Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and four other mortgage lenders and service providers face a possible suspension of foreclosures in New Jersey by Jan. 19, under a judge’s order.
The action, announced Monday by New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, also covers Citigroup Inc.’s mortgage unit, Ally Financial Inc.’s GMAC mortgage unit, OneWest Bank and Wells Fargo & Co. The lenders were implicated in “robo-signing,” the submission of hundreds or thousands of foreclosure claims without personal knowledge of their contents, Rabner said.
The six companies must “show cause why the processing of uncontested residential foreclosure matters they have filed should not be suspended,” under an order by Judge Mary C. Jacobson in state court in Trenton.
“It’s important that the judiciary ensures that judges are not rubber-stamping documents of questionable reliability,” Rabner said Monday in a conference call with reporters.
Another 24 lenders and service providers with more than 200 residential foreclosure actions apiece in 2010 must “demonstrate affirmatively that there are no irregularities in their handling of foreclosure proceedings,” according to the order.
Lawyers in foreclosure cases must also certify that they have communicated to employees at the mortgage companies that they have personally reviewed all documents and that they are accurate, Rabner said.
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