DEBRA JARVIS, APPELLANT,
v.
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR GSR 2006-OA-1, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Debra Jarvis appealed a foreclosure judgment against her, arguing that Deutsche Bank lacked standing to file the foreclosure complaint. The appellate court agreed, finding that Deutsche Bank failed to establish standing through any legally permissible method at the time it filed the complaint.
Deutsche Bank failed to establish standing to foreclose because it did not produce a note with a blank or special indorsement, an assignment of the note, or other evidence proving its status as the holder of the note. Physical possession of the original note transferred into a trust prior to filing does not, by itself, establish standing.
[1] Standing to foreclose a mortgage must be established as of the time the foreclosure complaint is filed.
[2] A plaintiff seeking to foreclose a mortgage, who is not the original lender, may establish standing by submitting a note with a blank or special endorsement, an assignmen…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Standing must be established as of the time of filing the foreclosure complaint.”
Establishes the critical temporal requirement for standing in foreclosure actions
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDeutsche Bank filed a foreclosure complaint on May 14, 2009, attaching copies of the mortgage and note. The note listed America's Wholesale Lender as …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Pooling And Servicing Agreement cases and more on FLexlaw
Debra Jarvis (“Homeowner”) appeals a final judgment of foreclosure. We find merit in her argument that Deutsche Bank National Trust Company (“Deutsche Bank”) lacked standing at the time it filed its foreclosure complaint. On this basis, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.-
Facts
On May 14, 2009, Deutsche Bank filed its complaint, seeking to reform the mortgage and to foreclose on the mortgage. It attached to the complaint a copy of the mortgage and a copy of the note. The copy of the note listed the lender as America’s Wholesale Lender and contained no indorsements. The original note, introduced at trial, also contained no indorse-ments.
At trial, Deutsche Bank relied on a Pooling and Servicing Agreement (“PSA”) to argue that it had standing at the time it filed its complaint. Specifically, one of Deutsche Bank’s witnesses testified that it had standing because “[t]he loan was entered into the trust shortly after origination, and we also have business records that show that they were in possession of the note.” Put more simply, the witness stated Deutsche Bank was entitled to enforce the note “through possession.”
Homeowner moved for an involuntary dismissal of the action, arguing that Deutsche Bank failed to prove it had standing at the time it filed its complaint. The trial court denied the motion, but later granted Homeowner’s motion for involuntary dismissal on Count I (reformation of mortgage) and entered a final judgment of foreclosure on Count II.
*196 Analysis
“We review the sufficiency of the evidence to prove standing to bring a foreclosure action de novo.” Lacombe v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., 149 So.3d 152, 153 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014) (citing Dixon v. Express Equity Lending Grp., LLLP, 125 So.3d 965 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013)). “[Standing must be established as of the time of filing the foreclosure complaint.” Focht v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 124 So.3d 308, 310 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013). “A plaintiff who is not the original lender may establish standing to foreclose a mortgage loan by submitting a note with a blank or special endorsement, an assignment of the note, or an affidavit otherwise proving the plaintiffs status as the holder of the note.” Id. (citing McLean v. JP Morgan Chase Bank Nat’l Ass’n, 79 So.3d 170, 173 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012)).1
Here, Deutsche Bank faded to establish standing using any of these available methods. The original note contained no blank or special indorsements, and Deutsche Bank did not introduce into evidence an assignment. Further, evidence that the note was physically transferred into a trust prior to Deutsche Bank filing its foreclosure complaint does not, by itself, establish standing. See Kiefert v. Nationstar Mortg., LLC, 153 So.3d 351, 353 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014) (“Such a plaintiff must prove not only physical possession of the original note but also, if the plaintiff is not the named payee, possession of the original note endorsed in favor of the plaintiff or in blank (which makes it bearer paper).”).
Accordingly, we reverse and remand for entry of an order of involuntary dismissal of the action. See Lacombe, 149 So.3d at 156 (“We decline to remand the case for the presentation of additional evidence because ‘appellate courts do not generally provide parties with an opportunity to retry their case upon a failure of proof.’” (quoting Morton’s of Chicago, Inc. v. Lira, 48 So.3d 76, 80 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010))).
Reversed and remanded.
GERBER and LEVINE, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Perez v. Deutsche Bank Nat'l Tr. Co., 174 So. 3d 489 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015)…, which reversed a final judgment of foreclosure, in part because there was no evidence that the party transferring the note into a PSA had any intent to transfer an interest to the trustee. Similarly, in Jarvis v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 169 So. 3d 194 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015), this court held that “evidence that the note was physically transferred into a trust prior to Deutsche Bank filing its foreclosure complaint does not, by itself, establish standing.” “[A] plaintiff must prove not only physical p…
-
Segall v. Wachovia Bank, 192 So. 3d 1241 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016)…3d 127, 129 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (quoting Lacombe v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., 149 So. 3d 152, 153 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014)). “[Standing must be established as of the time of filing the foreclosure complaint.” Jarvis v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., 169 So. 3d 194, 196 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (alteration in original) (quoting Focht v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 124 So. 3d 308, 310 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013)). Additionally, “[o]nce a defendant contests the plaintiffs standing as the proper party to enforce' a note via forecl…
-
Hepworth v. Wells Fargo Bank, 180 So. 3d 1170 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015)…ubject note was transferred into the trust. The loan number in the PSA’s mortgage loan schedule is different from the one on the original note and the original note’s loan number is not found on the schedule. Jarvis v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., 169 So. 3d 194, 196 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (“[E]videnee that the note was physically transferred into a trust prior to [the plaintiff] filing its foreclosure complaint does not, by itself, establish standing.”). Put simply, Wells Fargo failed to establish standing a…
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- McLEAN v. JP Morgan Chase Bank Nat'l Ass'n, 79 So. 3d 170 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012)
- Focht v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 124 So. 3d 308 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013)
- Daniel and Nancy Kiefert v. Nationstar Mortg., LLC, 153 So. 3d 351 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014)
- Anastacia S. Lacombe and Max P. Lacombe v. Deutsche Bank Nat'l Tr. Co. for Long Beach Mortg. Loan Tr., 149 So. 3d 152 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014)
- Lavern Dixon v. Express Equity Lending Grp., LLLP, 125 So. 3d 965 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013)
- Morton's OF Chicago, Inc. v. Lira, 48 So. 3d 76 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010)