In Other Media-eg New Statesman, AJE, FP, Georgia, NYT,  Azerbaijan, CSM Click here to contact us     .

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - The Source

SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 28 – In a particularly on-point critique of corporate litigation practices, in this case concerning subprime lending securitization disputes a decade after the fact, on April 28 Judge William H. Pauley III likened the pleading to "Gone with the Wind" (Inner City Press might have chosen the Brothers Karamazov) and provided this nutshell summary of abuses: "deficient underwriting standards, questionable subprime lending practices, and coercive foreclosure practices."  

From the decision: "Defendant U.S. Bank National Association (“U.S. Bank”) moves for summary judgment dismissing Plaintiff Commerzbank AG’s claims. (ECF No. 293.) Due to the complexity of this case, the number of claims, and the demanding summary judgment standard, the parties submitted lengthy statements of undisputed facts in support of their respective positions. To characterize them as sprawling would be an understatement. Almost every statement of undisputed fact is controverted at least in part by the opposing party. The result is a staggering 1,274 pages of factual assertions supported by 1,049 exhibits. By this Court’s reckoning, the parties utilized more than 430,000 words in their respective statements of undisputed facts, a word count longer than Margaret Mitchell’s epic novel Gone with the Wind. For the reasons that follow, U.S. Bank’s motion is granted in part and denied in part.  

"This action arises from the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”). RMBS are abstruse financial products that were integral to the rapid rise and precipitous fall of the U.S. housing market over a decade ago. The collapse of the housing bubble propelled the economy into a tailspin and destroyed the value of RMBS and related securities. This in turn spawned a series of investigations into the mortgage industry that unearthed a litany of abuses—deficient underwriting standards, questionable subprime lending practices, and coercive foreclosure practices, to name a few." 

....   U.S. Bank’s motion for summary judgment is granted with respect to all claims arising from the Sold Certificates and the Duke Repo Certificates. Summary judgment is also granted as to all claims arising from the German Certificates, but denied as to the Cayman Certificates. Summary judgment is denied as to all of Commerzbank’s post-EOD claims from the surviving certificates. Summary judgment is denied for Commerzbank’s pre-EOD claims arising from a select group of certificates. Finally, summary judgment is granted in part and denied in part as to Commerzbank’s tort claims."

The whole 44-page decision is worth reading, akin to a striking novella like Pedro Paramo. The case is Commerzbank AG v. U.S. Bank National Association, 16-cv-4569 (Pauley). 

***

Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron.

Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA

Mail: Box 20047, Dag Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017

Reporter's mobile (and weekends): 718-716-3540

Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.

 Copyright 2006-2020 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com for