You Can Use This As a Template for How I Would Respond in a Discovery Dispute — Especially with Wells Fargo, Fannie Mae and Wachovia as the Originator by Neil Garfield

In a dispute between the attorney for the homeowner and the attorney for the alleged “lender”, there are a number of devices that are nearly universally applied across the country in order to ridicule and defeat the homeowner. The more you are aware of them, the better you will be prepared to deal with them.

Opposing counsel is instructed to accomplish several things (winning being the last of the things on his or her menu). First, the idea is to undermine the confidence of the homeowner and to undermine the confidence of the lawyer for the homeowner in any defense to the foreclosure. They do this by several tricks.

The main one is offering cash for keys. This says “You know we will win and you don’t have a chance, so get out now and we will pay you a couple of thousand dollars.” By doing that, they give the impression that the case has been evaluated and that the offer is somewhere within the realm of reasonability given the probable outcome. It isn’t and all my cases start this way — especially the ones where the judgment was entered for the homeowner.

The next one is offering modification which is basically saying “OK, if you recognize this transaction as real, we will offer you different terms.” The initial offer of different terms is virtually no change at all in the original terms but it gives hope that there will be a breather between now and when they return to foreclosure mode. It is about as attractive to the homeowner as the cash-for keys deal.

If you stick to your guns the offers will improve; most homeowners end up not resisting an offer that they think gives them enough relief that it isn’t worth proving or revealing that there is absolutely no corroborating evidence in the form of testimony on person knowledge, documents or receipts that support the apparent facial validity fo the documents being used to fabricate a claim against the homeowner on a non-existent loan account receivable.

Just be aware that acceptance of any offer in most instances is doing business with a thief in exchange for returning stolen property. From the point of view of the thief, he or she worked hard for that property and is entitled to compensation for the work performed. Anything less than that is a loss and if given the chance they will even sue for it. None of that is law but anyone can use legal process, even to make false claims. Such claims are deemed true unless properly contested.

So in a situation where the case is almost over the lawyer representing the homeowner is still hammering away at enforcing discovery.

The opposing lawyer is characterizing the effort as a desperate attempt to escape a legitimate debt and a using the lawyer and the homeowner of vexatious litigation —- i.e., using legal process improperly to gain an undeserved legal advantage. in other words, the attorney for the financial industry is accusing the homeowner, who has virtually no resources, of doing exactly what the foreclosure lawyer has done is continuing to do because he or she has the full backing of companies with infinitely deep pockets.

Discovery has been served and the response was objection and motions for protection. The homeowner’s lawyer filed a motion to compel compliance with the rules of discovery. The foreclosure lawyer filed a response saying that the homeowner was trying to relitigate the case, in a desperate attempt to avoid the inevitable loss of possession of the property using vexatious litigation strategies.

Here are my notes, with some edits:

I see several issues with the response filed by opposing counsel.

1. I doubt that counsel has any written or oral authority to represent Fannie Mae that was granted by Fannie Mae.
   1. Fannie Mae would not hire the law firm unless they were making the direct rerpesentation ot the lawyer that they were in fact the owner of the properrty which title had been legally acquired. Since Fannie knows taht its name is being used in vexastious litigation against homeowners that reuslt in forecloure sales wherein the money proceeds are never paid to Fannie {same as REMIC trustees}, it would not make such a declaration and it would therefore never directly hire the law firm.
   2. And if push came to shove, I am virtually certain that anything represented in court to have been on behalf of Fannie Mae would be subject to Fannie claims of plausible deniability.
   3. But it is extremely difficult to raise this issue and get any traction directly. If there is a mediation Conference you may have an opportunity to ask about authority and then file a motion for sanctions for failure to appear. But I don’t think that this is possible at this stage in litigation.
2. There is a growing national use of the attempt to squelch challenges by accusing the homeowner of vexatious litigation. These are actually being taken seriously by judges who are anxious to move cases off their docket. You need to be very careful about this issue. There is a recent case where the vexatious litigation issue was defeated by the homeowner without the assistance of counsel in California. But there are plenty of cases out there and which judges referred to a vexatious litigant which in all cases means a homeowner or the lawyer for the homeowner. Vexatious is anotehr word for annoying, so you need to reframe that. This idea exists because  of the presumption that the conclusion is already known and is inevitable. That conclusion is based upon a faulty and erroneous understanding of financial innovation from Wall Street that occurred 25 years ago.
3. The pleadings filed by opposing counsel follow the playbook for the nation. It contains a recitation of facts or implied facts that only exist because of legal presumption arising from the apparent facial validity of documents that are uncorroborated, together with the effect of the presumptive validity of court orders that have previously been entered.
   1. Although we should always be careful about picking our battles, we should never accept or even suggest that we are accepting or ignoring the recitation of facts that are untrue and unsubstantiated.
4. The first thing you need to deal with is that you are entitled to discovery and the discovery is intended to reveal rather than obscure relevant issues. But it is opposing cousnel’s instruction to obscure and refuse to reveal anything. As usual they will accuse the hoemowner of doing exactly what they are doing.
   1. It might be worthwhile to articulate that the defense narrative is based upon in-depth investigation, research, and analysis from experts in the securitization of debt — And that they have expressed the definite opinion that nearly everything assumed by opposing counsel in his opposition to the motion to compel discovery is not only uncorroborated but also untrue.
5. The entire case presented against the homeowner rests completely on uncorroborated presumptions regarding the existence and transfer of an alleged obligation owed by the homeowner to Wells Fargo bank and then Fannie Mae.
6. While there is ample evidence of a merger between Wells Fargo Bank and Wachovia, the originator of the transaction with the homeowner, there is no evidence whatsoever that Wachovia ever transferred any interest and the transaction that had been conducted with the defendant homeowner.
7. The fact that there has been a merger does not mean that we know the terms of the merger or that anything relating to the defendant homeowner was included in the terms of the merger.
8. There is nothing corroborating the presumption that Wachovia was the owner of a loan account receivable on accounting ledgers owned and maintained by Wachovia at the time of the merger, much less that Wachovia intended a transfer of ownership of the loan account to Wells Fargo bank.
9. Indeed, the experts report that it is a common practice of Wells Fargo bank to assert its ownership over the loan account at the beginning of a foreclosure action and then to admit later that it is only a servicer.
10. But its role as a servicer is also uncorroborated and probably untrue. The fact that it produces reports does not mean the data or the report was generated as a result of receipts and disbursements by Wells Fargo bank to or from any debtor or creditor.
11. And obviously if Wells Fargo employees did not actually receive and disburse money relating to a loan account receivalbe, they could not have recorded such receipts or disbursements with personal knowledge. These are the issues that are being explored by the demand for discovery.
12. If the defendant homeowners defense narrative is correct, then the fact that she had lost in litigation, is merely an assertion of conclusions previously reached by a court that had been misled by counsel.
13. Opposing counsel seeks to argue that the defendant homeowner is not entitled to any answers because of the production of documents. But those are the precise documents that defendants experts assert as memorializing nonexistent transactions. Defendant hoemowner is merely testing them through disvovery. If they are not true they should never have been presented and a fraud has been committed upon the court. The foreclosure porocess, sale and now demand for possession must be dimsissed and vacated as the may be.
    1. The unwillingness of opposing cousnel to provide a direct response to direct discovery demands is a tacit admission that counsel is unable or unwilling to provide corroboration that transctions supposedly emorialized on the documents presented to the court and relied upon by the court
14. Opposing counsel keeps referring to a “mortgage loan” when he should be referring to mortgage documents. Defendant homeowner admits to executing mortgage documents, but now, based upon factual investigation and research, denies the existence of a loan account at any time material to these proceedings.
    1. Opposing counsel seems to be aware of the problem and is attempting to curate by constantly referring to “the mortgage loan” rather than “The mortgage documents.”
15. Experts for the defendant homeowner have revealed that Wachovia was primarily engaged in the origination of transactions with homeowners and perspective on motors for the exclusive purpose of supplying data to investment banks for the sale of securities. In this process, the loan account was retired because it was paid off contemporaneously with the closing of the transaction with the defendant homeowner.
    1. If the loan account was not retired in a securitization process then defendant homeowner concedes that the foreclosure was properly executed. But if it was retired then the foreclosure was not properly executed.
    2. The supposed presence of Fannie Mae gives rise to the presumption that the transction is and was always subject to claims arising out the issuance of securities, d epsite the fact that such securiteis offered now ownership in any alleged liability, obligation or debt owned by the homeowner.
       1. There is no evidence that Fannie ever paid value in exchange for ownership of the underlying obligation as requried by statute as a condition precedent to enforcement. This is also required for jurisdicition (see below).
    3. The discovery demanded by the defendant homeowner seeks to clarify this issue. If in fact the alleged obligation was purchased and sold on the secondary market or otherwise subject to a transaction in which no loan account survived on an accounting ledger of any company, it follows that nobody suffered any financial loss arising from ownership of such an account, despite various attempts to collect money from the defendant homeowner.
    4. Such a true fact pattern defeats the constitutional requirement for case and controversy and the jurisdiction of any court to hear the case much less dedicate anything. It also follows that no party claiming to represent or implying representation of a creditor owning the nonexistent loan account, could have any authority to declare any default, nor any authority to claim the right to administer, collect or enforce any alleged obligation arising from the nonexistent loan account.
    5. Opposing counsel is correct when he refers to the desperation of defendant homeowner. She is anxious to retain possession and to regain title to a homestead that was putatively taken based upon false and misleading representations made to her and the court. Anyone faced with losing their homestead or their property and their lifestyle would be desperate to foil the attempt. It is up tot he court to rasie cofndience that if the attemopt succeeds it will be to pay a party who will receive the proceeds of forced sale and then apply those sums to reduce the loan account receivable. This is not the case at bar.
    6. Defendant homeowner merely seeks answers to the most relevant questions that could possibly exist in a foreclosure action. Was there an existing loan account receivable maintained on the ledger of Wells Fargo bank or Fannie Mae at the time that the default was declared and the action for Foreclosure was commenced? If the answer is no, then the court was misled and entered orders and judgments that are voidable or subject to being reconsidered and vacated. If the answer is yes, then the dispute is over.
    7. Opposing counsel is concealing his contempt for court process by clever wording accusing and characterizing the attempts by the defendant homeowner to reveal the ruth as repeated attempts by the defendant homeowner to relitigate the case based on the same facts. This is not true.
       1. Defendant homeowner wants to reveal that there were no corroborated facts presented in support of the claims against her and that in fact no such facts could have been presented because they did not exist.
       2. She seeks to determine the nature and status of the transaction that was originated in 2006, and the claims arising from implied transfers that were never documented but are presently argued before this court.
       3. Not even teh merger agreement has been proffered (much less ordered and accepted) into evidence nor any testimony or affidavit from any witness with personal knowledge that the alleged merger effectively and intentionally transferred the ownership of the subject alleged transaction balance (i.e., the loan account receivable) from Wachovia to Wells Fargo.
    8. Opposing counsel absolutely refuses to simply say or even argue that Wells Fargo was the creditor who owned the loan account receivable or that FNMA had any financial interest in the transaction as owner of the transaction conducted with the defendant homeowner in 2006.
    9. Dodging the question does not make the question wrong. Nor does it imply that that answer is obvious. Opposing counsel is arguing a narrative that has no corroboration in any evidence consisting of testimony from any competent witness with personal knowledge, or any document that can survive any scrutiny when tested for validity as to representations of a transaction such as purchase and sale of the alleged underlying obligation as required by Article 9 §203 of the Uniform Commercial Code adopted verbatim under state statutes.
    10. The alleged possession of the promissory note is in fact, as opposing counsel has argued consistently, sufficient to obtain a money judgment on the note.
        1. It is also sufficient for the court to infer that the holder of the note is the owner of the underlying obligation for purposes of pleading in a foreclosure action.
        2. But in the proof of the matters asserted, it does not rise to the level of a prima facie case establishing such ownership when the court conducts a final hearing on the evidence.
           1. Possession of the note is an exception to the rule that the holder may obtain judgment without any financial loss to the note holder being stated or proven.
           2. In such cases, it is enough to establish that the maker of the note failed to make a scheduled payment.
        3. But the Article 3 UCC exception does not remove the basic underlying Article 9-203 condition precedent to enforcing a security isntrument (mortgage). The mortgage may not be enforced without paying value for the underlying obligation. The protection of homestead rights is inviolate and may (under current law) only be subject to forfeit in the event that the owner of the underlying obligation is the complaining party.
           1. In the case at bar, the complaining party neither (a) alleges nor proves such ownership of the underlying obligation nor (b) alleges or proves that anyone is or was a holder in due course— which would mean by definition that it had paid value for the underlying obligation (or at least the note)
           2. The legislature has spoken and this court has been led to believe that the statute has been satisfied. Upon solid information and belief nobody who has been represented as being the complaining party either did or could have satisfied the condition precedent in state law adopted Article 9 §203 UCC. This was concealed from the court and from the homeowner. If it isn’t true then no judgment, no sale, and no demand for possession should be granted.

Who Owns Your Mortgage Note?

Have you ever asked who owns your mortgage note? A better question to ask is, “If I paid off my mortgage loan tomorrow, would I get clear and equitable title to my real property?” If your mortgage loan contract was converted into a mortgage backed security and sold to an investment trust on Wall Street you might not!

If you are thinking of applying for a loan modification, or refinancing through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), or other program(s) under the Making Home Affordable (MHA) initiative there are a few things to consider.

First, remember that the entity who claims to own your mortgage loan is not automatically the same entity that may be servicing your mortgage loan. A loan servicer is a debt collections company that sends you mortgage statements, takes your payments each month, and if you have an escrow account, pays your homeowner’s insurance and property tax bills. But who really owns your mortgage loan?

If you want to find out here are a few things you can do:

• Ask the servicer. Your loan servicer is legally obligated to tell you the name, address, and telephone number of the owner of your loan as shown in their records. It’s a good idea to ask them in writing officially with a “Qualified Written Request” via certified mail while keeping a log of your communications. The name of your servicer should be on your mortgage statement, but you can also use the MERS link below.
• Original lender. Your loan may have never been sold, and still kept as a “portfolio loan” with the original lender. That’s the way loans used to be done!
• Fannie Mae. In reality, many loans are sold to FNMA aka “Fannie Mae”. See Fannie Mae loan lookup tool.
• Freddie Mac. Similar story with Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC) aka “Freddie Mac”. See Freddie Mac loan lookup tool.
• Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS) is a big online registry designed to replace the costly process of publicly recording mortgage ownership at the local government level with a private electronic version that allows the swapping of mortgages with no friction at all. MERS tracks both the servicing rights and ownership of mortgage loans in the United States, although the accuracy has been called into question. See MERS ServiceID lookup tool. You can also call them at 888-679-6377 FREE.
• Search the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the alleged trust that claims they are the owner of your mortgage loan: https://fraudstoppers.org/how-to-search-the-sec-for-a-securitized-trust
• Register for a Free Mortgage Fraud Analysis and Securitization Search. Complete our Mortgage Fraud Analysis form and we will conduct a free securitization check to see if your mortgage loan contract was converted into a mortgage backed security and who really owns your note. If your loan was securitized than you may have legal standing to sue your lender, or current loan servicer, for mortgage fraud and quiet title. Find out more by completing our Mortgage Fraud Analysis form or call us at 773-877-3655 and we will help you get the facts and evidence you need to get the legal remedy you deserve.

Cases like the Glaski v. Bank of America and Jesinoski v. Countrywide Home Loans may have provided hope for homeowners who were victims of mortgage and foreclosure fraud. But they did not strike at the heart of the real problem behind the securitization of millions of mortgage loans.

The Glaski decision states that if some entity wants to collect on a debt they must first legally own that debt. Furthermore, if that entity is claiming ownership by way of an Assignment, it must prove that Assignment is legally valid.

The Jesinoski case addressed a borrower’s right to rescind, or cancel, their mortgage loan contract under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) by only providing written notice to the lender, without filing suit. A loan is rescinded at the time the rescission letter is mailed. If the lender wants to refute or fight the rescission they must file an action to do so, and they have limited time to do so.

If your mortgage was securitized (the practice of pooling mortgages and selling their related cash flows to third party investors as securities) then it was part of a table funded transaction. In a table funded transaction the borrower named on the note is NOT in debt to the lender (“Pretender Lender”) because they signed the note in the capacity of an Accommodation Party, or co-signer for the purpose of incurring liability on the instrument without being a direct beneficiary of the value given for the instrument!

The broker, or originator, of the loan is pretending to loan money to the alleged “Borrower“, but in reality they trick the alleged “Borrower” into co-signing on a note that is pledged as collateral on a warehouse line of credit with the funding bank.

It is illegal for banks to loan credit, they can only loan money!

But if the Pretender Lender is not the entity putting up the funds, then there is no underlining indebtedness between the alleged “Borrower” and the originator who is named on the note. And if there is no underlining indebtedness between the parties named on the note, then the mortgage (or deed of trust) vaporizes into nothingness, and is legally unenforceable as a matter of law.

If your mortgage loan contract was part of a table funded transaction and converted into a mortgage backed security that was sold to an investment vehicle, or trust, on Wall Street, then you may have legal standing to rescind your mortgage loan contract, and sue your “Pretender Lender” for Special Damages equal to triple the original amount of your note, plus clear and equitable title to your home!

Fraud Stoppers is part of a National Private Members Association that provides back office litigation support to law firms, foreclosure defense advocacy groups, and pro se litigants nationwide. Our Private Members Association can help you sue your lender for mortgage fraud, with or without an attorney.

Then after our free mortgage fraud analysis is done, we can scheduled a free potential cause of action consultation to discuss your loan and lawsuit in detail and help you get started filing your state and federal lawsuit for the remedy that the law entitles you to, and that you deserve!

You can save 60% to 70% in legal fees when you get your lawsuit started yourself, Pro Se, (without an attorney), and then bring in a local attorney to help you at trial, where you need them the most! This way you can get the best of both worlds: Save money in legal fees, and get the professional help you need at the same time!

FRAUD STOPPERS Private Members Association (PMA) has a PROVEN WAY to help you save time and money, and increase your odds of success, suing the banks for mortgage and foreclosure fraud.

Our primary focus is helping you get clear and marketable title to your property by arguing that the actions of the banks have made the security provisions of the mortgage/deed of trust unenforceable as a matter of law.

Who Has The Burden of Proof in a Foreclosure Case?

Who Has Legal Standing to Foreclose?

Who has legal standing to foreclose? Only the mortgagee has standing to foreclose. Look, if you are planning to sue someone and you accuse them of some wrong doing, you better have proof.  The person doing the accusing (the Plaintiff) has the burden of proof. Before you can go to court, you must have some sort of grievance that you are seeking relief on; in other words you must have legal standing.  For example, if you had a contract and the other person broke that contract causing you to suffer as a result of that breach.  This is called a Cause of Action.  In other words, “why are you suing this guy?  What wrong did he do to you?” You must have a valid reason to bring your suit.

There are a number of different causes of action you can accuse the other party of.  For example, breach of contract, fraud, tortious interference, etc. Another very special type of cause of action is called a Quiet Title Action.  These types of “Actions” (an “Action” is just legal jargon for a civil action…or a civil suit) are done when there is a cloud of title issue that needs to be resolved.  As a title owner, you have an obligation to defend your title against encroachments.  For example, if I started to build a fence three feet into your land and you say nothing… then five years later, I sell my land, and change the legal description to include that extra three feet…and you say nothing, then that extra three feet is mine.

Let’s discuss the Deed of Trust and Mortgage to see how this all fits in.

The Deed of Trust or Mortgage:

The Deed of Trust is a special Trust that is created specifically so that you (the landlord) temporarily grant your title in trust to the new Trust to secure against the promissory note.  When you create a Trust, you appoint a Trustee.  You also give that Trustee the power to sell your property in the event of a default of the promissory note.  This is the vehicle and mechanism your “lender” uses to foreclose and sell your house.  The same goes with a Mortgage in a Judicial State, except there is no need for a Trustee.

In the event that there is a problem with the promissory note or deed of trust, then there is an issue called “cloud of title”.  When a title is clouded, you will have a problem selling your house.  Let me give you an example.

Let’s say the County places an imminent domain claim on a strip of land on your property to lay down some pipes.  They then record this on your county records.  But because of budget cuts, they decided not to lay the pipes, but forgot to give you your land back.  2 years later, you are trying to sell your house.  It will be stopped because you are selling part of a land you don’t own (i.e. the strip for the un-laid pipes).  In order to un-cloud the title, you will need to seek a Quiet Title Action.

As we discussed, your promissory note has been permanently converted into a stock.  It has also been fully discharged.  The language on your Deed of Trust says “This Deed of Trust secures a promissory note”, and if the promissory note is destroyed through permanent conversion, then the Deed of Trust secures nothing.  This is just like the situation with the strip of land with the un-laid pipes.  It’s lost property.  It’s unclaimed land.  As the Title owner, you have an obligation to defend your land and title.

This is why we need to do a Quiet Title Action to reclaim our land to resolve the controversy.  In a Quiet Title Action, you basically issue a challenge to all parties wishing to lay a claim on our property to come forth and provide the proof of their claim(s).

However, remember the rule of court is the Plaintiff has the burden of proof.  In the following parts, we will go into uncovering proof. If you haven’t done so, we recommend that you purchase a chain of title & securitization analysis because once you have real evidence that your mortgage contains fraud, legal violations, and or has been securitized you will have a much better chance at beating your foreclosure and saving your house.

 

Federal Rules of Evidence:

You can sue your lender in federal court and/or state court (this is called circuit court).  Typically, the State Rules of Civil Procedure and State Rules of Evidence will govern state courts.  However, since we don’t know which State you are in, and for the most part, these rules are pretty similar, we’re going to talk about the Federal Rules of Evidence governing the admissibility of photocopies. Specifically, we want to talk about Rule 1002 and Rule 1003.  Please click on these and read up on them. These should be similar with your State Rules of Evidence.  You should consult your own State’s Rules of Evidence to confirm.

Basically, what will happen is your “lender” will bring to court photocopies of the Deed of Trust and Promissory Note to claim their rights as proof of claim in your Quiet Title Action.

These are admissible, unless you learn to object!

The rules of evidence are simple.  A photocopy is admissible unless it is unfair to admit the photocopy in lieu of the original.  What you need to know is, under Uniform Commercial Code, your promissory note is a one of a kind negotiable instrument, just like a check. You cannot go down to a bank and cash a photocopy of a check.  It has to be the real thing.  Your promissory note contains the only legally binding chain of title.  A photocopy made years ago does not contain the chain of title.

Basically, the argument is “sure, I signed a loan with you then, but we know you sold it.  Can you prove that you still own it?”

Opposing Counsel will say, “But Your Honor, the plaintiff has the burden of proof.  They are alleging that we sold the note.  Where’s the proof?”

And that’s where most Pro Se Litigants get stuck!

If you do not have the proof (evidence) when you file your civil action, your case will be tossed out, and classified as “failure to state a claim”.

What typically happens when you file an action is opposing counsel (the dirty rotten lawyer working for the bank) will file a Motion to Dismiss. They ALWAYS DO IT; so expect it. In order to survive the Motion to Dismiss, you must have sufficient proof.

If you haven’t already purchased your copy of Jurisdictionary, do it now because you have no chance of winning your case if you don’t know the rules of the game. This is a mandatory resource if you’re serious about defeating your foreclosure and saving your house.  I cannot stress how much you need this product!

Evidence of Movement:

The first and simplest evidence we can bring to court is called Evidence of Movement. In an Evidence of Movement situation, you closed with Bank A (let’s say Stearns Lending), who sells it to Countrywide (Bank B), who then got acquired by Bank of America (Bank C) ….who then securitizes the note into New York Mellons Bank Trust Series 12345.

So, the Deed of Trust names Bank A as the Beneficiary.  But Bank C wants to foreclose.  Bank C comes to the court with a Deed of Trust pointing at Bank A (Stearns Lending).  Where is the Chain of Title on the Promissory Note that gives Bank C (BofA) the Right to enforce the note?

If you have a situation like this, you might not need to get a securitization audit, although getting one may make your case stronger and more likely to succeed.

Often times, Bank C would come to the Court claiming “Your Honor, we have reacquired the note and now have the right to foreclose.”  If you encounter this situation, you must learn to object.

1)   Show me the perfected chain of title.  If you have sold it, then you lost your right to enforce.U.S. Code Title 12: Banks and Banking PART 226—TRUTH IN LENDING (REGULATION Z), a servicer does not have the rights of a lender if it has acquired the note for the purposes of administration.

2)   Please stipulate for the record whether the note is part of a pooling and servicing agreement.  Please stipulate whether the note has been securitized. Please stipulate who “New Your Big Bad Bankers Trust Series 12323 (of course yours will be different)” is, are they a REMIC?

3)   If the loan has been securitized, did you reacquire the note as an unsecured debt in the secondary securities market?  Are you acting in the capacity of a debt collector as governed under 15 U.S.C. §1692?

Remember, this is fraud at its greatest.  Only the top echelon bankers know this scam.  Even their Counsel does not know the scam that is being perpetrated here.  He is just taking his client’s word at face value.  He is hearing “we bought the note back” and accepts that the bank now has the right to foreclose.  They don’t.  Most homeowners who are confronted with this situation don’t know the scam either and run out of juice.

Do you see how we structure our arguments here?  It was never “Show me the note”.  We are attacking them on the “show me standing” and “show me that you are the real and beneficial party of interest who has the right to enforce the note”.

 

What is MERS?

MERS is Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems it was created by banks in order to “streamline” the warehousing of loans and mortgage documents. Basically MERS is a front organization that was created to defraud homeowners and government agencies. It pretends to hold your note, but in fact holds nothing. Banks set up MERS in the 1990s to help speed the process of packaging loans into mortgage-backed bonds by easing the process of transferring mortgages from one party to another. But ever since the housing crash, MERS has been besieged by litigation from state attorneys general, local government officials and homeowners who have challenged the company’s authority to pursue foreclosure actions. Recently there have been many court decisions delivering death blows to MERS and their 70,000,000+ mortgages they claim to hold.

For example in MERS Is Dead: Can Be Sued For Fraud: WA Supreme Court we learn that the Washington State Supreme Court dealt a death blow to MERS: “The highest court in the state of Washington recently ruled that a company that has foreclosed on millions of mortgages nationwide can be sued for fraud, a decision that could cause a new round of trouble for the nation’s banks.

The ruling is one of the first to allow consumers to seek damages from Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, a company set up by the nation’s major banks, if they can prove they were harmed.

Legal experts said last month’s decision from the Washington Supreme Court could become a precedent for courts in other states. The case also endorsed the view of other state courts that MERS does not have the legal authority to foreclose on a home.

“This is a body blow,” said consumer law attorney Ira Rheingold. “Ultimately the MERS business model cannot work and should not work and needs to be changed.”

A spokeswoman for MERS said the company is confident its role in the financial system will withstand legal challenges. The Washington Supreme Court held that MERS’ business practices had the “capacity to deceive” a substantial portion of the public because MERS claimed it was the beneficiary of the mortgage when it was not.

This finding means that in actions where a bank used MERS to foreclose, the consumer can sue it for fraud. If the foreclosure can be challenged, MERS’ involvement would make repossession more complicated.

On top of that, virtually any foreclosed homeowner in the state in the past 15 years who feels they have been harmed in some way could file a consumer fraud suit.

“This may be the beginning of a trend,” says Elizabeth Renuart, a professor at Albany Law School focusing on consumer credit law. The company’s history dates back to the 1990s, when banks began aggressively bundling home loans into mortgage-backed securities. The banks formed MERS to speed up the handling of all the paperwork associated with recording the filing of a deed and the subsequent inclusion of a mortgage in an entity that issues a mortgage-backed security. MERS allowed the banks to save time and money because it permitted lenders to bypass the process of filing paperwork with the local recorder of deeds every time a mortgage was sold.

Instead, banks put MERS’ name on the deed. And when they bought and sold mortgages, they just recorded the transfer of ownership of the note in the MERS system.

The MERS’ database was supposed to keep track of where those loans went. The company’s motto: “Process loans, not paperwork.”

But the foreclosure crisis revealed major flaws with the MERS database.

The plaintiffs in the Washington case, homeowners Kristin Bain and Kevin Selkowitz, argued that the problems with the MERS database made it difficult, if not impossible; to determine who really owned their loan. It’s an argument that has been raised in numerous other lawsuits challenging the ability of MERS to foreclose on a home.

“It’s going to be very easy for consumers to say they were harmed because it’s inherently misleading,” says Geoff Walsh, an attorney with the National Consumer Law Center. If consumers can’t identify who owns their loan, then they don’t know whom to negotiate with, and can’t even be certain of the legitimacy of the foreclosure.

In a statement, MERS spokeswoman Janis Smith noted that banks stopped using MERS’ name to foreclose last year. She added that the opinion will “create confusion” for homeowners in the state of Washington while the trial courts consider its effect on pending cases.

Meanwhile, MERS is attempting to remake itself. The company has a new chief executive and a new branding campaign. In Washington D.C. federal lawmakers have recognized the need to create a national mortgage-recording database that would track all U.S. mortgages. MERS is lobbying to build it.

The case is Bain (Kristin), et al. v. Mortg. Elec. Registration Sys. et al., Washington Supreme Court, No. 86206-1.” (Reuters).

This information about MERS is very important for you to understand, if you are going to successfully defend your points in court. For a list of some FACTS about MERS check out https://fraudstoppers.org/a-few-facts-about-mers and also pay attention to: MERS-and-Citibank-are-not-real-parties-CA.pdf

IF you would like to see if your loan is serviced by MERS, click here: https://www.mers-servicerid.org/sis/.

Or you can also purchase a professional Securitization Audit, a Robo-Signing Check, or a Forensic Audit from Fraud Stoppers.

 

Who is the Investor?

There is a good chance Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac owns your loan.  If you can find your properties here, then you can present this as evidence that your servicer (so called “lender”) is not a real party of interest.  This is critical evidence to bring forth in your civil action.  You must include this as a claim in your suit.

To find out whether Fannie Mae owns your note, please come here.

Freddie Mac’s database is here.

IMPORTANT: DO THIS NOW.  Research whether these guys own your note.  If so, then you have a vital piece of evidence to present to the court.

Carpenter v.  Longan 83 US 271

Why is this so important?  This is a US Supreme Court ruling that says the Deed of Trust is the peripheral, and the Promissory Note is the “Thing”.  Imagine if you will, that the Deed of Trust is the tail, and the Promissory note is the dog.  He who owns the dog controls the tail.  He who controls the tail does not wag the dog.

Your lender will want to come in to lay claim on your title only showing ownership to the Deed of Trust without disclosing who the real and beneficial owner of the promissory note.  This is admissible unless you know to object.  If you quote this law when there is evidence of movement, then this will stop them in their tracks. Basically, it’s the same thing.  ”Show me you have subject matter jurisdiction over this controversy”, “show your proof of claim and title”.  He, who controls and owns the promissory note, controls the Deed of Trust.

 

Getting County Records:

Look, State Civil Code requires that every party of interest in your property must record their interest at County Records.  So, any loan assignments must be recorded.  Any notices must be recorded. To gather your evidence, you should head down to your local county recorder’s office and request for a complete printout of all recorded documents for your property from the date of subject loan.  Go down and talk to your county recorder.  They will usually be able to help you get the “title search dump”.  You don’t need certified copies.  Just the copies are fine, but it is a good idea to get all these documents handy so you can see what’s been recorded against your property.

What you are trying to find is instances where there is evidence of movement…i.e. the loan has been sold or securitized, but there was no corresponding evidence recorded at the County. So the next step is to go to the County Recorder’s Office for the DEED RECORDS and get a copy of every page of each document that is in the deed records of your home, since you got your last loan.

Print the Search Results, with your name as GRANTOR and GRANTEE, and your wife’s name as GRANTOR and GRANTEE, then search the property address, and print the search results.

Take your camera and take a picture of every page starting with the index or the cover page of your deed record file and save each picture by:

Yr-mo-day, YOUR LAST NAME, Name of Doc, Page of Doc:

[Example: 2013-07-04, Last Name, Original Deed of Trust received from ABC Brokers for Countrywide, 17 Pages]

You should end up with copies of your Original Warranty Deed, Deed of Trust (or Mortgage, as it is called in some states).

While looking at the Deed of Trust or Mortgage, click on the button or link for “RELATED DOCUMENTS” and print the search results, then get a copy of any “Assignments of Deed of Trust or Mortgage” and any “Releases of Liens”,” Appointments of Substitute Trustees”, “Trustee Deeds”, and Law Firm Letters, like Default or Acceleration Letters from Attorneys who are hired to collect the debts from you. Get a copy of everything in the file to the present date.

 

Calling a Title Company:

If you don’t want to do it yourself, then you can call a local Title company for a complete title research. A complete title research includes a report of all activities on your title from the date of sale.  They will also print copies of these documents for you.

 

Writing a Foreclosure Timeline:

A timeline is a chronological structure and is frequently the way cases are presented to juries and judges of fact. Visual representations are important and they make it easy to share the details of you case with others. It sometimes becomes the underlying foundation for the flow of all information related to a case. Therefore, it is important that care be given in the creation of visual timelines. Here is a Sample Timeline.

 

The Chain of Title & Securitization Analysis:

For those of you who do not have clear evidence of movement, for example, you closed with Countrywide and the loan got acquired by Bank of America.  Or your loan went through Chase and is now Chase is just a servicer, or GMAC (and GMAC is now servicing), then getting a Securitization Audit might be a way to go. Remember, as the Plaintiff, you have the burden of proof.

It will be like having a photo of a bank robber with a gun aimed at a teller.  It’s them caught with their hands in the cookie jar…and it puts opposing counsel in a position of having to explain to the judge why he should not be sanctioned for bringing fraud before the court. Fraud Stoppers Foreclosure Defense System includes one of the most powerful Chain of Title & Securitization Analysis available today. Banks hate it because it’s preformed by licensed professionals and includes the admissible evidence that you need to save your house from foreclosure. Banks HATE these because it exposes their fraud.

In today’s world of securitized residential mortgages, a Secured Mortgage Loan consists of two parts: (A) the financial obligation (created by the Tangible Promissory Note) which operates in accordance with Federal and State Law, and (B) an enforceable contractual lien instrument (i.e. Tangible Security Instrument, Mortgage, Deed of Trust) intended to provide an alternate method of collection of payment to the Holder of the financial instrument in accordance with State Law. In reviewing the transfer and ownership history of a Secured Mortgage Loan, one must evaluate the negotiation of the financial instrument and consider the laws applicable to the Security Instrument upon said negotiation of the financial instrument.

Our Competent Evidence Package looks at the true sequential ownership of a Securitized Mortgage Loan Security Instrument as evidenced by the documents related to the client’s property filed with the County Recorder’s Office, and compares it to the claims of ownership made by the party attempting to foreclose. The Competent Evidence Package shows what steps SHOULD have been taken in the securitization process in order to become a proper party to enforce the mortgage contract, according to both statutory and case l aw. More importantly, the Competent Evidence Package shows what steps were ACTUALLY taken in the securitization process, and what steps were NOT taken, and the results of these actions/inactions on the Chain of Title as shown by the County Records.

Many times clients and their attorneys lack competent evidence. The term “competent evidence” is used to refer to evidence that is directly relevant and of such nature that it can be admitted into evidence in a court of law. For a client considering going into litigation, a prior assessment of the potential violations surrounding the Chain of Tit le of a Securitized Mortgage Loan is a much-needed tool for determining whether there is a valid basis for proceeding with a legal action.

The goal is to arm one’s self with indisputable evidence so they may clearly and accurately demonstrate that the claims made by the foreclosing party may be inaccurate and/or fraudulent.  In addition to the written Chain of Title Analysis, our Investigators also create a customized infographic/flowchart/schematic to visually represent their findings regarding the path taken by the various parts of the client’s Mortgage Loan and the parties involved in the securitization process. This visual representation is invaluable in making the arguments indisputable and understandable to the clients, attorneys, and judges – A picture is truly worth a thousand words.

Now, let’s continue with a little role playing.

Opposing Counsel:”but Your Honor, the plaintiff has the burden of proof.  They are alleging that we sold the note.  Where’s the proof?”

You:”Your Honor, please see Exhibit C in our evidence as part of our initial complaint.  On Page X, you will find our loan listed as a permanent fixture in an SEC filing for the New York Mellons Bank Trust Series 1232342 REMIC in which this loan has been securitized.”

Judge: “Counsel, what do you have to say to that?”

Opposing Counsel:”I don’t know about this you’re Honor; I was informed by my client that they bought back the loan.”

You:  “Counsel, are you aware of FAS 140?  Under the Financial Accounting Standard 140, it says that once a loan has been sold into a pooling and servicing agreement, the lender forever loses control of the asset.”
“Are you aware that this loan is a permanent fixture of the New York Mellons Bank Trust Series 1232342 REMIC?”
“Where is the Chain of Title that gives your client the right to enforce the promissory note?”
“Are you aware that the promissory note has been discharged in the REMIC as a bad debt and that the individual share holders have received tax credit for this loss?”
“Are you aware that once a debt has been discharged, it loses its ability to collect?”
“Are you aware that your client bought the note as a discharged debt and an unsecured instrument?”

“I motion the court to have Counsel stipulate that you know with firsthand knowledge that the note has not been discharged as a non-performing asset. “If he cannot, then say… “I move the court to sanction opposing counsel for bringing fraud before the court.  Counsel misrepresents the facts in order to deceive the court.”

Keep in mind that the courts are absolutely corrupt and will try to rule against you at every opportunity. Therefore it is vital that you not only learn the rules of the game Jurisdictionary…but you must also learn how to land on them like a ton of bricks when they try to break the law and violate your legal rights!

FRAUD STOPPERS Private Members Association (PMA) has a PROVEN WAY to help you save time and money, and increase your odds of success, suing the banks for mortgage and foreclosure fraud.

Our primary focus is helping you get clear and marketable title to your property by arguing that the actions of the banks have made the security provisions of the mortgage/deed of trust unenforceable as a matter of law.

Take action right now and get the FACTS and EVIDENCE that you need to gain the legal remedy that  you deserve!

Stop Foreclosure, Sue for Breach of Contract 

Now is the perfect time to stand up for your legal rights and sue for beach of contract, mortgage fraud, and foreclosure fraud because the legal tide is beginning to turn, and homeowners are starting to win! In 2016 the California Supreme Court ruled in Yvanova v. New Century Mortgage Corporation (Case No. S218973, Cal. Sup. Ct. February 18, 2016) that homeowners have legal standing to challenge an assignment of the mortgage loan contract in an action for wrongful foreclosure on the grounds that the assignment(s) is/are void. Obviously if the court had ruled differently, the banks would have had carte blanche to forge mortgage assignments with wild abandon. In fact, without a system of endorsements and assignments it would be impossible to determine who has a legitimate interest in the property!

In THE PAPER CHASE: SECURITIZATION, FORECLOSURE, AND THE UNCERTAINTY OF MORTGAGE TITLE ADAM J. LEVITIN writes “the mortgage foreclosure crisis raises legal questions as important as its economic impact. Questions that were straightforward and uncontroversial a generation ago today threaten the stability of a $13 trillion mortgage market: Who has standing to foreclose? If a foreclosure was done improperly, what is the effect? And what is the proper legal method for transferring mortgages? These questions implicate the clarity of title for property nationwide and pose a too- big-to-fail problem for the courts.

The legal confusion stems from the existence of competing systems for establishing title to mortgages and transferring those rights. Historically, mortgage title was established and transferred through the “public demonstration” regimes of UCC Article 3 and land recordation systems. This arrangement worked satisfactorily when mortgages were rarely transferred. Mortgage finance, however, shifted to securitization, which involves repeated bulk transfers of mortgages.

Like many other cases, current trial court decisions are getting reversed because the courts are waking up to the reality of the rule of law. What they have been following is an off the books rule of “anything but a free house.” However a recent Yale Law Review Article eviscerates the assumptions of a free house for the homeowners and destroys the myth that somehow that policy has saved the nation. You can read the Yale Law Review article “In Defense of “Free Houses” for more information on this tide change.

To facilitate securitization, deal architects developed alternative “contracting” regimes for mortgage title: UCC Article 9 and MERS, a private mortgage registry. These new regimes reduced the cost of securitization by dispensing with demonstrative formalities, but at the expense of reduced clarity of title, which raised the costs of mortgage enforcement. This trade-off benefited the securitization industry at the expense of securitization investors because it became apparent only subsequently with the rise in mortgage foreclosures. The harm, however, has not been limited to securitization investors. Clouded mortgage title has significant negative externalities on the economy as a whole.

If your loan contains fraud or it was securitized then your lender may have breached your mortgage loan contract, and therefore your mortgage loan contract could be legally challenged in a court of law. If your mortgage loan contract is declared legally void, then any assignments of the mortgage loan contract, or subsequent assignments, could also be declared legally void.

Securitization is the process of taking an asset and transforming them into a security. A typical example of securitization is a mortgage-backed security (MBS), which is a type of asset-backed security that is secured by a collection of mortgages. Keep in mind that it is perfectly legal for banks to create mortgage-backed securities (MBS’s); however there are significant legal ramifications that will either harm you, or benefit you, depending on what actions you take in response to the fact that your mortgage or deed of trust is legally void resulting in your property, in reality, being unsecured, just like a unsecured credit card debt. What’s in your wallet?

This is why we recommend that you take immediate action and sue for the remedy the law entitles you to, and that you deserve. Treble damages and clear and free title to your home. Not sure if your loan contains mortgage fraud or if it was securitized, no problem, we will do a free mortgage fraud analysis and free Bloomberg securitization search for you.

Many of the programs that had modest success in the early days have fallen into disfavor as banks have enacted strategies to counter their progress. The banks are not going to go down without a serious fight. They have a large arsenal of tools to use, and the legal muscle to keep the industry off balance. This is not a static game. The reason that banks have been successful, for the most part, in protecting the large number of mortgages that were securitized is that there is an intricate web of legal theories that they hide behind to justify what they have done. In effect, they have created a shell game where the ball seems to move around in defiance of the laws of physics.

The banks are relying on a complex interaction between UCC 3 commercial paper law, UCC 9 securitization law, bailment law, agency law and local laws of the jurisdiction where the property is located. They would have us believe that what they have been doing since the 1970’s is perfectly legitimate. Many lawyers who have challenged the banks have gotten close to exposing the scheme only to find that judges retreat away from the complexity of the legal theories involved and fall back on procedural barriers under the auspices of protecting the equitable interests of the banks and their agents.

FRAUD STOPPERS Foreclosure Defense Program has moved the bar forward in many substantial ways:

• Our Private Administrative process is a targeted approach to Informal Discovery:
• 3-501. PRESENTMENT or States equivalent
• Mortgage Error Resolution/Request for Information: If you believe there is an error on your mortgage loan statement or you’d like to request information related to your mortgage loan servicing, you must exercise certain rights under Federal law related to resolving errors and requesting information about your mortgage loan. If you think your credit report, bill or your mortgage loan account contains an error, or if you need more information about your mortgage loan, you send a written letter concerning your error and/or request.
• Cutting edge mortgage fraud examination and court ready lawsuits and trial ready evidence to win your case
• Nationwide foreclosure defense attorneys and Pro Se litigation education and support products and services

Subsection of Presentment (example Covenant 8 of UCC3 Note) shows NOTE and under paragraph 1 states: “BORROWER’S PROMISE TO PAY: In return for a loan that I have received, I promise to pay….

MULTI STATE FIXED RATE NOTE–Single Family–Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac UNIFORM INSTRUMENT Form 3200 1/01 (page 1 of 3 pages) Covenant:

1. WAIVERS

I and any other person who has obligations under this Note waive the rights of Presentment and Notice of Dishonor. “Presentment” means the right to require the Note Holder to demand payment of amounts due. “Notice of Dishonor” means the right to require the Note Holder to give notice to other persons that amounts due have not been paid.

• 15 U.S. Code § 1692g – Validation of debts

Often a debt collector cannot validate a debt and therefore cannot legally enforce collections.

• Truth In Lending Act (TILA RESCISSION) codified in 12 CFR Part 226 (Regulation Z); particularly§ 226.34 Prohibited acts and §226.32 sub-paragraph (ii) et seq. predatory lending practices

A mortgage loan covered by the Truth in Lending Act may be rescinded by mailing a Rescission Letter to the purported lender, forcing the purported lender/creditor to oppose that rescission with a lawsuit within 20 days or lose all opposition rights.

• The primary focus of the legal aspect of our program revolves around taking the theories and best practices that have been most successful around the country and make refinements.

“Here, the specific defect alleged is that the attempted transfers were made after the closing date of the securitized trust holding the pooled mortgages and therefore the transfers were ineffective.

• Our program seeks to avoid getting mired in the complexity of the various areas of law involved, instead focusing on a simple, focused approach that makes it harder for judges to avoid the strength of our core arguments.

• The PMA trustees and executive team have a diverse set of skills and significant experience in the core areas that will improve the success factors for our operations.

We have spent an exhaustive amount of time analyzing all of the cases that have been successful in resolving mortgage securitization problems. We have designed our legal information litigation strategy to hit the banks hard and fast where they are most vulnerable.

Our primary focus is on getting clear and marketable title to the property by arguing that the actions of the banks have made the security provisions of the mortgage/deed of trust unenforceable.

Instead of fighting the foreclosure itself head-on, we argue that none of the banks or their agents has the right to enforce the foreclosure provisions of the Mortgage/Deed of Trust. In effect, if none of the banks have standing to enforce the foreclosure provision, we are entitled AS A MATTER OF LAW to a declaratory judgment of Breach of Contract (Security Agreement) that is res judicata, i.e., a permanent ban on foreclosure.

The Stand & Fight Program is a complete program that provides you with everything you need:

• Administrated Process
• Court Ready Chain of Title Investigation and Signed Affidavit
• Complaint along with all exhibits
• Legal Research
• Legal Briefs
• Motions
• Answers
• Interrogatories
• Depositions
• Case Management for Local Civil Rules of Procedures
• Training and Support

Take action right now and get the FACTS and HELP that you need to gain the legal remedy that the law entitles you to, and that you deserve!

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