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Missouri Attorney General Settles "Robosigning" Case
On August 2, the Missouri Attorney General (AG) and the parent company of indicted firm DocX LLC announced a settlement of the state’s criminal allegations that the company engaged in so-called "robosigning." In his February indictment, the AG alleged that DocX (i) directed employees to falsely sign mortgage documents in the names of various bank vice presidents without proper authorization, (ii) falsely notarized the forged documents, and (iii) subsequently filed the documents in courthouses across the state. Pursuant to the agreement, DocX agreed to pay a $1.5 million fine plus fees and costs of the investigation, and will continue to cooperate with the AG’s office as it pursues criminal charges against the company’s former president.
Arizona Attorney General Settles Action Against Internet Payday Loan Lead Generator
On July 30, Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne announced an agreement with an Internet lead generator that requires the firm to halt operations through which it solicited information on behalf of payday lenders. Under state law, lenders have been prohibited from offering payday loans to Arizona consumers since July 2010. The Attorney General alleged that the settling company operated a website that collected Arizona consumers’ personal information and then sold that information to payday lenders who subsequently offered illegal payday loans to those consumers. While the agreement requires that the lead generator cease collecting and transmitting consumer information in connection with any type of consumer loan, it does not include any monetary payment beyond attorney fees.
Delaware AG Settles Case Against Electronic Mortgage Registry
On July 13, Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden announced a settlement of the state’s lawsuit against a national electronic mortgage registry. The state alleged that the registry system created inaccurate and unreliable records that undermined chain of title in that state. Under the agreement, the registry has agreed to (i) maintain a database that allows homeowners to clearly see who owns the mortgage and who services the loan, (ii) record assignments of mortgages with the county Recorder of Deeds Office before a foreclosure can proceed, (iii) not foreclose in its name for the next five years, (iv) audit its records for accuracy and report results to the Attorney General, and (v) increase oversight and training, including annual examinations of documents signed by employees of its 25 largest members to check the identity and authority of the person who signed the documents. These steps are consistent with those already taken by the registry nationally, and the agreement does not include any monetary payment.
State Law Update: Hawaii and California Take Actions on Mortgages and Privacy
California AG Announces Privacy Enforcement Unit. On July 19, California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced the creation of the Privacy Enforcement and Protection Unit. The unit will combine the various existing privacy functions of the California Department of Justice to centrally enforce and protect consumer privacy. The unit will pursue civil prosecution of state and federal privacy laws regulating the collection, retention, disclosure, and destruction of private or sensitive information by individuals, organizations, and the government. These include laws relating to cyber privacy, financial privacy, identity theft, and data breaches, among others. The new unit will reside within the eCrime Unit, which was created in December 2011 to identify and prosecute identity theft crimes, cyber-crimes and other crimes involving the use of technology.
California Expands Servicemember Protections. On July 13, California enacted AB 2476, which expands the period of time during which servicemembers are protected from high interest rates. Under current law, a creditor cannot charge, during a servicemember’s period of military service, an interest rate in excess of 6% on any obligation or liability incurred by a servicemember before that person’s entry into service. The bill expands the interest rate protections to prevent an increase in any such rate on a mortgage, trust deed, or other security in the nature of a mortgage for one year after the period of military service.
Hawaii Enacts Multiple Mortgage-Related Bills and Legislation to Protect Personal Information. Recently, Hawaii enacted a set of bills related to mortgage origination and servicing. With regard to mortgage origination, S.B. 2763 amends the state SAFE Act to reflect changes to the federal law and to adjust originator registration fees. With regard to mortgage servicers, H.B. 2502 allows the Commissioner of Financial Institutions to require registration with the NMLS and makes it unlawful for a servicer to provide loan modifications without first complying with certain licensing requirements. Another bill, H.B. 1875 makes numerous changes to the state’s foreclosure laws, largely implementing recommendations from the Mortgage Foreclosure Task Force created by the state legislature in 2010. Finally, with regard to mortgages, H.B. 2375 establishes criminal penalties for certain violations of the state’s Mortgage Rescue Fraud Prevention Act. Hawaii also recently enacted S.B. 2419, which prohibits businesses from scanning a customer’s identification card or driver’s license with an electronic device capable of obtaining information electronically encoded on that identification card, except for specific purposes.
DOJ Finalizes Settlement Over Bank's Mortgage Lending Practices
On July 12, the DOJ announced a settlement with a national bank to resolve allegations that the bank engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against qualified African-American and Hispanic borrowers in its mortgage lending from 2004 through 2009. Pursuant to a consent decree awaiting approval by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the bank will pay $125 million in compensation to wholesale borrowers who, the DOJ alleges, were steered into subprime mortgages or who paid higher fees and rates because of their race or national origin, and $50 million in direct down payment assistance to borrowers in communities identified by the DOJ as having large numbers of discrimination victims. In addition to the combined $175 million payment, the bank also agreed to separately compensate individual African-American and Hispanic borrowers identified through an internal review of its retail mortgage lending operations. Finally, the agreement will subject the bank to other compliance, training, recordkeeping, and monitoring requirements. In addition to resolving the federal allegations, the consent decree resolves a fair lending suit based on similar allegations brought by the Illinois Attorney General. The DOJ’s Fair Lending Unit in the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Illinois Attorney General to obtain this agreement. The Fair Lending unit was established in 2010, and since that time has filed a complaint in or resolved 19 matters, a pace far surpassing that of previous years. This matter also is the most recent to be concluded under President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, an interagency effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.
Special Alert Update: Portions of California's "Homeowner Bill of Rights" Signed Into Law
As an update to a development we reported last week, on July 11, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law two bills that form part of the state's proposed "Homeowner Bill of Rights." Effective January 1, 2013, the two substantively identical bills will (i) codify a number of protections similar to those contained in the Multistate Servicer Settlement between 49 state attorneys general, the Federal Government, and the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers announced on February 9, (ii) amend the mechanics of California’s foreclosure processes, and (iii) provide borrowers with new private rights of action. Several other parts of the Bill of Rights remain pending, as described in a fact sheet prepared by the California Attorney General.
West Virginia AG Reaches Settlement with Debt Collection Firm
On July 3, West Virginia Attorney General (AG) Darrell McGraw announced that his office had reached an agreement with a debt collection firm for allegedly engaging in unlawful and threatening debt collection practices and attempting to collect debts without being properly licensed. Under the terms of the settlement, the company will be required to pay $1.7 million in refunds and cancelled debts to 124 West Virginians. The AGs Consumer Protection Division started investigating the company in January 2012 after receiving a complaint about its debt collection practices. According to the AGs investigation, the debt collection firm engaged in a pattern of abusive collection methods which included threatening to arrest consumers for non-payment of debts.
State Law Update: NAAG to Focus on Privacy; Vermont, Connecticut, Oklahoma Make E-Commerce Changes
Incoming NAAG President to Focus on Privacy Issues. On June 22, after being elected president of the National Association of State Attorneys General (NAAG), Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler announced a year-long Presidential Initiative titled “Privacy in the Digital Age.” The Initiative will explore the best ways to manage consumer privacy risks in light of “emerging technologies and business models” that are challenging consumers’ ability to control their personal information. Through the Initiative, state Attorneys General will attempt to ensure that “the Internet’s major players protect online privacy and provide meaningful options for privacy control” to consumers.
Two States Expand Data Breach Notification Requirements. Recently, Connecticut and Vermont altered state requirements for firms experiencing a data breach to report the breach. Connecticut’s revision – in the state’s annual budget bill, House Bill 6001 – expanded existing breach notification provisions to include notification to the state attorney general and takes effect October 1, 2012. Vermont amended, in House Bill 254, its breach notice law to require consumer notice of a security breach within 45 days and notification to the attorney general within 14 days of discovery of the incident. The Vermont requirement was effective as of May 8, 2012.
Oklahoma High Court Approves Rules for Electronic Filing and Signatures. On June 21, the Supreme Court of Oklahoma issued new state court rules governing the electronic filing of court documents in that state. These rules apply to a new statewide electronic management system that will replace the mix of electronic and paper-based record systems previously used in Oklahoma. Among other things, the rules provide for the use of electronic signatures where any statute or court rule requires a person’s signature in an Oklahoma state court. Like the new electronic system, the new rules will be phased in gradually; they become effective in each district and appellate court at the time the Oklahoma Unified Case Management System is implemented in that court.
How to Respond to a Subpoena: 10 Things You Should Do Immediately
Responding to a subpoena can be a daunting task and early missteps can have severe repercussions. Here is a short list of critical steps you can take in the early stages of the subpoena response to protect your company.
- Preserve. Preserve. Preserve. Immediately upon receipt of a subpoena, you should inform all necessary employees of the need to retain documents, including electronic documents, with a document hold memo that replaces standard document retention policies for potentially responsive materials. Destroying or removing documents in the context of a government investigationwhether done affirmatively or by failing to suspend automated document retention protocolsmay be viewed as obstruction of justice. At the very least, it will create the appearance of an unwillingness to cooperate with the investigation.
- Establish a dialogue with the appropriate enforcement authorities. Communication is critical to understanding the scope of the investigation and establishing a working relationship with the government. You should initiate contact quickly to discuss the scope of the subpoena and develop a feasible production schedule.
- Inform the companys key executives. Receiving a subpoena is no small matter and, depending on the nature of the subpoena and potential enforcement action, the key executives and even the board of directors need to be made aware immediately. This is especially important if your company is publicly traded as there may be disclosure obligations.
- Determine whether the subpoena was properly served. Not all subpoenas are properly served and improper service may provide valid grounds to get the subpoena quashed. You should quickly evaluate the basis upon which the subpoena was issued and served to determine whether to object or take other action.
- Advise employees of their rights and responsibilities, including access to counsel. Either at the time the subpoena is initially served or in follow up activities, agents may attempt to interview employees. It is important to remind employees immediately of their responsibility to be truthful when speaking with agents of the government, but that they may choose to have an attorney present if they do decide to be interviewed. You should also reiterate your companys policy on cooperating with investigations and request that employees inform the legal department of any discussions or contacts with the government.
- Evaluate your insurance policys notice requirements. Under many insurance policies, a subpoena is a triggering event. Putting your policy holder on notice early on increases your chances of having insurance pay for some or all of the investigation and/or litigation costs.
- Identify key company individuals. Identifying which individuals within the company are key to the subpoena response will help determine and potentially limit the overall scope of documents you are required to produce. Seeking to narrow or tailor the scope of a subpoena is an important early step in the response process.
- Narrow file search parameters. Once the key individuals are identified, you can then identify electronic and paper files that must be collected and searched. Fulfilling the governments request but not producing irrelevant or privileged documents requires a precisely-tailored search protocol.
- Protect and defend privileged materials. Protecting and defending privileged materials is a cornerstone responsibility of corporate counsel. Documents subject to privileges or protections should be isolated, logged, and preserved. While there are remedies available for inadvertently-produced privileged materials, no one wants to be in the position of having to seek return of a privileged document.
- Construct a formal, defensible review process. You should construct a formal review process that can be defended in court, with a focus on e-discovery issues. It is advisable to have your response protocol evaluated by outside legal counsel early in the process to ensure that all potential sources of electronic data have been identified and searched.
This post adapted from the article, 10 Steps Your Company Should Take When Responding to a Subpoena by Ben Klubes, James Parkinson, and John Kromer, originally published in Bloomberg Law Reports: Banking & Finance, Vol. 4, No. 8, August 1, 2011.
Federal Court Approves Multi-Party Mortgage Servicing Settlement
On April 5, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia approved the consent orders that comprise the previously announced settlement of various government probes, including investigations and inquiries by numerous federal regulators and 49 state Attorneys General, into alleged mortgage-related violations by five large mortgage servicers.