LOVE this GA judge - stands up for homeowner against bank, and rips the bank a new one.

[ehrnst]

Otis Phillips sues U.S. Bank for refusing to work with him to modify his mortgage to avoid foreclosure - as they were required to on all their mortgages when they took HAMP money from the government. They then asked for a dismissal of the case, because they claim that they 'can't be sued."

The judge denied their request for dismissal with a deliciously snarky ruling. Here are some highlights:

"Sometimes, only the courts of law stand to protect the taxpayer. Somewhere, someone has to stand up. Well, sometimes is now, and the place is the Great State of Georgia."

"A cynical judge might think that, if the guidelines clearly prevented Mr. Phillips from getting his modification, then U.S. Bank would have trotted out that fact in mathematic equations, pie charts, and bar graphs, all on 8 by 10 glossy photo paper, with circles and arrows and paragraphs on the back explaining each winning number. (with apologies to Arlo Guthrie, Alice's Restaurant). U.S. Bank's silence on this issue might heighten the suspicions of such a cynical jurist. I, on the other hand, am sure nothing of that sort could be true. Maybe U.S. Bank no longer has any of the $20 billion dollars left, and so their lack of written explanation might be attributed so some kind of ink reduction program to save money. I'm sure that there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for why U.S. Bank will not print out the ONE page of figures to show Mr. Phillip's financials compared to the HAMP guidelines to clear this all up."

"Clearly, U.S. Bank cannot take the money, contract with our government to provide a service to the taxpayer, violate that agreement, then say no one on earth can sue them for it. That is not the law in Georgia."


http://www.scribd.com/doc/72722629/Us-Bank-Opinion

Edited for typos.

[Fumesucker]

1. You can get anything you want..

:rofl:

Good on the judge..!!!!

[ellie]

2. Love it!

Especially the Alice's Restaurant reference.

[HillWilliam]

3. Awesome ruling

Having grown up under the guidance of a southern Steel Magnolia mother, I can spot the words of someone else who grew up the same way. My mom was also a Grand Inquisitor and would quickly flay the BS from any excuse we could put up for trying to pull a fast one. (Then again, she worked in consumer credit for 30 years and could spot BS at 50 yards.)

Oh, yeah, I can feel the verbal spankin' in the ruling :)

[MadrasT]

4. I heart this judge. So much WIN! (n/t)

[Laelth]

5. For some reason, I can't download and read the Judge's Order.

Can someone please tell me which Judge issued this Order? And which judicial circuit the Order is from?

Thanks in advance.

-Laelth

[malthaussen]

6. Dennis Blackmon,

... Superior Court of Carroll County.

I love point 4:

"Georgia law allows claims for breach of a duty of good faith and fair dealing. Here, there are two contracts, the SPA and the loan with Mr. Phillips. U.S. Bank, like all parties to any contract, has a duty of good faith and fair dealing. While difficult to define, jurors know good faith and fair dealing when they see it, and jurors can spot absence of same."

One of the fundamental problems in the U.S. is the simple fact that we fail to enforce laws we have already made, and fail in our duty of good faith and fair dealing.

-- Mal