Banking Misconduct Blog

A three judge federal appeals panel tossed a lawsuit by a borrower against Wells Fargo. Last month the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit originally filed in state court. The case impacts other borrowers who want to sue their bank but waited until after their...

In 1946, Jimmy Stewart starred in one of the great classic movies, It’s a Wonderful Life. His character was the head of a small local bank. 70 years later, that movie is still played every year at Christmas. One of the great scenes takes place in the bank’s board room. (I won’t...

Curt Schilling is a household name in New England. A former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, Schilling helped lead three different Major League Baseball teams to the World Series. After retiring in 2008, Schilling went on to start a video game company. That is where this sad tail...

The year was 2006, the economy was booming and many thought the real estate market still had years more of growth. Promoters like Carlton Cabot and Tony Thompson were pushing a unique investment called a “tenant-in-common” or TIC investment. TICs took advantage of a 2002 IRS revenue...

Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo thought Daniel Fernandes Roho Filho was the perfect customer. He was rich and had lots of cash to deposit. Often banks turn a blind eye to the business activities of customers, especially when they believe them to be billionaires.
In 2009, the feds...

We sue banks for a living but its not an easy job. The laws are stacked in favor of the banks. And because most loan documents specify where suits must be brought, the banks can pick the states with the most favorable laws and bank friendly courts. Twice in recent weeks we wrote about cases in...

Banks have deep pockets and a tremendous amount of leverage. If you want to modify the terms of a loan, banks require borrowers to execute a loan modification agreement. Those agreements almost always contain language that says the borrowers waive all defenses they have against the bank. Is that...

Wells Fargo is still reeling after a Houston jury slapped the company with a $5.4 million judgment. The jury ruled against the bank and its mortgage servicer in residential foreclosure case involving a Texas couple. The bank had originally sued for foreclosure but the couple shot back with their...

One of the most powerful civil fraud statutes on the books is RICO – the Racketeer and Corrupt Organizations Act. Passed in 1970, the law was designed to pursue the Mafia. These days, the law can be used to prosecute many different types of wrongdoers, although most lawyers don’t...

Like many Americans, I have been a victim of identity theft. Actually, I am one of those very unlucky folks who have been victimized multiple times. As a former law enforcement officer, I was able to do my own investigation and determine who stole my identity. Those fraudsters were never...