Court held creditor must pay debtor for creditors wrongful repossession. In this case, the debtor pledged his vehicle as collateral on a loan and the loan was in default due to late payments. The creditor, Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp., repossessed debtor’s vehicle, however, the court found the repossession constituted a wrongful repossession, or “conversion.” The court […]

General Motors Acceptance Corporation issued a loan to debtor secured by debtor’s new automobile. The debtor purchased disability insurance through GMAC which provided that payments on the loan would be made to GMAC by the insurance company if the debtor became disabled. Debtor did, indeed, become disabled when she suffered a stroke. A claim was […]

Here, the debtor, a former police officer, applied for and was approved for a loan from Hartford Police Federal Credit Union for $150,000. The debt was intended to be utilized to pay off an existing second mortgage on debtor’s residence and for the purchase of a balloon business. At the closing on the credit union’s […]

This Court ruled that the lender’s Notice of Mortgage Acceleration Notice was fatally defective.   Here, Gerardo Pico borrowed money from First Union National Bank of Florida and secured the loan with a mortgage on his real estate.   The loan was two months in default and the bank notified debtor that he must cure […]

In this case, Dutch Point Credit Union challenged the sale of its collateral by a mechanic’s shop that resulted in extinguishing the credit union’s perfected lien. The credit union granted a loan secured by debtor’s Datsun automobile. The credit union properly placed its lien on the vehicle. After the loan was granted, the vehicle was in an […]

Question: Are credit union Home Equity and/or Second Mortgages subject to modification by a debtor’s Chapter 13 Plan? Answer: Yes. In the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts located within the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and applicable to the Federal Bankruptcy Courts located within the State of Michigan, this issue is currently governed by the rulings in the case […]

In the case of David Scoggin vs. Listerhill Employees Credit Union, the Alabama Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling in favor of the credit union. Here, the credit union repossessed a member’s Dodge Dynasty and sold the vehicle at auction for the highest bid of $5,000. The vehicle’s odometer displayed mileage of 18,334 miles, […]

In this case, Wachovia Bank of North Carolina held a mortgage on environmentally contaminated property. The mortgage went into default and the bank foreclosed on the property, purchasing the property at the sheriff’s sale. The bank then sold the property to purchasers who later sued the bank since the property was contaminated. The Comprehensive Environmental […]

In this case, two debtors applied for and closed on a mortgage with American General Finance, Inc. (hereinafter “American General”). The debtors represented to American General that they only had one mortgage on their residence. American General intended to grant the debtors a loan secured by a second mortgage; American General obtained a title search […]

The Michigan Supreme Court has held that the Credit Union is protected as a secured party under the “loss payable” clause of an insurance policy, even if the Credit Union member burned the collateral and made false statements to the insurance company on its claim of loss. Here, the Credit Union member executed an installment note with State Employees Credit Union secured […]