In an important recent decision in the Business Litigation Session of the Massachusetts Superior Court, Judge Kenneth W. Salinger rejected Merrimack College's attempt to hold its auditor KPMG, LLP liable for its failure to discover an employee's fraud. In Merrimack...
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Signing Certified Mail Receipt Satisfies Requirement to Acknowledge Receipt of Borrower’s Request for Information
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has held, in a matter of first impression, that signing a borrower's certified-mail return receipt can serve as a loan servicer's acknowledgment of receipt of a borrower's written request for information....
Haunted House Hunting and the Duty to Disclose
In a competitive real estate market like Greater Boston's, more homebuyers are agreeing to what previously would have been seen as a draconian contract term: purchasing a home without first conducting an inspection. But today, in a hot seller's market, it may be a...
A Parenting Coordinator Can Help Prevent Hostile and Dictatorial Toned Emails Counter-Productive to Effective Co-Parenting
In Leon v. Cormier the MA Appeals Court upheld a contempt judgment against a mother who violated a parenting coordinator's order related to the mother's e-mail communications with the father. Specifically, the parenting coordinator ("PC") ordered that "as a rule,...
Massachusetts Prenuptial Agreement Signed One Day Prior to Wedding Upheld: Size and Formality of Wedding and Prior Divorce Matters
The Massachusetts Appeals Court has issued a Rule 1:28 Memorandum and Order in a divorce case entitled Roof v. Abelowitz upholding the validity and enforceability of a prenuptial agreement that the wife signed only one day prior to the wedding. The court considered...
How Do Criminal Charges Issue?
When an individual is charged with a crime over which the District Court has jurisdiction (all misdemeanors, felonies punishable of a sentence of up to five years and certain other felonies), a criminal complaint issues against them. A criminal complaint is the...
Are The Costs Of Mediation Recoverable In Fee-Shifting Cases?
Cost can be a deterrent when parties are considering whether to mediate a complex business dispute. Mediation is an excellent opportunity to settle a case in advance of costly trial preparation, but mediation requires parties to pay for both a mediator and their...
Probate and Family Court Standing Order 1-17 Sets Rules for Parent Coordinators
A parent coordinator can be a blessing in high-conflict divorce or support cases involving parenting and custody of a child or children. Occasionally, parents, for one reason or another, are unable to communicate effectively about parenting time, extracurricular...
District of Columbia Court of Appeals will Rehear PHH v. CFPB
Authorized by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the "CFPB") is an agency of the United States government that regulates banks, credit unions, debt collectors, and many other sectors of the American...
Failure to Comply With Post-Foreclosure Notice Provisions Does Not Void Foreclosure
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ("SJC") has held that a bank's failure to comply with post-foreclosure notice provisions in Mass. G.L. c. 244, § 15A ("Section 15A"), does not render a foreclosure void. Turra v. Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, 476 Mass....
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