On December 6, Judge Mariana Pfaelzer of the United States District Court for the Central District of California dismissed in part claims brought by several insurance companies, including Minnesota Life Insurance Company, in connection with the purchase of $114 million in RMBS issued by Countrywide. Although the court denied Countrywide’s motion to dismiss the fraud claim against it, the court dismissed plaintiffs’ negligent misrepresentation claim and claims under various Minnesota consumer protection statutes. The court granted Bank of America’s motion to dismiss in its entirety, holding that plaintiffs had not sufficiently alleged successor liability against Bank of America. Decision.
Central District of California Judge Mariana Pfaelzer
Federal Judge Denies Countrywide’s Motion to Dismiss On Three Offerings in MBS Litigation
On September 13, 2011, Central District of California Judge Mariana Pfaelzer denied Countrywide’s motion to dismiss claims in a putative class action complaint arising out of Countrywide RMBS offerings that Countrywide violated Sections 11, 12, and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933. Countrywide argued that Plaintiffs purchased the MBS for three of the nine contested offerings before Countrywide issued its prospectus supplements, thus making it impossible for Plaintiffs to have relied on the alleged misstatements contained in those prospectus supplements. Judge Pfaelzer found that there were too many unknown facts regarding the circumstances of Plaintiffs’ purchases to dismiss these claims, including the possibility that Plaintiffs reviewed drafts of the prospectus supplements. Decision.