Another Texas County Mulls Possible MERS Suit; Up to $100M Could Be In Issue in Harris County
With as much as $100 million in unpaid filing fees at issue, another Texas county is pondering possible litigation against those responsible for an electronic system that circumvented the traditional method of recording paperwork when lenders purchase mortgages from each other.
On the agenda for a Tuesday meeting of the governing body of Harris County is whether to hire the same law firm that filed a similar suit on behalf of Dallas County last month concerning the Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, reports Bloomberg.
That firm is Malouf & Nockels, says Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan, who estimates, based on preliminary figures, that at least $11 million and as much as $100 million in recording fees could be at issue in Harris County alone.
“Our cause is mirrored by every other county in Texas that can tag onto this,” he said. “This thing is huge.
A spokeswoman for Merscorp Inc., based in Reston, Va., declined Bloomberg’s request for comment on the county’s plan.
Similar suits over MERS have also been filed by counties in Michigan and Pennsylvania, and a law professor tells the news agency that counties in Utah are also considering such litigation.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “MERS Changes Rules, Says Mortgage Servicers Must File Assignments with County Before Foreclosing”
ABAJournal.com: “Dallas County DA Sues MERS, Says Shadow Recording System Confused Title and Cost Money”
