<snip>
The banks have other problems. As the foreclosure mills come under scrutiny, they are privy to a lot of information that can hurt the banks, and may try to bargain for their lives. In this case, foreclosure mill Ben-Ezra & Katz is essentially holding Chase foreclosure documents, including notes, for ransom.
Chase Home Finance has filed a federal lawsuit against its former legal counsel, Ben-Ezra & Katz, accusing the firm of refusing to hand over foreclosure case files that contain over $400 million worth of original notes and mortgages “without which Chase will be unable to proceed with any of the pending cases.”
In the 11-page lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in Fort Lauderdale, Chase asked for a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction ordering the firm to return the files and pay Chase an unspecified amount of damages.
During its two-year contract with Chase, the law firm handled thousands of foreclosures throughout the state. According to the lawsuit, the contract requires the firm to immediately transfer case filees when the contract ends. Chase has made “repeated demands” for its files but “Ben-Ezra has not returned or released any of the Chase files.”
“Ben-Ezra refuses to release the Chase Files because it claims that it is owed over $5 million in fees and costs,” according to the lawsuit. Although Chase disputes the amount it owes the firm, it has offered to post a $2.8 million bond as security.
Now THAT could get interesting. The foreclosure mills are bottom feeders, and they have possession of a lot of incriminating material.
<snip>
From:
Investor Lawsuits Provide Gateway to Foreclosure Fraud AccountabilityBy: David Dayen
Tuesday March 29, 2011 3:12 pm
Link:
http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/03/29/investor-lawsuits-provide-gateway-to-foreclosure-fraud-accountability/:kick:
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