A stymied mixed-use building in downtown Milwaukee could have new momentum, but two companies that insured the original, failed project remain stuck.

Tagged with: title insurance

Hamilton v. Mortgage Information Services, Inc. The plaintiff-borrower, who didn’t negotiate or sign the title insurance contract, is not bound by its arbitration clause when she sues for statutory violations.

Tagged with: Arbitration Class Action Real Property title insurance

42 East, LLC v. D. R. Horton, Inc. The trial court found that the parties had amended their contract, including the closing date; however, the court failed to consider whether the amendment was made in compliance with the terms of the contract.

Tagged with: Contract Easements Real Property title insurance

At oral arguments two weeks ago, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court seemed skeptical of a homeowner’s claim that a kickback scheme violated the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act without showing any actual injury was suffered. In First American Financial Corp v. Edwards, plaintiff Denise Edwards purchased a home in Ohio. In the transaction, her settlement agent referred her title insurance to First American Title. Edwards claims that her settlement agent was part of a network of individual title companies that had entered into exclusive referral agreements with First American that involved kickbacks that violated RESPA.

Tagged with: title insurance

Andrew Fitzgerald's (pictured) first foray into title insurance was over a half-million-dollar success. He was hired by Reynolda Presbyterian Church in Winston-Salem to sue Chicago Title Insurance Company after the insurer allegedly failed to defend the church against claims its neighbors brought against it. The church housed its administrative offices in "Harper House," which was situated on one of two parcels it acquired in 2001. At the time it acquired the parcels, the church also purchased a policy of title insurance from Chicago Title. The policy covered the church for losses related to title of up to $100,000.

Tagged with: Bad Faith Insurance title insurance Treble Damages

Chicago Title Insurance Company   (Company did not respond to Lawyers Weekly’s request to update information for 2010 prior to deadline for this issue.)   Charter state: Nebraska Year admitted to N.C.: Sept. 23, 1963 Business mix: 60 percent residential; ...

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After a decade of rising revenue, title insurance companies operating in North Carolina saw their numbers fall for the second straight year in 2009. Direct title insurance premiums earned fell to below $115 million for the first time since 2003 after a record high in 2007 of $168 million. Direct premiums earned in 2008 totaled $145 million. Chapel Hill-based Investors Title Insurance Company had the largest market share of N.C. title insurers, with 24.1 percent. It earned $26.8 million in premiums.

Tagged with: economy Recession title insurance

Winston-Salem real estate developer T. Michael Kelley had his moment in the Court of Appeals' spotlight last week. It was his second such moment this month. The Court of Appeals reversed a trial court's dismissal of his quiet-title action and remanded the case for entry of summary judgment in Kelley's favor in June 20's Kelley v. Citi Fin. Servs., Inc. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-07-0668, 15 pp.).

Tagged with: lis pendens mortgage title insurance

Because buyers in residential real estate transactions have a better opportunity to protect themselves from attorney embezzlement than sellers, they should bear the risk of loss, the Supreme Court has ruled in a 5-2 decision. The ruling aligns with the ...

Tagged with: closings Court of Appeals embezzlement real estate title insurance