Bank of America Agrees to Settle

     Whistleblower Suit for $16.65 Billion

                                       

ASHEVILLE, NC – As part of Bank of America’s (BOA) $16.65 billion settlement with the United States government over the mortgage financing debacle, a company in New Jersey has been awarded $8.5 million for notifying and assisting the government regarding BOA’s irregular mortgage practices and FHA insurance claims.

Asheville attorney Clifford “Kip” Marshall of Marshall, Roth & Gregory, PC., together with the New York law firm of Milberg LLP, on behalf of the whistleblower, Mortgage Now, Inc., brought a “Qui Tam” action against Charlotte-based Bank of America, alleging that the bank defrauded HUD by submitting claims for purported losses arising from FHA-insured mortgage loans.

Brought under the federal False Claims Act, a qui tam lawsuit allows “whistleblowers” to assist the government in investigating and prosecuting companies and individuals who may be defrauding the government in various federal programs including federal mortgage insurance, Medicare/Medicaid, defense procurement, and other federal programs. If the government is successful in recovering funds and monetary penalties from the companies or the individuals defrauding it, the whistleblower is entitled to an award ranging from 15 to 25 percent of the funds recovered in recognition of the professional and personal risks the whistleblower takes in bringing the fraud to light.