Criticism of the supposed Mortgage Fraud Settlement is being reported from many points of the compass. A chief criticism of the arrangement between the Federal and State Attorneys General, on the one side, and five huge Mortgage Servicers which are also investment Banks on the other side, is that the Gang of Five are credited in their agreement with things they would do anyway. See Shaila Dewan and Jessica Silver-Greenberg, "Foreclosure Deal Credits Banks for Routine Efforts (New York Times Online, posted March 27, 2012).
So how, you understandably are asking, is this a negotiated settlement? Good question. A lot has to do with the nature of this arrangement. It is likely that the settlement documents are not complete. It is a certainty that the settlement documents that do exist, were written first, before a Complaint was written -- which as most lawyers and every Banker knows is the opposite of the way things are handled in a negotiated settlement. See March 18, 2012 post here, "After the Settlement ... They Wrote the Complaint".
More to come, no doubt.
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