WHAT CORRUPTION ?

From: http://www.geocities.com/jurisnot/

RESPAgate exposed: NY lawyers, lenders, title cos. plead guilty to kickback conspiracy - (Jan 25 2006) New York authorities investigating a convoluted kickback scheme have followed the money to a ‘slush fund’ established by a local law firm to give kickbacks to lenders in exchange for referrals. The conspiracy, which also involved two title companies and three shell settlement services firms, has resulted in a volley of criminal felony and RESPA charges being issued against three attorneys and a former Fleet Mortgage and CTX Mortgage executive. All have pleaded guilty and now face penalties of up to 35 years in prison and millions of dollars in potential fines. 2) (Score: 720) Oklahoma legislature to consider Real Estate Settlement Practices Act' - (Jan 24 2006) Oklahoma legislators have declared an emergency in the way the state governs the real estate settlement process, and have thus introduced a new bill that would enact the “Real Estate Settlement Practices Act.” The bill would adopt “significant reforms” in the settlement process and also incorporate the “gist” of the federal RESPA law into the state law to allow the Insurance Commissioner greater powers of enforcement. 3) (Score: 771) RESPA case round-up: Key court rulings of 2005 - (Jan 18 2006) Courts across the nation ruled on several contentions RESPA cases in 2005, so now we’re bringing you three recent decisions that you might have missed. These cases involve courts from New York to Pennsylvania to Mississippi, involve mortgage brokers, settlement companies and major lenders such as Fairbanks Capital Corp. and Chase Manhattan Mortgage, and include charges ranging from RESPA and TILA to RICO and anti-trust laws. Read on for an in-depth look at how RESPA has been playing out in the federal courts. 4) (Score: 748) ALTA warns HUD that RESPA enforcement Web site may be bad idea - (Jan 18 2006) “We are concerned that the Web site may become a vehicle that leads to HUD investigations where there may be no real basis for such an investigation,” said Charlene Nieman, ALTA Grassroots & PAC manager. 5) (Score: 705) Hawaii regulators investigate Prudential's friendly' Wells Fargo party - (Jan 13 2006) Hawaii state regulators are investigating Prudential Locations LLC for a 2003 party the company threw whose attendees included agents that referred at least $1 million in business to Wells Fargo. Prudential settled RESPA violations stemming from the bash with HUD in September. 6) (Score: 756) Colorado lenders put industry to RESPA test - (Jan 11 2006) The Colorado Mortgage Lenders Association is touting a new RESPA refresher course they have created for mortgage and real estate professionals to test their knowledge of the federal regulations and protect themselves against HUD’s heightened crackdown on RESPA violators. 7) (Score: 753) Exclusive! New RESPA courtroom curveballs cripple Kruse - (Jan 11 2006) You may have thought that after the Second and Third Circuit Courts released their controversial rulings in the two most recent RESPA markup cases, their stories would end there. That is not the case, however, as new information has recently surfaced which throws those decisions into a whole new light. In Kruse v. Wells Fargo, a startling revelation has turned the markup case on its head, and left the plaintiffs’ counsel scrambling for a leg to stand on. You don’t want to miss this exclusive report. 8) (Score: 756) 2006: The year of RESPA reform? - (Jan 4 2006) While the settlement services industry experienced a highly-regulated year in 2005, many of the legislative issues raised last year that didn't come to fruition could make headlines in 2006. Will we finally see reform happen this year? Where is HUD headed with their enforcement efforts? What cases will bear watching and what topics will dominate the conversation? Read on for our preview of the key RESPA issues to keep an eye on as the new year moves into high-gear. 9) (Score: 775) Top RESPA stories that rocked 2005 - (Dec 28 2005) The RESPA world saw a lot of action this year, with HUD settlement announcements, court case updates and reform roundtable reports coming in fast and furious. But what events and alerts made the biggest industry waves? Here, we list the top RESPA stories of 2005, as selected by you, our reader. Wondering what news topped the charts each month? Read on to make sure you don’t miss any of the hottest RESPA news of the year. 10) (Score: 763) RESPA whistleblower finds no recourse after being fired for reporting company to HUD - (Dec 21 2005) What happens when a loan officer reports his own company to HUD for violating RESPA, and his company finds out about it and fires him? In a case recently decided by the Michigan Court of Appeals, the loan officer sued his company for wrongful termination, but the courts ruled that he was not protected from retaliation. Why? Find out what happened in this exclusive true story of RESPA reporting gone wrong. 11) (Score: 724) HUD settles kickback charges with nine Tennessee builders for $226,000 - (Dec 20 2005) HUD claimed the nine, collectively known as "Title Group Builders," received payments from First American (dba Memphis Title) for settlement services that were allegedly never performed. The $226,000 settlement follows HUD’s $680,000 settlement with First American over these charges in July. 12) (Score: 771) Review: RESPA packs powerful regulatory punch in 2005 - (Dec 14 2005) Like King Kong smashing through the streets of New York, RESPA has emerged from the jungle to loom large over the industry this year. With HUD stomping on RESPA violators across the country, courts playing host to numerous class action cases, and reform talks stirring up strong industry sentiments on the statute, it’s clear that RESPA was 2005’s 1000-pound gorilla. Read on as we track the movements of the regulatory beast. 13) (Score: 767) Ohio RESPA case takes startling turn as Tower City Title rebuts sham AfBA claims - (Dec 7 2005) A new twist has cropped up in the Ohio case of Shahan v. Tower City Title, as the plaintiffs appear to have backpedaled on their original claim of a sham AfBA between a mortgage broker and Tower City, after it was pointed out that they were the sellers in the transaction, and thus had no mortgage or mortgage broker. The plaintiffs now seem to be focusing their case on Tower City’s relationship with First American, and making RESPA claims that Tower City says are bogus. 14) (Score: 710) New Web site touts joint marketing feature for mortgage, title, real estate companies - (Dec 7 2005) 123 Main Street claims that their “RESPA-compliant” Web site model will allow mortgage and title companies to list their names on real estate listing sites to gain exposure to customer markets. 15) (Score: 698) Can a mortgage company contribute money or door prizes to a Realtor's customer appreciation party? - (Dec 7 2005) 16) (Score: 755) NAR turns up the heat on RESPA awareness - (Dec 6 2005) The National Association of Realtors has launched a multi-faceted RESPA awareness campaign to give their members guidance on compliance, and is now adding four new tools to their RESPA information arsenal. 17) (Score: 771) RESPA case against ABN AMRO, Countrywide, homebuilder and title cos. heats up - (Nov 30 2005) A new set of plaintiffs has filed a class action suit claiming RESPA and TILA violations in connection with a mortgage broker who allegedly accepted “excessive, undisclosed and fraudulently-concealed” kickbacks disguised as real estate commissions from an Oklahoma homebuilder, two mortgage companies, and two title company subsidiaries of Chicago Title and Old Republic Title. A separate case on the same allegations has been pending in Oklahoma courts for two years, with the provisions of the RESPA rule taking a beating in both. 18) (Score: 720) Can a mortgage company screen and pre-qualify buyers for FSBOs in exchange for leads? - (Nov 29 2005) 19) (Score: 695) Nevada mortgage regulators suggest new AfBA disclosure - (Nov 23 2005) Nevada examiners are reportedly suggesting that a Dual Capacity Disclosure, required when a mortgage originator also acts as a real estate agent in a transaction, must be executed in any loan transaction involving an affiliated business entity under RESPA. 20) (Score: 744) Fountainhead Title settles joint RESPA class actions for $2 million - (Nov 18 2005) Maryland-based Fountainhead Title has settled two class action suits for a total of $2 million, ending a string of RESPA litigation over alleged sham affiliated business arrangements that has been plaguing the company since 2003. The current settlement follows one made in 2004 over two other class actions. Read our complete, in-depth story on the cases here. 1 through 20 of about 595 matches. Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 http://www.respareform.com/cgi-bin/texis/scripts/respareform-search/search.html