Bank of America accused of racketeering in lawsuitA lawsuit in federal court in Colorado accuses Charlotte-based Bank of America of racketeering, in what amounts to more fallout for the bank stemming from a federal mortgage-modification program. The suit, filed Wednesday, claims violations of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, also known as RICO.

Countrywide Whistle-Blower Says U.S. Talks Spurred Him to SueA former official at .’s Countrywide unit said he went to federal authorities and filed a whistle-blower lawsuit after learning the government might settle with the lender. Edward O’Donnell, who now works for Fannie Mae, said he contacted the office of Manhattan U.S.

Bank of America Headed to Trial for FraudBank of America may soon be the first major bank sued by the federal government for their part in the financial crisis. The U.S. Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit against the financial giant last year, and jury selection began on Tuesday.

Bank of America goes to trial over U.S. mortgage fraud chargesCredit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid Customers use ATMs at a Bank of America banking center in New York’s financial district January 17, 2013. In what would be the government’s first financial crisis case to go to trial against a major bank over defective mortgages, jury selection is set to begin in federal court in New York on Tuesday, barring a last-minute settlement.

HAMP Helpers: The stories of James, Dana, Tammy and the WebersIt was only a few short months ago that the national media started reporting a fact that every American homeowner at risk of foreclosure in the past five years, millions in all, already knew: banks do not want to work with homeowners to help them save the

Risky Businessby Amy M. Armstrong The Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed separate but parallel civil lawsuits against the Bank of America Corporation (BofA) on August 6, 2013.

Why Wall Street Is Very, Very Angry at Richmond, California, Right NowVery early Wednesday morning, the city council in Richmond, California, narrowly voted to move forward with a plan to aid underwater homeowners. It’s a plan so controversial that everyone from Wall Street investment banks, to the National Association of Realtors, to U.S. congressmen, to state politicians, to the Federal Housing Finance Agency has weighed in.

A Copyright Victory, 35 Years LaterIn the lucrative world of music copyright, it may be something of a watershed moment: on Friday, after six years of legal wrangling and decades after he wrote the lyrics to the hit song “YMCA,” Victor Willis will gain control of his share of the copyright to that song and others he wrote when he was the lead singer of the 1970s disco group the Village People.

NYC Council overturns Bloomberg’s veto on ‘stop-and-frisk’The New York City Council has voted to affirm legislation previously vetoed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg that seeks to ban discriminatory profiling within the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk program and establishes oversight over the department. The Community Safety Act includes two pieces of legislation.

Unsealed Lawsuit Details How Banks Stole HousesIn a cover story last year, we told you about how a few Florida women were the ones who discovered how banks were screwing people out of billions of dollars through foreclosures of homes. During the past decade’s housin

Your mortgage documents are fake!If you know about foreclosure fraud, the mass fabrication of mortgage documents in state courts by banks attempting to foreclose on homeowners, you may have one nagging question: Why did banks have to resort to this illegal scheme? Was it just cheaper to mock up the documents than to provide the real ones?

U.S. sues Bank of America over sale of $850 million in mortgage-backed securitiesThe U.S. government filed two civil lawsuits against Bank of America for… (Brendan McDermid/Reuters ) Traders at Bank of America willfully misled investors about the quality of the residential mortgages tucked into the securities the bank sold at the start of the financial crisis, according to separate lawsuits filed Tuesday by the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Borrowers can sue Wells Fargo over mortgage modificationsCredit: Reuters/Shannon Stapleton A Wells Fargo sign is seen outside a banking branch in New York July 13, 2012. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Wells Fargo was required under the federal Home Affordable Modification Program to offer loan modifications to borrowers who demonstrated their eligibility during a trial period.

Justice Department Sues Bank of America Over MortgagesBank of America Corp. was sued by the U.S. for allegedly hiding risks from investors in a 2008 deal for $850 million of bonds backed by residential mortgages. Government lawsuits filed today in federal court in Charlotte, North Carolina, lay out a pattern of intentional acts by bank officials to disguise the mortgages’ risks in disclosures to the U.S.

U.S. May Move Against Bank Over Jumbo Loan SecuritiesBank of America disclosed on Thursday that the Justice Department was weighing whether to bring a civil complaint against it over claims that the bank had improperly handled securities backed by jumbo loans.

MF Global sues banks for restricting competition in CDSNEW YORK, July 30 | Tue Jul 30, 2013 10:21pm BST NEW YORK, July 30 (Reuters) – MF Global has sued 12 large banks, accusing them of restricting competition in the $25 trillion credit default swap market, the latest in a string of lawsuits alleging that banks impeded new entrants by blocking exchange trading of the contracts.

New Defaults Trouble a Mortgage ProgramBanks and other mortgage servicers have accepted $815 million in taxpayer-funded incentives for helping homeowners who have since redefaulted on their home loans, a watchdog for the Treasury Department ‘s Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, reported on Wednesday.

8th Circuit Court upholds sanctions against Minneapolis attorneyThe Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday upheld $45,451 in sanctions against Minneapolis foreclosure attorney William Butler, under fire from local federal judges who have repeatedly sanctioned him. It was the second time in two days that the Eighth Circuit rejected claims made by Butler, who is under investigation by the local federal judiciary.

Danish funds sue banks in U.S. for blocking CDS exchange-tradingThe case, filed on Thursday in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Illinois, follows a similar suit filed in May by an Ohio-based pension fund, the Sheet Metal Workers Local 33 Cleveland District Pension Plan, in the same court.