Georgia Bankruptcy Blog

By: Scott B. Riddle, Esq.

Thanks to the Fresno Bankruptcy Blog for noting this.

In Jones v. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Adv. No. 06-01093 (Bankr. E.D. La. August 29, 2007) (click here for pdf. of opinion), the Court found Wells Fargo guilty of violating the automatic stay by improperly assessing post-petition charges in a Chapter 13 case, and diverting payments made by the Chapter 13 trustee to satisfy claims not authorized by the Chapter 13 plan or the Court.  Further, the Court found that this conduct was the normal court of business for Wells Fargo in perhaps thousands of consumer cases.

The Court awarded attorneys fees and expenses of $67,202.45 and considered a multi-million dollar punitive damages award due to the apparent widespread misconduct.  However, Wells Fargo proposed changes (noted below, after the jump) in the way it does business in lieu of sanctions.  Further, Wells Fargo agreed to memorialize its proposal into an order of the Court, "enforceable in any case pending or subsequently filed before any court in the country."

The Court agreed that this was an appropriate result and would enter an order setting forth this agreement, such that the Court could continue oversight over Wells Fargo's implementation of the agreement.

The agreement Wells Fargo proposed is as follows  (after the jump)--

1. Upon the filing of a chapter 13 bankruptcy petition, the amounts outstanding on a debtor’s loan will be divided into two new, internal administrative accounts. The first account will contain the sums to be paid under debtor’s plan by the Chapter 13 Trustee; typically the pre-petition past due amounts including past due interest, costs, charges, and fees (“Account One”). The opening balance on Account One should directly correlate to the amounts reflected on Wells Fargo’s proof of claim. Account One will also include any amounts added by subsequent court order to the plan for payment by the Trustee during the case’s administration. All payments made by the Trustee will be applied to the reduction of the amounts owed on Account One.

The second account will reflect the principal amount due on the petition date (“Account Two”). No other sums should be owed on Account Two at the start of the case. Account Two will include post-petition interest accrual, post-petition property insurance or property tax expenditures, and other court authorized postpetition charges as provided in paragraph 2 below. A debtor’s regular monthly note payments will be posted to this account, reducing post-petition interest accrual, postpetition property and tax expenditures, and principal. The account’s first posting will typically be the first installment payment due on the loan following the petition date.

Wells Fargo may maintain, post-petition, its customary records on the loan provided that the two new internal accounts shall control the loan’s administration during the pendency of the case.

2. With the exception of post-petition property taxes and property insurance expenditures, Wells Fargo may provisionally accrue, but not assess or collect, any post-petition charges, fees, costs, etc. allowed by the note, security agreement and state law. Post-petition property tax and insurance expenditures may be assessed against debtor’s account and collected after the delivery of a ten day written notice to debtor, debtor’s counsel, and the Trustee. The assessment and collection of expenditures for post-petition property inspections and taxes will not require approval of the bankruptcy court unless a written objection is filed within ten days of the notice of assessment and collection. If authorized by Wells Fargo’s note, security agreement, and state law, the collection of amounts necessary to pay postpetition insurance and property tax expenditures may be made in advance through the use of escrow accounts. If escrows are utilized, Wells Fargo must give a written accounting of the amounts collected at the time it seeks to apply the escrowed funds to payment of the insurance or property tax expenditures.

As to Post-Petition Charges, annually, between January 1 and February 28 of each year during a case’s administration, Wells Fargo shall file with the Court and serve
upon the debtor, debtor’s counsel, and the Trustee, notice of any Post-Petition charges (which do not include property taxes or insurance), accrued in the preceding calendar year. The notice shall contain an itemization describing the charge, amount provisionally incurred, the date incurred, and if relevant, the name of the third party to whom the charge was paid. The notice will also provide a direct reference to the provisions of the note, security agreement, or state law under which Wells Fargo asserts its authority to assess each type of charge.

The notice shall also state that debtors, the Trustee, and any other interested party, shall have 30 days within which to object to any or all assessments outlined in the notice. It shall contain a statement to the effect that debtor may elect to add the charges to his plan with approval of the bankruptcy court, satisfy the charges directly outside the plan, or defer repayment until the conclusion of his case. If no objection to the amounts provisionally assessed is filed, or if filed, upon entry of an order approving some amount of the provisional charges, Wells Fargo may submit a proposed ex parte order authorizing assessment of the Post-Petition Charges as set forth in its notice or as approved by the court, as applicable. However, Wells Fargo may not collect on any approved Post-Petition Charges unless the debtor voluntarily delivers payment separate and above from that due as a regular monthly installment or obtains approval of the court to modify the plan and satisfy the amounts due through periodic payments by the Trustee. If the approved Post-Petition Charges are to be paid through the modified plan, they will be added to Account One and satisfied by the Trustee. If to be paid by the debtor, they may be added to Account Two.

If no provision for payment is made by a debtor, the collection of the approved Post-Petition Charges must be deferred until the close of the case or relief from the stay is obtained.

3. If Wells Fargo does not issue a notice of Post-Petition Charges, in accordance with paragraph 2, for any given year of the case’s administration, then Wells Fargo shall be prohibited from collecting or assessing any charges accrued against the debtor for that year and shall treat the debtor as fully current at the time of discharge.

4. Upon the issuance of a discharge, Wells Fargo shall adjust its permanent records to reflect the current nature of debtor’s account. Provided however, that if debtor elected to defer the payment of approved Post-Petition Charges until the conclusion of the case’s administration, then Wells Fargo shall be authorized to collect said sums in accordance with the provisions of its note, security instrument, and state law.

This has been happening to me for 4 years. I have filed 2 Chapter 13 cases and it is still continuing to happen and can not get the courts here to coreect problem. What am I to do?

This also has been happening to me as well. My trustee has been making my post-petition payments since December of 2004. Right now my bk case is about to be discharged and Wells Fargo is stated that I owe them over 9k is overdue payments, which were made by my trustee. In addition, they tried to foreclose on my property twice during the bankruptcy and charged me $1000's in late charges for the first three of my bankruptcy case. No matter how many times I contact their bankruptcy dept. or their attorneys, nothing has been done. If this is not corrected by the time by bankruptcy is discharged, which could be any day, I may lose my home! That is whole reason why I filed Chapter 13 to begin with! Does anyone know any lawyers that can help...or anything that I can do considering my protection under bankruptcy has been violated?!

I believe everything that is said about Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. Were going through the same thing. They don't care about the bankruptcy law. Because they continue to do what they want. People are still losing their homes because of there wrong doings. Government really needs to look into Wells Fargo.

This has been happening to me since 1983 this is 2nd house I tried to buy. The bankruptcy just shows up on my record.

I included ONE current payment as arrears into my Chapter 13 plan. Wells Fargo has illegally harrassed me since day one.

Even though my out of plan payments have all been on time they are constantly telling me I owe them over $2000 for ONE payment & accruing fees! I get all kinds of letters in the mail, all with different colored envelopes, I've had them send reps to my door, occupancy postcards ... but they NEVER call the house? Why is that?

Someone needs to teach them a BETTER lesson! One that will actually work!

Wells Fargo has not done what they have been oredered to do by the courts in my case either. 2 years after discharge I am getting foreclosure notices and I have been trying to pay them. They will not take my money nor send me a bill.

I am too going thru this horrible nightmare from Wells Fargo.. Started paying my trustee my payments that were delinquent for the next 3 years.. Now they got the automatic stay released and went ahead to auction my home June 6th.. My bk lawyer has sent letter to work on a hardship workout plan... yeepee, we can go around in circles now.