New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman

When Eric Schneiderman took over as New York attorney general, he learned that banks wanted “as broad of a release as possible that grants them immunity from all of their alleged misconduct… [including] things that created the bubble in the housing market and brought about the crash,” he told City & State magazine. And when the newly appointed attorney general sat down with federal agencies, he realized there was a lot that could be done if their offices collaborated, and they began talking about the possibilities of a joint investigation. [more]

AG Eric Schneiderman

[Updated at 1.30 p.m.] Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has filed a lawsuit against some of the nation’s largest banks charging that the use of a national Mortgage Electronic Registry System called MERS has led to deceptive and fraudulent foreclosure filings in New York state and federal courts, his office announced today.

The lawsuit alleges that, as a result of the system, employees and agents of Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo have submitted court documents containing false or misleading information that made it appear that the foreclosing party had the authority to bring a case when it didn’t. The system has also made it impossible for the general public to reach property transfers through public records, as the information is now stored on a private database. [more]

Clockwise from top left: Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, 346 East 119th Street and Ruthann Richert, senior vice president of Perry Associates RealtyNew York state Attorney General is facing a lawsuit from East Harlem’s Sedona condominium, alleging he improperly fined the developers after the offering plan for the newly constructed property expired.

According to the lawsuit, the offering plan for the 11-unit property at 346 East 119th Street, was filed with the AG in November 2009. The developers sold five units at the property between March and October 2010, and the first amendment to the offering plan was filed in May 20, 2010, declaring the plan effective.

When a plan is declared effective, the developers, 346 E119 Associates, can begin closing sales for apartments that are under contract with a buyer. The development group is led by Ruthann Richert, senior vice president at Perry Associates Realty. [more]

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman made his first appearance on the “Rachel Maddow Show” on MSNBC last night to speak about his role in negotiating a settlement between the states and banks over mortgage abuses, the New York Observer reported (see video clip above). Schneiderman was removed as a leader of the panel negotiating with the banks in August because he opposed giving the banks immunity over further litigation. “This was a man-made crisis,” he told Maddow. “It was created by regulatory neglect and greed. We have to hold accountable the people who caused this disaster.” [more]

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and the Apthorp

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has shut down the sales office at the Apthorp, fined the developers $190,000 and ordered rescission for all contracted buyers following an investigation into misleading statements made to the AG months before they filed suit to block Anglo Irish Bank from selling their $385 million mortgage loan.
The Apthorp developers, led by Africa Israel USA and Broadwall Management, filed suit against the troubled bank Sept. 12, alleging the sale of the $385 million Apthorp loan would “adversely impact sales” and potentially “threaten the conversion project itself.”
[more]

New York Congressman Jerry Nadler and other members of New York’s Congressional delegation have submitted a letter to Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, cricitizing him for removing New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman from mortgage settlement negotiations. Schneiderman has opposed efforts by other states and by the Obama administration to negotiate a foreclosure settlement with the banks. Miller had told Bloomberg News that Schneiderman “has actively worked to undermine the very same multi-state group that it had spent the previous nine months working very closely with”.  [more]