Ohio Bombshell: Former AG takes on LPS, Mills & Servicers

BOMBSHELL:  CLASS ACTION COMPLAINT filed in Cuyahoga County (Cleveland)
MARC DANN (Former OHIO AG) of  DANN, DOBERDRUK & WELLEN, LLC

             

Explosive Legal News: 
Cuyahoga County:  Court of Common Pleas
Case: 2012 CV 787639   
Judge: Michael Donnelly
Jury Trial Demanded

Linda Clark, Doehner, Lowery, Whiteman, YEAGER
Plaintiffs
Urgent Update: CALL to ACTION for plaintiff being evicted (HERE)

VS.

Lender Processing Services (LPS) 
LPS Default Solutions 
DOCX LLC  (DocX)
Fidelity National Information Services (FNIS)
American Home Mortgage Bank Servicing (AHMSI)
LERNER, SAMPSON & ROTHFUS (LSR)
MANLEY, DEAS KOCHALSKI LLC (MDK)
REIMER, ARNOVITZ, CHERNEK& JEFFREY CO LPA
Defendants

This is a major action and EXPLOSIVE NEWS in the FRAUDclosure battle

The name of this blog is OHIO FRAUDclosure, so we want to stay on target topic!  This IS a major story and a long awaited and much anticipated Class Action lawsuit. The complaint clearly spells out the criminal behaviour of the co-conspiring entities which acted in concert while participating and perpetrating enormous FRAUD in OHIO's foreclosures. 
 Folks - this is much bigger than the State of OHIO and is proof positive that Ohio's top legal warrior and consumer advocate is still Marc Dann! Our former Attorney General along with some powerful legal allies have filed this action on behalf of a proposed class consisting of:

ALL OHIO CITIZENS who were (a) defendants in judicial foreclosure actions {with} first lien mortgages on their homes that were purportedly held by securitization trusts, and that were knowingly initiated and prosecuted by Defendants on behalf of parties that lacked legal standing to do so, and (b) who were damaged by Defendants’ abusive foreclosure practices, including: (i) preparing, executing, and notarizing fraudulent court documents and assignments of mortgages and other property records that were used to initiate and prosecute such foreclosures, and (ii) imposing inflated, unfair, unreasonable and/or fabricated fees for “default management services” (the “Class”) Three (3) categories of defendants {Servicers, Foreclosure document venders, and Foreclosure Mills) acted in concert and conspired in furtherance of the fraudulent scheme to generate enormous profits from default servicing fees by knowingly initiating foreclosure actions on behalf of entities that lacked legal standing to bring such actions.
OHIO FRAUDclosure spoke with attorney Marc Dann, by phone, and there is much more to come.

92 page Class Action Complaint: DOWNLOAD HERE

Sadly, in what appears to be an instant counter action and outrageous and unconscionable retaliatory attack - a 10-day eviction notice was posted on Plaintiff Michael and Laura YEAGER's home only giving them until Friday August 3rd - to move out! The PREDATOR DRONE foreclosure mill law firm (REIMER, ARNOVITZ, CHERNEK& JEFFREY CO LPA ) had filed a writ-of-possession with the Lake County Ohio Sheriff's department. The morally corrupt  bank sponsored attorney - Kristi Pallen* - (kpallen@reimerlaw.com) (330-405-1199) has fought hard to legally block the Yeager's request for a  Stay (of an eviction) and also has refused a supersedeas property bond offer (collateral).

*Kristi Pallen - Previous irresponsible, bank-sponsored, failed action ADMONISHED:

READ HERE: U.S. Bank National Association v. Lenor

*Plaintiff’s counsel, Attorney Kristi Brown, also identified as Attorney Kristi Pallen, filed this matter on behalf of bogus Plaintiff, U.S. Bank National Association.

The Court finds Plaintiff’s counsel (Krisit Brown kna Kristi Pallen) did not follow Local Rule 4.2. filing procedures for service by Certified Mail....and...

The Court strikes all entries pertaining to service and further, the Court finds Plaintiff’s counsel failed to prosecute this matter...and.. Therefore, it is ORDERED this case is dismissed, without prejudice, .....and for Want of Prosecution. It is further ORDERED this case is dismissed as to Willie Grady aka Willie Grady, Jr., and Unknown Spouse, if any, for failure to perfect service within 120 days, according to Fed.R.Civ.P 4.

Plaintiff’s counsel is admonished !!!!! as to Service by Certified Mail.


PREVIOUS BLOG POST on MARC DANN one year ago: (READ HERE)
This great attorney, and former AG, remains active in OHIO while continuing to fight and wage legal battles against the TBTF banks and Predator Drone (Foreclosure Mill) law firms. He continues to be a champion for those fighting violations of their Consumer Rights. Dann twice has taken time out of his busy schedule for phone interviews with OHIO FRAUDclosure. He recently drove two hours to meet with us and share an "inside look" at his busy schedule and planned future legal actions. Many of these actions will have an impact at a national level with possible implications to the ever changing Federal Laws guiding foreclosure judges. Marc Dann has filed Class Actions suits against Servicers for foreclosing on borrowers that were either eligible for or in a HAMP modification. Additionally he filed a "Class Action" suit against a giant OHIO Predator Drone (foreclosure mill) law firm Lerner Sampson Rothfuss (LSR). Unfortunately, the terms of the settlement could not be shared with us, but we've assumed the homeowners were made happy.
Additionally national blogger Martin Andelman (Mandelman Matters) shared this phone interview as an audio podcast (Click Here).

US Court of Appeals smackdown of Ohio Mill Firm - LSR

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT ANNOUNCES

Major Smackdown of Predator Drone Law Firm (LSR) in  

BETTY WALLACE
v.

WASHINGTON MUTUAL BANK F.A.

WELLS FARGO BANK N.A.,

Defendants

LERNER, SAMPSON & ROTHFUSS,

Defendant-Appellee
Appeal from the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio at Cincinnati.

(Download Opinion - HERE)

A major victory at the federal level reverses a bad decision originally decided in the southern district of Ohio - Cincinnati - which is coincidentaly the home & headquarters of Predator Drone & Foreclosure Mill law firm -Lerner Sampson Rothfuss (LSR)

The court held:

The single issue before us is whether the filing of foreclosure action by the law firm claiming ownership of the mortgage by its client Washington Mutual constitutes a "false, deceptive or misleading representation" under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act {FDCPA} when the bank has not received a transfer of the ownership documents. We hold that the complaint states a valid claim and reverse the dismissal of the case.

Plaintiff alleges that the statement in the foreclosure complaint that Lerner, Sampson filed against her on behalf of Washington Mutual contained the false statement that Washington Mutual was the holder of her mortgage. District courts have decided, and we agree, that a clearly false representation of the creditor’s name may constitute a "false representation to collect or attempt to collect any debt" under Section 1692e.

Hepsen v. J.C. Christensen and Assocs., Inc., No. 8:07-CV-1935-T-EAJ, 2009 WL 3064865, at *5 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 22, 2009) (imposing liability based on a statement incorrectly identifying the name of a creditor comports with the purposes of the Act); Blarek v. Encore Receivable Mgmt., Inc., No. 06-C-0420, 2007 WL 984096, at *15 (E.D. Wis. Mar. 27, 2007) (same).

Lerner, Sampson does not dispute that the foreclosure complaint identifies Washington Mutual as the actual holder of plaintiff’s mortgage, but claims that Ohio law permits Washington Mutual to anticipate that it would become the title holder after the foreclosure action was initiated but before it becomes final. We disagree that the issue of standing in Ohio, even if resolved in Lerner, Sampson’s favor, has any bearing on whether misidentifying a creditor is materially misleading under the Fair DebtCollection Practices Act.

HUGE footnote (below) referencing outcome of pending OHIO SUPREME COURT: Federal Home Loan Mortg. Corp. v. Schwartzwald

1The Ohio Supreme Court allowed an appeal and stayed briefing in plaintiff’s state case against WASHINGTON MUTUAL, Wallace v. Washington Mutual Bank N.A. ..2011-Ohio-6556..(Dec 21, 2011)....pending resolution of Fed. Home Loan Mort. Corp. v. Schwartzwald, 194 Ohio App. 3d 644, 2011-Ohio-2681, 957 N.E.2d 790 (Ohio Ct. App.), motion to certify and appeal allowed by 129 Ohio St. 3d 1488, 2011-Ohio-5129, 954 N.E.2d 661(Ohio Oct 5,2011)(Consolidating cases and certifying a conflict in the Ohio appellate courts on the issue of whether in order to have standing as a plaintiff in a mortgage foreclosure action, a party must show that it owned the note and the mortgage when the complaint was filed.). Should the Ohio courts decide that a potential mortgagee may anticipate transfer of the note and mortgage and bring valid foreclosure proceedings in advance, the district court will have to decide the impact of such a holding on Wallace’s claim for damages under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. We do not agree, however, with the district courts of this Circuit that have treated the debate in Ohio over standing to bring a foreclosure action as dispositive of whether a statement was materially misleading under the Act. See, e.g., Whittiker v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., 605 F. Supp.Kline v. Mortg. Elec. Sec. Sys., No. 3:08cv408, 2010 WL 1133452, at *7 (S.D. Ohio Mar. 22, 2010). Certainly, should the Ohio courts decide that Washington Mutual did not have standing to bring the foreclosure action in the first place, the materiality of the false statement of ownership would be patent. However, even if Ohio holds the opposite, the Act protects the unsophisticated consumer from false statements tending to mislead or confuse—whether Washington Mutual may ultimately succeed in an Ohio court in its foreclosure action has no bearing on whether the initial false statements misled Wallace. The issue arises in the shadow of the recent subprime mortgage crises in which financial institutions are charged with encouraging reckless lending standards and rapid transfer and sale of subprime mortgages so as to profit from the mass securitization and sale of the mortgages

Slipping computer generated, shoddy and manufactured paperwork past lower court judges (old, out-of-touch, too busy) on a “fast track” to foreclosure…used to be easy! The judicial machinery spun out of control when directed by large Predator Drone Foreclosure Mills and their "Bench Warmers"(local counsel used to foreclose) seeking the revered “Green Light” rating (used by LPS Desktop Solutions). Unfortunately thousands of Ohioans lost their homes while these FRAUDclosure factories and drone filing attorneys operated openly in front of Ohio judges ...which unfortunately were asleep-at-the-wheel. (Link to report).

However, recent attention from the OCCUPY movement, highly regarded foreclosure defense attorneys and bloggers (here, here, here) have turned the spotlight on the fraudulent and criminal behavior (of the Foreclosure Mills & Servicers) The robo-signing clearly showed that documents, legally needed to initiate foreclosures, were created and falsely executed. The attention has finally started to drown out the traditional lap dog media trained in "Bank-Speak."

Predator Drone Foreclosure Mills:

The mindless and legally void factory approach used to methodically ram-rod thousands of FRAUDclosures through the judicial machinery of Ohio’s 88 county Civil Court system appears to have finally hit a BUMP. Proof: recent published decisions coming out of some of Ohio's twelve Appellate Courts show that some judges are actually waking-up from a deep legal sleep. The Appellate courts have been routinely overturning and dismissing cases which had improperly awarded Summary Judgment to pretend lenders, bogus trust & trustees, and improper plaintiff parties.

Read full deposition - with admissions - of LSR employee Shellie Hill

STOP THE EVICTION of the BRIAN BAYLESS FAMILY (OH)

A Bayless family supporter passed along the new "decoration" to Bayless home window

At 9:00am on March 15th US BANK....

...STOLE THIS HOUSE !!!                           

Thursday March 15th - 9:00am - EVICTED - EVICTED - EVICTED

Thur. morning we (the 99%) suffered a defeat to the 1% (US Bank/Wells Fargo). Although there’d been a nationwide outpouring of support by emails, phone calls and faxes (thank you) on behalf of Bayless family, the aged Judge - REFUSED – to listen to attorney Bruce Broyle’s motion to quash (eviction) and instead ordered the sheriff to quickly begin the “set-out” process.

Four sheriff deputies were at the home, assuring the Bayless family (of 7) were “thrown to the curb" (in the pouring rain) from a place they've called home the past13 years.

US Bank/Wells Fargo have bought and paid for favorable decisions ("bank-assisted" crime) from this court and long had this out-of-touch aged Judge - Duncan Whitney  -"in their pocket" for favorable bank decisions. Please call and fax the court (at below numbers) and let this Judge and Court know…that once again.....it has become a crime scene. Whitney strongly believes "blighting" neighborhoods will help bank balance sheets recover with more MLS sales.

"Bank Owned" Judge

W. Duncan Whitney
Delaware County, Oh 43015

CALL: Judge Whitney's Office - 740-833-2530

COURT: (740) 833-2519 or Fax: (740) 833-2529
 EMAIL: "Bank Owned" Judge directly  wdwhitney@co.delaware.oh.us

or "Bank Owned" Court system: http://www.co.delaware.oh.us/court/dwcontact.asp

PLEASE STOP THE EVICTION of BRIAN BAYLESS FAMILY

        THEY ARE COMING AGAIN - EVICTED - PLEASE STOP THIS CRIME

The shocking video was an EVICTION attempt and HAPPENED only 3 months ago
It was excerpted from a few minutes of camera-phone footage taken by terrified homeowner, Brian Bayless, during a harrowing & surprise eviction attempt by Delaware County Sheriffs.
Unfortunately, similar events play-out on a daily basis all across the country. 3,000 evictions & foreclosures EVERY SINGLE DAY. They come at the request of "Predator Drone" foreclosure firms representing phony alphabet-soup trusts. The local authorities and movers descend upon the unsuspecting families. It happens every day and is non-stop. NOW - see and experience the pure terror that occurs ...when they come to evict.WARNING the video footage and accompanying dialogue (and children crying) are real. This is very disturbing video and may not be suitable to watch...unless your devoid of emotion - like LSR attorney Andrew Top
Listen, Witness and Experience the inhumane side of a Predator Drone strike
ordered by LERNER SAMPSON ROTHFUSS (LSR) a foreclosure Mill Piranha

They are coming EVICTED this family - THURSDAY March 15 at 9am unless we stop it!  

PLEASE CONTACT BELOW and ask them to STOP THE BAYLESS EVICTION

Predator Drone Foreclosure Mills (Hired by Wells Fargo Servicing/Eviction Depart.):

Lerner Sampson & Rothfuss LPA (LSR)

RE: Attorney - Andrew “Madman” Top at x4968
or Jessica in evictions

RE: LSR Case Number: 200809509

120 East Fourth Street, 8th Floor, Cincinnati, OH 45202

PHONE: (513) 241-3100   FAX: (513) 241-4094

Email: info@lsrlaw.com

Reference LSR Case Number: 200809509 & Wells Fargo Loan: 7003344

Thompson Hine, LLP

Austin Landing I

10050 Innovation Drive, Suite 400, Dayton, Ohio 45342

PHONE: 937-443-6600     FAX: 937-443- 6635

Attorneys: (Scott King & Terry Posey)

E Mail: Scott.king@thompsonhine.com, Terry.Posey@thompsonhine.com,

Please phone, email and fax above entities. Stand up, Be Heard, Make a difference

Be a DOER Urgent! – Urgent! – Urgent! – Urgent! – Urgent! – Urgent!

TAKE ACTION - TODAY     TAKE ACTION - TODAY
 

Attorney Lynn Szymoniak CBS 60 minutes exposes FRAUD

in Bayless Case

WELLS FARGO: (as Servicer) purportedly acting on Behalf of US BANK (as Trustee)
Robo-Signing continues at Wells Fargo (HERE) 

Send action emails that Reference Name: Bayless  & Wells Fargo Loan: 7003344

To CEO John Stumph: John.G.Stumpf@wellsfargo.com, & Wells Fargo employees

James.M.Strother@wellsfargo.com, Richard.D.Levy@wellsfargo.com, David.A.Hoyt@wellsfargo.com, David.M.Carroll@wellsfargo.com, patricia.r.callahan@wellsfargo.com, kevin.a.rhein@wellsfargo.com, Carrie.L.Tolstedt@wellsfargo.com, AVID.MODJTABAI@wellsfargo.com, BoardCommunications@wellsfargo.com, sharon.cecil@wellsfargo.com, Todd.M.Boothroyd@wellsfargo.com, kovacedm@wellsfargo.com, mark.oman@wellsfargo.com, cara.heiden@wellsfargo.com, denise.erickson@wellsfargo.com, cara.k.heiden@wellsfargo.com, mary.coffin@wellsfargo.com,

Delaware County Ohio Common Pleas Court (Lower Court)

ASK the court to QUASH the WRIT

Delaware, Oh 43015

(740) 833-2519 (Fax)

Judge Whitney's Office - 740-833-2530

Judge Krueger's Office - 740-833-2550

Magistrate Laughlin's Office - 740-833-2565

Magistrate Weithman's Office 740-833-2542

US BANK Corporate Trust for SASCO (Structured Asset Securities Corp) 2005-RF4
SEE ACTION at US Bank CEO's home - MARCH 14th (HERE)

Contact:  Kathleen Sullivan

Email: kathleen.sullivan@usbank.com Phone:  617-603-6467

Other Corporate Trust Contacts:

Contact: Beth Nally   Phone:  617-603-6882  Email:  beth.nally@usbank.com

Jennifer Moynihan    Phone:  617-603-7629  Email:  jennifer.moynihan@usbank.com

Piyusha Shirname     Phone:  617-603-6550  Email:  piyusha.shirname@usbank.com

Paul Gobin                 Phone: 617-603-6630  Email:  paul.gobin@usbank.com

scott.miller6@usbank.com, james.mogavero@usbank.com, arthur.macdonald@usbank.com, patrick.teague@usbank.com, grace.gorka@usbank.com, bob.jones@usbank.com, elizabeth.thuning@usbank.com, toni.shumpert@usbank.com, jill.olson@usbank.com, nancie.arvin@usbank.com, sheryl.christopherson@usbank.com, eve.kaplan@usbank.com, sandra.farrow@usbank.com, cynthia.rose@usbank.com, nick.caramanico@usbank.com, mark.edwards2@usbank.com, lars.anderson@usbank.com, scott.graham1@usbank.com, eric.fischer2@usbank.com, bob.dunn@usbank.com, gregory.jordan@usbank.com, tom.cubitt@usbank.com,

Contact: US SENATOR:
Sherrod Brown

EMAIL the senator - fill our form (HERE)

PHONE: Washington, DC: (202) 224-2315 In Ohio Toll Free: 1-888-896-OHIO (6446) Columbus: (614) 469-2083 or Cincinnati: (513) 684-1021 Cleveland: (216) 522-7272 or Lorain: (440) 242-4100

Ohio 9th Appellate shoot-down of BONY & DRONE FIRM

FAIL - FAIL    Bank of New York Trust    FAIL - FAIL

Repeated failures by Summit County (Ohio) “foreclosure court” judges are being embarrassingly revealed with another published opinion and smack-down coming out of Ohio’s 9^th district appellate court. The sad truth; the latest appellate ruling unveils the many inadequacies, failures and improper decisions being reached in this bank-friendly (mentally-challenged?) lower civil court.

The most disturbing aspect of Summit County's repeated poor rulings: judges continue to fumble with the most basic principles of a foreclosure complaint (real party-in-interest, owner of note & mortgage and standing). This despite the fact they have a strict pre-filing requirement - which was instituted to make their decisions simple.  Summit County {Akron/Canton} is one of only three Ohio counties (of 88) that REQUIRE what I call a “Truth Averment.” The county has in place the rare “Certificate of Readiness” requirement. This 4 year old policy (May 2008) was implemented for the express purpose of stopping 3^rd party document creation {Fraud} companies from manufacturing evidence .

Unfortunately the phony paper plaintiffs (alphabet soup-Trust, Trustees or Servicers) are created out of thin air by LPS and MERS. The companies use computer driven spread-sheet software to execute millions of foreclosure filings. This FRAUDulent business model - is only as effective as the brain-dead hourly employees {low paid data-entry personal} hired to use it. Worse - the LPS Document Solution Software triggers a predator drone foreclosure mill firm {bench warmer paper filing attorney} into action.
Fortunately, these DRONE attorneys ARE REQUIRED (by Certificate of Readiness) to state...
plaintiff has “in its custody and control the original note and mortgage, and said documents [a]re available for inspection upon order of the Court.”

Excerpts from the Appellate court show (embarrassingly) the inadequacies of our lower courts (and judges). It is also further proof of a legal environment where bad attorneys are openly practicing and arguing…..Out-right FRAUD…. and feel comfortable ….doing it!
{¶13} Here, Bank of New York alleged that it was the “holder” of the note. The purported photocopy attached to its complaint shows the note payable to Bank of New York through the last {created, fabricated and obviously fraudulent} allonge.  Therefore, Bank of New York would have been required to possess the original note {and not some LPS created copy} in order to establish itself as the real party in interest by way of holder status.

{¶33} {Five months later}...the Bank’s {predator drone mill} counsel stated that “they were still ‘looking for’ the original note.”  By November 9, 2010, the Bank {of New York Mellon} presented no evidence that it possessed or had ever possessed the original note.  In addition, the Mihalcas noted that the Bank’s affidavit in support of its own summary judgment motion was improper evidence and as such, there was no proper summary judgment evidence {other than the fraudulent affidavit..and allonge..coming} from the Bank before the trial court

NEW published decision out of OHIO 9th District Court of Appeals

Case: Bank Of New York (Bony) Trust v. Mihalca, 2012-Ohio-567 (right click & open New Tab)

Date: FEBRUARY 15th, 2012

Plaintiff: Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company National

Predator Drone Foreclosure Mill: Reisenfeld & Associates, LPA, LLC

 

Matthew Charles Gladwell, {pictured above} apparently felt he needn't prove that the phony document(s) submitted either existed or were ever held by the Bank of New York Trust. 

OHIO's totally dysfunctional system is on full display here….the only positive…..our 9^th appellate court judges continues to overturn the poorly decided lower courts (especially Summit County).

{¶3} On June 11, 2010, the Mihalcas filed an answer ....{and} demanded to inspect the original note

{¶7} In their first assignment of error, the Mihalcas argue that the Bank [of New York] failed to prove its present possession of the note, which precluded summary judgment in favor of the Bank.  We [9^th appellate court] agree.

{¶14} .... [T]he Mihalcas questioned the Bank’s possession of the note beginning with their answer, wherein they made a timely request to inspect the original note.....  The Bank had {not} produced the note as of the date on which the trial court ordered summary judgment, which was over five months after the Mihalcas’ initial request....

{¶33} November 9, 2010, in responding to the Mihalcas’ counsel for production of the note....the letter {from Bank of New York} only allows one to conclude that counsel for the Bank is going to ask {another} Bank for the {original} note and that counsel believes that {another} Bank has possession of the original note.  The letter does not affirmatively state that the Bank has possession of it. The affidavit of the Mihalcas’ counsel avers that the parties again discussed production of the original note on September 27, 2010.  At that time, the Bank’s {predator drone mill} counsel stated that “they were still ‘looking for’ the original note.”  By November 9, 2010, the Bank {of New York Mellon} presented no evidence that it possessed or had ever possessed the original note.  In addition, the Mihalcas noted that the Bank’s affidavit in support of its own summary judgment motion was improper evidence and as such, there was no proper summary judgment evidence {other than the fraudulent affidavit..and allonge..coming} from the Bank before the trial court ...

{¶35} I {judge P.J. Belfance} can only conclude that the Bank has failed to meet its burden, as there was no evidence before the trial court that the Bank at any point in time possessed the original note. The Mihalcas were {also by law} entitled to have summary judgment granted in their favor.

Hello DISCIPLINARY COUNSEL (all 28-members)…..PLEASE WAKE-UP !! Do not allow these “Bench Warmer” lawyers {Matthew C. Gladwell} and PREDATOR DRONE foreclosure mill firms {Reisenfeld & Associates, LPA, LLC } to operate openly in our courts and further demean the legal profession.

Let’s see some sanctions. Let’s see some Disbarments

Hello OHIO SUPREME COURT …the black robes are supposed to show your higher legal status and authority ….not show{and prove} your simply wearing ...“sleeping attire”

We've seen identical bad decisions (from Summit county) before:

Our previous post: OHIO judges SHOOT down predator drone

Below findings: from Court of Appeals OHIO 9th District
Case: CitiMortgage, Inc. v. Elia, 2011-Ohio-2499 (right click & open in New Tab)

Date: May 25th, 2011
Plaintiff: CitiMortgage
Predator Drone Foreclosure Mill:  ERIN M. LAURITO,  Attorney for plaintiff  {CitiMortgage}