Nevada's Attorney General pursues BofA

LAS VEGAS, Sept. 19 (UPI) -- Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said Bank of America is in violation of a 2009 fraud settlement involving Countywide Financial Corp.

That settlement included an agreement that Bank of America would modify more loans for homeowners. Instead, Masto said, the bank has continued to engage in various fraudulent activities that keep existing contracts intact.

"We think the violation was such a material breech, we're asking the court to terminate our consent judgment," the Las Vegas Sun Monday quoted her as saying.

She said her office had fielded numerous complaints concerning mortgages that have been modified in which the new contract was more costly than the original.

"The goal of the loan modification process was to help people get lower payments and lower interest rates. We're finding it just the opposite. Individuals getting loan modifications actually have to pay higher payments and higher interest rates," she said.

Banks were also engaging in numerous dodges to avoid requests for modifications, including asking for documentation repeatedly or saying files were lost.

The case against Bank of America is currently mired in a procedural issue, as the bank wants the case heard in federal court, while Masto prefers a state court.

"We think it should be in state court because state law has been violated," she said.