COURT COMPELS PRODUCTION OF CFPB INVESTIGATION DOCUMENTS IN DISPUTE OVER ALLEGED REINSURANCE KICKBACKS
A putative class of plaintiffs brought an action against PHH Corporation, alleging violations of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, arising from a purported scheme of alleged “kickbacks” to the defendant mortgage insurer from its captive reinsurer to which transfers no actual underlying risk was transferred. The plaintiffs sought documents relating to any government investigation of PHH. After PHH came under investigation by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, PHH provided certain discovery in the course of the investigation to the CFPB. The plaintiffs thereafter renewed their requests, seeking all documents produced to the CFPB. After defendant refused, the court granted plaintiffs’ motion to compel the following categories of documents produced to the CFPB:
“(1) corporate information and organization charts showing the PHH entities involved with PHH’s captive reinsurance arrangements’ position and the PHH corporate hierarchy; (2) documents relating to the genesis of PHH’s captive reinsurance arrangements; (3) documents describing or relating to PHH’s captive reinsurance arrangements and how they operated; (4) financial statements; (5) contracts and agreements with private mortgage insurers; (6) actuarial, accounting reports, summaries, audits and statements; (7) invoices, bills, receipts, dividends and records of payments from the captive reinsurance trusts or in any way related to PHH’s captive reinsurance arrangements; and (8) disclosures, communications to borrowers regarding mortgage insurance and captive reinsurance.”
Munoz v. PHH Corp., No. 1:08-cv-0759-AWI-BAM (USDC E.D. Cal. Feb. 22, 2013).
This post written by John Pitblado.
