MERSCORP Holdings Inc. won another battle in its war with counties across the country that claim the registry is illegally skirting recording fees.
The latest victory came out of Arkansas in a class action filed by y the Lonoke County Circuit Clerk and Recorder.
Lonoke alleged that MERS is required by Arkansas law to file assignments in the state of Arkansas each time a mortgage changes hands.
But Circuit Court Judge Sandy Huckabee disagreed and dismissed the action on Nov. 25.
“Based on current Arkansas law, consistent with the decisions of the Arkansas Supreme Court, there is no duty to record assignments in the state of Arkansas.” Huckabee wrote in her decision. “Therefore, the court finds that each claim in the amended class action complaint fails to plead a basis upon which relief can be granted.”
The decision follows a similar ruling during September in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, in a lawsuit filed by the Circuit Clerk of Hot Spring County.
Similar lawsuits filed by counties in Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Rhode Island have also been dismissed.
Most recently, also on Nov. 25, U.S. District Judge Henry Wilhoit Jr. dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit filed by Boyd County against Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc.
But the Supreme Court of Alabama in September recently rejected MERS’ motions to dismiss two lawsuits, one filed by the probate judge of Barbour County and another filed by Walker County.
