(BREAKING NEWS, OP-ED)– The author of this post is a paralegal and consultant to attorneys on foreclosure defense and consumer issues. The case posited above is for your educational benefit only and any commentary presented here does not portend to convey any legal advise whatsoever.
The U.S. District Courts never cease to amaze this author given the blatant facts and allegations presented by the Plaintiff (Gross) in his FCRA case against CitiMortgage, Inc. The lower court justices nearly always rule for the banks no matter what. Could it be because the federal judges are vested in these banks and are conflicted out? This is why Judicial Watch puts out a list of financial records (those that have been obtained) of the federal court system’s judges’ for all to see and review (at the following link): https://www.judicialwatch.org/judge . And the cause and effect situation expressed here is exactly why we have appellate courts. The downside to this equation is the amount of money the Plaintiff had to spend litigating it before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
CASE NOTES
Understand that Gross (the Plaintiff) lost his home to foreclosure and to add insult to injury, Defendant CitiMortgage, Inc. (as the second lien holder in a deed of trust state) used the three major credit bureaus as a punching bag against Gross, tagging his credit reports with erroneous, derogatory trade line items showing Gross being multiple times delinquent when in fact, the second mortgage was extinguished in the foreclosure under Arizona law. Gross challenged Citi’s behavior after disputing it with the three credit bureaus, all of which supported Citi’s continued erroneous reporting of derogatory information on Gross’s credit reports. The lower court dismissed all other defendants from the suit except Citi and then ruled in Citi’s favor. Gross then appealed the matter to the Ninth Circuit.
This 13-page ruling goes into great detail on the purpose of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and what it allows a consumer to do in the way of litigation. The author found this case useful in providing enough detail to overcome a 12(b)(6) dismissal in the way that prima facie evidence is discovered or provided at the onset of the case. The case was reversed and remanded back for a jury trial. Thus, the U.S. District Court judge in this case (Roslyn O. Silver) is going to have to deal with it the way it should have been done in the first place.
AUTHOR’S COMMENTARY
The author specifically wrote a book called The Credit Restoration Primer (now in its 5th Edition) for a reason. It is still highly likely that 85% of information being reported on a consumer’s credit report is erroneous and disputable under the law. This is why the author also included all of the dispute letters he used to rid his credit file of unwanted and erroneous information so as to further his future exploits.
It is sad that the banks and third-party debt collectors continue to beat up on consumers like they do, given the fact America is facing a “social credit scoring system” if the current powers that be continue to push their liberal, leftist, Marxist policies. Italy is already in the process of implementing such a system and this will not bode well for those under its iron fist.
Given the current scenarios, it would be wise to check on your credit reports often (pull them twice a year) and make sure that all negative information is disputed, especially if it’s erroneous. In Gross’s case, he was trying to get another mortgage and Citi’s erroneous and derogatory information plagued any attempts by him to “move forward” after the loss of his property. While this case certainly serves as a learning curve, it also presents a sad history of how the banks continually screw consumers at every turn, when “we” all just want to “get ahead in life”.
On another note, according to recent reports, GenZ’ers are getting themselves into a lot of credit card debt, all this in the face of not wanting to work and live at home with their parents. This author could only wonder what mommy and daddy would say when the dunning phone calls start coming during the dinner hour about junior’s delinquent credit card bills. With the rising cost of homeownership and rising mortgage interest rates, this stupid reliance on credit cards to finance these impudent pups’ spending habits are likely to implode and wreak future havoc on American society. No pot to piss in and yet they all vote for politicians that give them handouts from a government that was not designed to give handouts.
The author is a nationally-syndicated talk show host on The Power Hour. See him live at the Clay Clark’s Reawaken America Tour in Myrtle Beach, SC by clicking on this link!
Clouded Titles Blog 