A judge went too far when he nearly halved the amount of principal a bank sought to recover in a foreclosure action to punish the bank’s purported lack of good faith during conferences, a Brooklyn appellate court has ruled.
After mandatory settlement conferences in a residential foreclosure proved fruitless, Acting Suffolk County Justice Jeffrey Spinner (See Profile) forever restrained Bank of America from “demanding, collecting or attempting to collect, directly or indirectly” any sums connected to a $493,219 mortgage that were deemed “interest, attorney’s fees, legal fees, costs, disbursements.” The bank could only collect principal, and any advances on property taxes or insurance, he said.
