AC40451 - Goodwin Estate Assn., Inc. v. Starke ("The defendant Daryl L. Starke appeals from a condominium foreclosure judgment in favor of the plaintiff, the Goodwin Estate Association, Inc., arising from the defendant's failure to pay common charges and assessments levied on his condominium unit. The defendant's sole reviewable claim on appeal stems from the trial court's denial of his motion to dismiss the action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The defendant claims that the trial court erred in denying his motion to dismiss because (1) the court improperly considered the equities and length of proceedings when deciding the motion, and (2) the plaintiff did not properly adopt its standard foreclosure policy in violation of statute and the plaintiff's declaration, thereby depriving the trial court of jurisdiction. We affirm the trial court's judgment.")

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AC39350 - Bank of America, N.A. v. Kydes ("The defendant, Andrew D. Kydes, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the substitute plaintiff, Christiana Trust, a Division of Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB Not in Its Individual Capacity but as Trustee of ARLP Trust 5 (Christiana Trust). On appeal, the defendant claims that the trial court erred: (1) in relying upon a "procedural default" to find that the named plaintiff, Bank of America, N.A. (Bank of America), had standing to bring the instant action, and thus that the court had subject matter jurisdiction over the action; and (2) in failing to hold an evidentiary hearing on his claim that Bank of America lacked standing to bring this action. We disagree, and thus affirm the judgment of the trial court. ")

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AC38806 - Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Lorson ("The defendants, Eric Lorson and Laurin Maday, appeal from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. On appeal, the defendants claim that the court improperly found that the plaintiff met its burden of proving its prima facie case and that the defendants failed to prove their special defenses of equitable estoppel and unclean hands. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

AC40307 - Webster Bank, N.A. v. Frasca ("The plaintiff, Webster Bank, N.A., appeals from the trial court’s denial of its motion for a deficiency judgment following a judgment of strict foreclosure against the defendants Brian J. Frasca and Allison D. Brant. On appeal, the plaintiff asserts three claims: (1) the court committed plain error by (a) failing to consider two valuations of the property found in the appraisal report of the plaintiff’s expert witness, (b) imposing an incorrect burden of proof under General Statutes § 49-14, and (c) making comments during the hearing that demonstrated judicial bias; (2) the court abused its discretion by erroneously relying on various exhibits submitted during the deficiency judgment hearing; and (3) the court abused its discretion by denying the plaintiff’s motion for a protective order in response to the defendant’s notice of deposition. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

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AC39955 - HSBC Bank USA, N.A. v. Hallums ("The defendant, Mark A. Hallums, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff, HSBC Bank USA, N.A., as Trustee for the Registered Holders of Nomura Home Equity Loan, Inc.On appeal, the defendant claims that the court improperly:(1) rendered a judgment when the plaintiff lacked standing in the case; (2) rendered a judgment in the absence of jurisdiction because there was no state law right to pursue a foreclosure action in light of the defendant's discharge of the debt in bankruptcy; and (3) refused to apply the best evidence rule and the clean hands doctrine.We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

AC39880 - Jenzack Partners, LLC v. Stoneridge Associates, LLC ("The defendant Jennifer Tine appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff, Jenzack Partners, LLC. On appeal, the defendant claims that the trial court improperly: (1) held that Sovereign Bank had assigned the defendant's guarantee to the plaintiff and the plaintiff had standing to foreclose on the mortgage; (2) determined that the plaintiff had established the amount of debt due on the subject note; and (3) granted attorney's fees and costs to the plaintiff. We agree with the defendant's second claim and, accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the trial court only as to Jennifer Tine.")

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AC40704 - Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. v. Fraboni ("This appeal comes to us on a reservation of a legal issue pursuant to General Statutes § 52-235 and Practice Book § 73-1. The stipulation of the parties presents two questions for the advice of this court: (1) '[Except where otherwise provided by statute or other law,] [d]oes the filing of an appeal "after the time to file an appeal has expired" . . . automatically stay the trial court proceedings in a noncriminal case pursuant to Practice Book § 61-11 until the final determination of the cause?' and (2) 'If the answer to the first question is not categorically no, then did the filing of [the] defendant’s appeal in this instance "after the time to file an appeal [had] expired" result in an automatic stay of execution [pursuant to Practice Book § 61-11] which tolled the running of his law day.' We answer both questions in the negative.")

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AC39665 - Bank of New York Mellon v. Horsey ("The defendant, Wade H. Horsey II, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered in favor of the substitute plaintiff, The Bank of New York Mellon, as Successor Trustee for JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Trustee for Novastar Mortgage Funding Trust, Series 2005-2 Novastar Home Equity Loan Asset-Backed Certificates, Series 2005-2. The defendant claims on appeal that the trial court improperly (1) granted the substitute plaintiff's motion to open a disciplinary judgment of dismissal because it disregarded the standard set forth in General Statutes § 52-212 and Practice Book § 17-43; (2) exhibited bias against the defendant; (3) failed to ensure that the defendant timely received a preliminary statement of the substitute plaintiff's monetary claim in accordance with Practice Book § 23-18 (b); (4) rendered summary judgment as to the defendant's liability; (5) declined to dismiss the foreclosure action pursuant to Practice Book § 17-9; (6) failed to consider his argument that "bifurcation" of the note and mortgage had rendered them unenforceable; (7) failed to address the issue of the substitute plaintiff's standing to prosecute this action; and (8) failed to consider whether the substitute plaintiff had engaged in fraud upon the court. The defendant's claims either are unpreserved, inadequately briefed, or fail to persuade us that the court's actions constitute reversible error. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of strict foreclosure and remand the case to the trial court for the purpose of setting new law days.")

AC40259 - Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. v. Pollard ("In this foreclosure action, the self-represented defendant Alvin Pollard appeals from the trial court's rendering of summary judgment in favor of the plaintiff, Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, as to liability on the complaint and rendering summary judgment in favor of the plaintiff on the defendant's counterclaim. The defendant appeals, as well, from the court's denial of his motion to reargue. We affirm the judgment of the trial court as to the defendant's counterclaim.")

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AC40123 - Tedesco v. Agolli ("The defendants, Resmije Agolli and Fikri Development, LLC (Fikri), appeal from the judgment of foreclosure by sale rendered in favor of the substitute plaintiff, Scott Tedesco, trustee of the Heritage Builders of Waterbury, LLC, 401 (k) Profit Sharing Plan. On appeal, the defendants challenge the trial court's findings with respect to the dates of disassociation and removal of Gina Antonios as member and Joseph Antonios as manager of Fikri. The defendants also claim that the court improperly found that Agolli, as a member of Fikri, had the authority to bind Fikri to the mortgage at issue in the present case.")

• AC40123 Appendix- Tedesco v. Agoll

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AC39426 - Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Melahn ("The defendant . . . appeals, specifically pursuant to Practice Book § 61-2, from the judgment of the trial court rendered in favor of the plaintiff . . . as trustee, on the defendant's second amended counterclaim. In his appellate brief, the defendant also claims to be appealing from the court's order striking his amended special defenses. We dismiss the appeal as to the striking of the special defenses, and we affirm the judgment in all other respects.")

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AC38934 - Aurora Loan Services, LLC v. Condron ("The defendants . . . appeal from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff Nationstar Mortgage, LLC. On appeal, the defendants claim that the court improperly rendered judgment of strict foreclosure because (1) the plaintiff failed to satisfy a contractual condition precedent to foreclosure, namely, compliance with the requirement of notification by mail specified in the mortgage deed; (2) the plaintiff failed to satisfy a statutory condition precedent, as required by the Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (mortgage program) pursuant to the provisions of General Statutes § 8-265ee (a); and (3) the plaintiff lacked the authority to foreclose. The judgment is reversed and the case is remanded with direction to dismiss the action.")

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AC39836 - GMAC Mortgage, LLC v. Demelis ("The defendant Courtney Demelis appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the substitute plaintiff, Ditech Financial, LLC (Ditech). The defendant claims that the court abused its discretion by: (1) denying her motion to dismiss for the original plaintiff’s failure to comply with an order of the court; (2) denying her motion to dismiss based on the original plaintiff’s failure to prosecute the case with reasonable diligence; and (3) denying her postjudgment motion for articulation, reconsideration and/or reargument. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

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AC38654 - Bayview Loan Servicing, LLC v. Park City Sports, LLC ("The defendants, Park City Sports, LLC (Park City) and Robert P. Carter, appeal from the trial court's judgment of strict foreclosure rendered in favor of the plaintiff, Bayview Loan Servicing, LLC. On appeal, the defendants claim that the trial court (1) lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the foreclosure action due to the plaintiff's failure to comply with a standing order of the Superior Court, (2) improperly granted the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment as to liability, (3) improperly determined that the defendants’ special defenses were legally insufficient, and (4) improperly denied Carter's petition to participate in the foreclosure mediation program. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

AC39320 - Nationstar Mortgage, LLC v. Mollo ("The defendant, Clifford W. Mollo, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff, Nationstar Mortgage, LLC. The defendant sets forth five claims that may be distilled as follows: (1) the judgment of strict foreclosure was improper because the court lacked authority to render summary judgment as to liability on the note and mortgage, and (2) the trial court erroneously determined that his special defenses and counterclaim were legally insufficient and/or failed to establish any genuine issue of material fact. Specifically, the defendant's first claim is that procedurally, the court lacked authority to grant summary judgment because the plaintiff failed to file any motion or memorandum of law attacking the legal sufficiency of his special defenses or counterclaim and failed to submit any competent evidence to establish that there was no genuine issue of material fact with respect to the issues raised in them. With respect to the second claim, the defendant argues that the court's decision granting summary judgment as to liability in favor of the plaintiff was clearly erroneous in that he presented uncontroverted evidence that demonstrated that genuine issues of material fact exist with respect to his special defenses of unclean hands, fraudulent inducement and equitable estoppel, and his counterclaim under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA), General Statutes § 42-110a et seq. In addition, the defendant claims that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that any defect in pleading his unclean hands defense and the CUTPA counterclaim could not be cured by repleading. We agree with the defendant that the court lacked authority to grant the motion for summary judgment as to liability because the plaintiff failed to file any motion or memorandum of law attacking the legal sufficiency of the special defenses and failed to submit any competent evidence to establish that there was no genuine issue of material fact with respect to the issues raised in them. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment rendered by the trial court on the plaintiff's complaint. In light of our conclusion that the court did not render a final judgment with respect to the defendant's counterclaim, we dismiss the portion of the appeal challenging the purported judgment on the counterclaim for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. See General Statutes § 52-263; Practice Book § 61-4; State v. Curcio, 191 Conn. 27, 30, 463 A.2d 566 (1983).")

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AC39988 - Cliff's Auto Body, Inc. v. Grenier ("The defendant, Carl M. Grenier, appeals from the judgment of foreclosure by sale rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff Basley Holdings, Inc. The defendant's principal claim on appeal is that it was improper for the court, Hon. Robert C. Leuba, judge trial referee, to deny his motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. We reverse the judgment of the trial court.")

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AC39520 - Stratek Plastics, Ltd. v. Ibar ("In this action for the foreclosure of a judgment lien, the defendant, Jean Pierre Ibar, appeals from the judgment of the trial court granting the motion for attorney's fees filed by the plaintiff, Stratek Plastics, Ltd. On appeal, the defendant claims that the court erred in awarding attorney's fees because (1) there had been no hearing as to the form of the judgment or the limitation of time for redemption as required by General Statutes § 52-249 (a); and (2) the plaintiff failed to present a statement of the fees requested and services rendered at the time of the trial. We disagree that the award of attorney's fees was improper. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

• Posted in:
• Foreclosure Law,
• Recent Opinions

AC38914 - U.S. Bank National Assn. v. Christophersen ("The defendant Bonnie L. Christophersen appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure, rendered in favor of the plaintiff, US Bank National Association, as Trustee of Maiden Lane Asset-Backed Securities I Trust 2008-1. On appeal, the defendant claims that (1) the plaintiff lacked standing to bring the foreclosure action, (2) the court improperly failed to consider the defendant’s concerns regarding the amount of debt, (3) the court abused its discretion in denying her motion for a continuance, and (4) the court abused its discretion in ordering a judgment of strict foreclosure rather than a foreclosure by sale. We affirm in part and reverse in part the judgment of the trial court.")

AC39542 - Valley National Bank v. Private Transerve, LLC ("In this action seeking, inter alia, to enforce a personal guarantee of a mortgage note, the defendants John Tartaglia and Linda Tartaglia, against whom summary judgment as to liability only was rendered, appeal following a hearing in damages from the court’s award of $967,467.59 in favor of the plaintiff, Valley National Bank. On appeal, the defendants argue that the court improperly (1) denied their motion to dismiss the action, in which they alleged that the plaintiff was not the owner of the debt at the time the action was commenced and, thus, lacked standing to prosecute the action; (2) granted summary judgment as to liability only despite the defendants’ insistence that genuine issues of material facts existed regarding the plaintiff’s ownership of the debt; (3) permitted the plaintiff to amend the complaint after summary judgment despite the defendants’ contention that the amendment added a new cause of action; and (4) made several evidentiary rulings against the defendants at the hearing in damages. We are not persuaded by the defendants’ claims and, accordingly, affirm the judgment of the court.")

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AC39191 - Chase Home Finance, LLC v. Scroggin ("The defendant, Daniel J. Scroggin also known as Daniel F. Scroggin also known as Daniel Scroggin, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the substitute plaintiff, AJX Mortgage Trust 1, a Delaware Trust, Wilmington Savings Fund Society, F.S.B., Trustee. The defendant claims that the court improperly granted the plaintiff's motion for judgment of strict foreclosure because (1) the judgment was based upon a default for failure to plead in response to the original complaint, but the plaintiff's predecessor in this action, thereafter, had significantly amended the pleadings and added additional parties to the action, and (2) by operation of General Statutes § 52-121 (a), he was entitled to, and did, file an answer prior to the hearing on the plaintiff's motion for judgment. We agree with the defendant's first claim. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand the case to that court for further proceedings.")

• AC39191 Dissent - Chase Home Finance, LLC v. Scroggin

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AC38712 - GMAC Mortgage, LLC v. Ford ("The self-represented defendant in this residential mortgage foreclosure action, Eric M. Ford, appeals from the judgment of the trial court granting the motion of the plaintiff Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as Trustee for Harborview Mortgage Loan Trust 2006-10 (Wells Fargo), to open a judgment of strict foreclosure and to extend the law days, and denying the defendant's motion to open the judgment. On appeal, the defendant claims that (1) in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Jesinoski v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., ___ U.S. ___, 135 S. Ct. 790, 190 L. Ed. 2d 650 (2015), the trial court erred in granting the plaintiff's motion to open and denying his motion to open; and (2) the plaintiff lacks standing to maintain this action. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

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AC40186 - Sovereign Bank v. Licata ("In this protracted foreclosure matter, the defendant Cynthia Licata appeals following the trial court's denial of her motion asking the court to clarify the 'status' of a judgment of strict foreclosure that was rendered orally in open court, more than ten years earlier, and from the trial court's order making copies of the transcripts of the relevant underlying proceedings a part of the court file. The plaintiff Seven Oaks Partners, LP, filed a motion to dismiss the appeal on the ground that this court lacks subject matter jurisdiction because the appeal is moot and the decisions from which the defendant appealed do not constitute appealable final judgments. The defendant opposes the motion to dismiss. Because we agree that there is no practical relief that can be afforded to the defendant in this matter due to the fact that title to the property at issue has long since passed unconditionally to the plaintiff, we grant the plaintiff's motion and dismiss the appeal as moot.")

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AC39219 - U.S. Bank National Assn., Trustee v. Blowers ("In this mortgage foreclosure action, the defendant Mitchell Piper, appeals from the judgment of strict foreclosure rendered by the trial court in favor of the plaintiff, U.S. Bank National Association, as Trustee for the Holders of the First Franklin Mortgage Loan Trust Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates, Series 2005-FF10. On appeal, Piper claims that the court improperly granted the plaintiff’s motion to strike the defendants’ special defenses and counterclaims. Specifically, he contends that the court improperly required the special defenses to directly relate to and the counterclaims to have a sufficient nexus to the making, validity, or enforcement of the note and mortgage. Instead, Piper argues, the court should have applied a ‘straightforward version of the transaction test with allowances for equitable considerations’ to both the special defenses and counterclaims. Additionally, Piper claims that even if the court did not err in applying the making, validity, or enforcement requirement, the counterclaims and special defenses should have survived a motion to strike under a broad reading of the term ‘enforcement.’ Finally, Piper claims that the court erred in its determinations that no binding modification to the defendants’ loan existed, that, if such modification existed, the defendants defaulted on the loan, and that all of the plaintiff’s alleged misconduct took place during foreclosure mediation. We disagree with Piper contentions and, accordingly, affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

• AC39219 Dissent - U.S. Bank National Assn., Trustee v. Blowers

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AC38970 – Bank of New York Mellon, Trustee v. Mauro ("In this mortgage foreclosure action, the defendants, Jeffrey J. Mauro and Renee A. Mauro, appeal from the judgment rendered by the trial court, Aurigemma, J., in favor of the plaintiff, The Bank of New York Mellon, on: the plaintiff's claim for strict foreclosure as to the defendants' mortgaged property in Killingworth, Connecticut; and the defendants' counterclaims against the plaintiff, seeking damages and equitable relief based upon alleged misrepresentations to them and other alleged misdealings with them concerning the note and mortgage here at issue, both by the plaintiff and by the original lender, America's Wholesale Lender (AWL), which was the plaintiff's predecessor in interest to the note and mortgage. As to the plaintiff's claim for strict foreclosure, the defendants argue that the court erred in basing its judgment for the plaintiff upon its prior, erroneous decision rendering summary judgment for the plaintiff as to the defendants' liability for foreclosure in this action, assertedly without sufficient evidence to establish the absence of any genuine issues of material fact on that issue. As to their counterclaims against the plaintiff, the defendants argue that, to the extent that such counterclaims are based upon the plaintiff's own alleged misdealings with them rather than those of AWL, the court erred in rendering summary judgment for the plaintiff by: (1) ruling that such counterclaims, so narrowed, were not properly pleaded in this action because they have no reasonable nexus to the making, validity, or enforcement of the subject note and mortgage; (2) ruling that one such counterclaim was barred by the applicable statute of limitations; and (3) failing to follow the prior ruling of a different judicial authority, in partially denying a motion to strike, that certain such counterclaims were legally sufficient to state claims upon which relief could be granted. We disagree with the defendants on each of their claims, and thus affirm the judgment of the trial court in its entirety.")

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AC38736 - JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Assn. v. Essaghof ("In this foreclosure action, the defendants Roger Essaghof and Katherine Marr-Essaghof appeal from the judgment of strict foreclosure, rendered after a trial to the court, in favor of the plaintiff, JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, and from the court's entry of a posttrial financial order. The defendants claim that the court (1) erred in rejecting their special defenses of fraudulent inducement and unclean hands, and (2) abused its discretion in ordering them to reimburse the plaintiff for property taxes paid by the plaintiff during the pendency of this appeal. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.")

AC39315 - Seaport Capital Partners, LLC v. Speer ("The plaintiff in error, Edward Bona, brings this writ of error to challenge the decisions of the trial court granting the motions of the defendant in error, Seaport Capital Partners, LLC (Seaport), for order of payment, and denying Bona's motions to reargue the order of payment. Bona claims that the court (1) lacked subject matter jurisdiction, (2) improperly granted Seaport's motions for order of payment, and (3) improperly denied Bona's motions to reargue. We disagree with Bona and, accordingly, dismiss the writ of error.")

• AC39315 - Seaport Capital Partners, LLC v. Spear (see Seaport Capital Partners, LLC v. Speer)
• AC39315- Seaport Capital Partners, LLC v. 76 – 78 Truman Street, LLC (see Seaport Capital Partners, LLC v. Speer)

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