A recent New York court decision has cleared the way for lenders to seek recovery against non-recourse carve-out, or “bad boy,” guarantors during a pending mortgage foreclosure action if a borrower files for bankruptcy. In so doing, the court answered a question that, surprisingly, was thus far apparently unanswered in a reported decision in New York: whether New York’s “one action rule” under RPAPL § 1301 bars a lender from obtaining a money judgment against a “bad boy” guarantor for the debt if a mortgage borrower files for bankruptcy while a foreclosure action is underway.
A long-standing legal principle is that liens pass through bankruptcy unaffected. Like every general rule, however, this tenet has exceptions.
In our last post, we gave a broad overview of Missouri receivership law and why it needs to change. In the next two posts, we’ll dive deeper, provide background on receiverships, and detail specific reforms that could provide much-needed updates to the process.
Types of receiverships
The Bottom Line
- FCCPA: lender may offset judgment for violations of FCCPA against amounts owing on pre-petition bankruptcy claim - In re Claudia Acosta-Garriga, No. 8:12-cv-00731-SDM (M.D. Fla.
- Foreclosure: an attorney may file a nonresident cost bond on behalf of a client without violating the prohibition against an attorney's acting as a surety for his client – US Bank, N.A. v. Boyer, No. 2D12-3942 (Fla.
In the Matter of: Village at Camp Bowie I, L.P., No. 12-10271 (5th Cir., Feb. 26, 2013)
CASE SNAPSHOT
In re Miller, 2013 WL 425342 (6th Cir. Feb. 5, 2013)
CASE SNAPSHOT
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the secured lender’s credit bid, which equaled the total debt owed on two properties but exceeded the value of the only foreclosed property involved in the sheriff’s sale, extinguished the entire debt. The court affirmed the order to lift the automatic stay only to require the lender to dismiss the second foreclosure action, release the promissory note and mortgage, and turn over the second property to the borrower free and clear.
Secured lenders often resort to non-judicial foreclosure sales of personal property upon a borrower’s default. Article 9, Part 6 of the Uniform Commercial Code requires that every aspect of such a sale must be commercially reasonable. However, the courts have historically provided little guidance as to what exactly constitutes a commercially reasonable sale. Fortunately, the Delaware Chancery Court recently issued a decision, entitled Edgewater Growth Capital Partners, L.P. v. H.I.G. Capital, Inc., C.A. No. 3601-CS (Del.Ch. Apr.
On April 15, Freddie Mac issued Bulletin Number 2013-6, which announces numerous revisions to servicing requirements. The bulletin updates the allowable amounts for attorney fees for default-related legal services and details changes to the reimbursement process for such fees. Freddie Mac also reminds servicers about changes to foreclosure sale bidding on first lien mortgages.