Estate of Davis v. Wells Fargo Bank, 10-1549

Action for violations of the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act and race discrimination under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act

Estate of Davis v. Wells Fargo Bank, 10-1549, concerned a plaintiff's suit against Wells Fargo Bank, which later bought her mortgage loan from the original lender whom plaintiff won a judgment against in her suit for predatory lending, and against Litton Loan Servicing, which later took over the servicing of her loan, asserting various claims including unconscionability and fraud claims under state law, as well as federal claims for violations of the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act (HOEPA) and race discrimination under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).


In affirming the district court's judgment in favor of the defendants, the court held that the district court properly dismissed plaintiff's unconscionability claim as she has not alleged an actionable claim that is not barred by the statute of limitations.  Further, without reliance or damages, plaintiff does not have a viable claim for fraud.  The court also held that the events that occurred within the statute of limitations do not amount to an actionable claim under HOEPA.  The court held that, although the district court erred in dismissing plaintiff's ECOA claim of race discrimination at the pleading stage, the error was harmless because the defendants were entitled  to summary judgment on the merits of the race discrimination claim.  Lastly, the court held that the district court's grant of summary judgment on plaintiff's FHA claim was proper as she failed to bring forth any admissible evidence of racial discrimination.

Related Link:

• Read the Seventh Circuit's Full Decision in Estate of Davis v. Wells Fargo Bank, 10-1549