Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Investors expand challenge to BofA, BNY Mellon mortgage settlement


The Knights of Columbus, a fraternal group of the Catholic Church, expanded its lawsuit against the Bank of New York Mellon (BK: 20.81 -0.38%) Tuesday, further challenging a recent settlement with Bank of America (BAC: 7.40 -4.64%).

In June, BofA agreed to pay $8.5 billion to investors in residential mortgage-backed securities issued by Countrywide Financial Corp. The trustee on these securities was BNY Mellon. The Knights initially requested information from BNY Mellon and BofA regarding losses on the securities and any possible misconduct.

Instead of providing the information, BNY Mellon settled the claims allegedly without consulting the group then sought to persuade the Knights to accept the offer.

Other investors pushed their own lawsuits forward on the RMBS issued by Countrywide, and the New York Attorney General intervened in the settlement and alleged it ignored the interests of investors.

The Knights suit now includes claims of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, recklessness and unfair trade practices.

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