed their original petition in this matter on October 31, 2000. [943]*943See Doc. No. 47, Ex. I.1 The original petition brought claims under the Missouri Second Mortgage Loan Act (“MSMLA”), R.S.Mo. §§ 408.231 et seq., alleging certain subordinate lien loans originated by BannCor Mortgage (“Bann-Cor”) and secured by Missouri real estate violate the MSMLA. Plaintiffs allege that Bann-Cor violated the MSMLA, § 408.233.1, in the course of making its Missouri loans by “charg[ing], contracting] for and/or receiving]” loan origination fees in excess of the applicable statutory cap, in addition to charging a number of other fees that the MSMLA, § 408.233.1, prohibited. Doc. No. 344, ¶¶ 135-36. Named plaintiffs assert they were charged illegal fees that were wrapped up into their loan principal for the loans they entered into, using their Missouri residences for collateral. Plaintiffs assert these loans were then sold or assigned to other entities.

Plaintiffs are suing (1) Bann-Cor, the originating lender (and the lender in common for all the second mortgage loans at issue in this case); and (2) all of BannCor’s “downstream” assignees which purchased the loans on the “secondary market” from Bann-Cor, or an intervening assignee, after Bann-Cor made the loans. Plaintiffs seek to recover all of the interest paid in connection with the loans and damages for the losses resulting from the violations of the MSMLA pursuant to R.S.Mo. § 408.236 and/or § 408.562. In 2006, the Missouri Court of Appeals found that the six-year statute of limitations period provided for in R.S.Mo. § 516.420 applied to the MSMLA claims. Schwartz v. Bann-Cor Mortg., 197 S.W.3d 168, 178 (Mo.Ct.App.2006).2 On March 25, 2008, Judge John M. Torrence of the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, entered an order certifying a plaintiff class, which was defined as “All individuals who, on or after October 31, 1994, obtained a ‘Second Mortgage Loan’ as defined by § 408.231.1 R.S.Mo., from Bann-Cor Mortgage, secured by real property located in Missouri.” Doc. No. 47, Ex. 2, p. 19.3 Additionally, on May 9, 2009, plaintiffs obtained a grant of partial summary judgment on certain liability issues against Bann-Cor (among others). See Doc. No. 95, Exs. 2 and 3.

On September 21, 2010, plaintiffs requested leave to file a Sixth Amended Petition, and leave was granted on September 22, 2010. Plaintiffs named the following defendants, besides the ones listed in the Fifth Amended Petition: US Bank, NA; US Bank, NA N.D.; Wilmington Trust Company; Firstplus Home Loan Owner Trusts 1997-1, 1997-2, 1997-3, 1997-4, 1998-1, 1998-2, 1998-3, 1998-4, and 1998-5; Empire Funding Home Loan Owner Trusts 1997-1, 1997-2, 1997-3, 1997-4, 1998-1, 1998-2, 1998-3, and 1999-1; Countrywide Home Loans, Inc.; Countrywide Home Loan Trust 2001-HLV1; Cityscape Home Loan Owner Trusts 1997-2. 1997-3, and 1997-4; Cityscape Home Equity Loan Trusts Series 1997 B and 1997 C; US Bank Trust, N.A.4; PSB Lending Corporation; PSB Lending Home [944]*944Loan Owner Trusts 1997-3 and 1997-4; Residential Funding Company, LLC; GMAC Mortgage, LLC; J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, NA, individually and/or formerly or as successor to Banc One, NA and Chase Manhattan Bank; Home Loan Trust 1997-HI3; Amaximis Company, LLC; Amaximis Lending, LP; The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (fik/a The Bank of New York); CitiMortgage, Inc.; Comstar Mortgage Corporation f/k/a Accubanc Mortgage Corp.; Franklin Credit Management Company; Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC; Old Republic Financial Acceptance Corporation; Realtime Resolutions Inc.; Sovereign Bank; Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., formerly and/or as successor to Norwest Bank Minnesota, NA, First Union National Bank and/or First Union Trust Company; and Does 47-100.

On October 22, 2010, defendant Wells Fargo removed the action pursuant to the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”). On April 18, 2011, the Court denied plaintiffs motion to remand. See Order, Doc. No. 269, 2011 WL 1467665. On September 2, 2011, plaintiffs filed their motion for leave to file Seventh Amended Complaint (Doc. No. 341), purportedly clarifying their claims against the defendants named in the Sixth Amended Petition. On October 4, 2011, the Court granted the motion. Plaintiffs filed their Seventh Amended Complaint (Doc. No. 344) on October 6, 2011.

Several defendants moved to dismiss plaintiffs’ Seventh Amended Complaint. On July 10, 2012, the Court granted in part and denied in part those motions. Notably, defendants JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. as successor by merger to Bank One, N.A. (“Bank One”), PSB Lending Corp. (“PSB”), Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. in its capacity as trustee of the PSB Lending Home Loan Owner Trust 1997-3 (the “PSB 1997-3 Trust”), Real Time Resolutions, Inc. (“Real Time”), Old Republic Financial Acceptance Corporation (“Old Republic”), and CitiMortgage, Inc. (“CitiMortgage”) all moved to dismiss on statute of limitations grounds. Of these defendants, only the claims against defendants Old Republic and CitiMortgage were dismissed in full. See Order, Doc. No. 395. Thereafter, the Court ordered the parties to brief the statute of limitations issue raised by Rashaw, and defendant The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation filed the pending motion for summary judgment.

II. The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 398); and (2) The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation’s Motion to Strike (Doc. No. 430)

Defendant The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation argues that summary judgment is appropriate as plaintiffs have sued the incorrect entity; instead of suing The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (which is a holding company for various Bank of New York entities), defendant argues plaintiffs should have sued The Bank of New York Mellon, formerly known as The Bank of New York, as Trustee for Master Financial Asset Securitization Trusts 1997-1, 1998-1, and 1998-2. Defendant asserts that it informed plaintiffs’ counsel that it sued the incorrect party by letter dated February 13, 2012, prior to the parties’ March 30, 2012 deadline to amend the pleadings, and yet plaintiffs did not amend their complaint. Defendant The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation argues that the claims against it fail as a matter of law, as it is only a holding company and has no operational responsibility for The Bank of New York Mellon.

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Bluebook (online)
918 F. Supp. 2d 941, 2013 WL 149709, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5140, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wong-v-mortgage-mowd-2013.