Report on the Dublin Repossession Courts Friday 27th July 2018

Brendan Burgess

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Court 22 The Judge's List

I first visited Court 22 where Judge Linnane sits to hear cases referred to her by the Registrar's Court.

1&2 Stepstone vs. JC and AC
On 1 June, the Registrar had struck out this case and this was an appeal by Stepstone to overturn the Registrar's decision and reinstate the case. The loan had been bought by Promontory plc and they were also seeking to amend the proceedings to include Promontory plc as the plaintiff.

The borrowers were in court and had no objection at all to the proceedings. They are paying €1,800 per month.

The Judge upheld the appeal and vacated the Registrar's decision. She adjourned the case to her court for mention only on 7th December.

She asked if Promontoria's name was on the Folio and was told that it was not. She pointed out that this would have to be rectified by the next appearance.

BB Comment: The Registrar is meant to make the Judge's list more efficient. I don't know why the Registrar did not amend the proceedings when it came before her. It's possible that she does not have the power to do so.

7 EBS vs. TH and JH
Yet another case where EBS's paperwork was wrong. EBS were seeking to amend the proceedings as they had "EBS Mortgage Finance" in the proceedings whereas the mortgage was issued by EBS Building Society.

The barrister for the borrowers said that he had not seen the original civil bill. The Judge pointed out that as the solicitors had come on record for the borrower in April 2016, they had plenty of time to ask the bank for a copy of the civil bill. The barrister replied that the borrowers' solicitors had the civil bill, but it's just that the barrister had not seen it yet.

As the borrowers are making full repayments and as they seem to have some personal issues, the case was adjourned generally with liberty to re-enter.


BB Comment: Absolutely typical of EBS. They make it very difficult for themselves by having paperwork which is often wrong.

The Judge's decision to adjourn generally with liberty to re-enter is an approach used by all Registrars I have seen with the important exception of The Dublin Registrar who refuses such adjournments. She insists on the case being adjourned to a specific date where the lender is to proceed for an order or else to strike it out.

9 BoI vs PG
I had been in the court on 1 June last when this case first came up before the Judge. The borrower showed up then and the Judge told him that although the arrears were "low", she would have had to grant an order against him if he had not shown up. He was to ring MABS that day and make an appointment.

This time the Bank wanted to proceed as there had been no payment or no engagement since the last court appearance.

The arrears have risen from €5,000 when proceedings were issued in 2017 to €14,000 now.

The borrower was again in court. He had called MABS but they had not yet given him an appointment. He had not filled in the SFS. He had got some rooms in the house ready for renting and hoped to be able to start making repayments soon.

The Judge told him to go outside and talk to the MABS people and come back in a few minutes.

The bank wanted to proceed as no payments had been made since December last. But the Judge said that the arrears were low and adjourned it to 30th November. The bank asked that the adjournment be made peremptory - in other words that they would be granted an order on 30th November if the borrower had not made progress and the Judge refused.

BB Comment: On the one hand this guy has "low" arrears and shows up in court. On the other hand he hasn't paid anything since December and hasn't bothered contacting MABS or submitting an SFS.

11 Bank of Ireland vs. BL and BL
On 28th June the Registrar referred the case to the Judge's List as BoI applied for an adjournment and it was refused on the grounds that BoI had not sworn an affidavit explaining why they wanted an adjournment.

The Bank said that the borrowers were in a trial period and if the borrowers continued to make payments up to the Adjournment Date, the arrears would be capitalised.

The Judge suggested a general adjournment with liberty to re-enter and the Bank agreed that this would be a good solution.

BB Comment: Again, a good use of the general adjournment procedure. I will come back to this recent development of the Registrar refusing adjournments unless the bank puts the request on affidavit.


 
The Registrar's Court on the same day

(I missed the early cases as I had been in the Judge's Court. It was adjourned at 1 pm for lunch and I did not go back for the afternoon session.)

13 AIB vs. SG & PQ - case from 2015
AIB applied for an adjournment but as they had not sworn an affidavit, it was refused and sent to the Judge's List.

14 BoI - case from 2015
Struck out on the application of the bank. Costs applied for and refused.

15 EBS Struck out - mortgage redeemed. case from 2015

16 EBS vs. AD case from 2015

Adjourned to 25th October 2019 as there is a separate Court of Appeal case about cross security which won't be heard until 20th July 2019.

17 BoI vs AN and JE - case from 2015
Adjourned to 2nd November. Expect a MTR via iCare to be closed in 3 weeks. No affidavit for adjournment filed, but Registrar overlooked it.
18 BoI vs. JC and DMcS Case from 2015
Struck out. A tracker redress case.

19 EBS vs. LD - case from 2015
Adjourned to 1 February as the borrower is pregnant and unwell.

20 Start vs. PE and CE - case from 2015
Adjourned to 19th Jan so Mortgage to Rent can be applied for . €22k arrears on a mortgage of €120k

21 EBS vs. IB - case from 2015
lender applied for adjournment - refused and sent to Judge's List as lender "failed, refused or neglected" to supply a supporting affidavit.

22 Ulster Bank vs. KD Case from 2015 Order for possession granted
Borrower present
In 2013, had €17k of arrears capitalised.
Arrears today €42k on mortgage of €273k - borrowed €225k in 2008
Borrower wanted an adjournment as he had been sick. Registrar: Have you informed bank? Borrower: No.
Got a job in early July and is also getting €112 FIS - but bank won't take this into account. (I hadn't realised that single people got FIS?. I assume he is single as he had tenants and there was no mention of a partner or children.)
Payment record:
2014: €3,478 out of €11,000
2015:€2,625 out of €11,000
2016: €3,000 our of €11,000
2017:€1,500 out of €13,000
Last payment: 28th December 2017
He had two tenants but they have gone.
Originally a First Active mortgage.
Arrears were €9,600 when proceedings were issued in 2015.

Fingal Council are to be notified as this is a "shared ownership" mortgage.
Bank asked for a stay of 9 months, so that he can stay in the house over Christmas.

23 EBS vs. JW and AM
Borrower was present but there was no one present from O'Connor Solicitors for EBS. The Registrar asked a few times over the next hour or so if there was anyone present. This was put back to after lunch.

24 EBS vs. MH and CH 2016 case
MH present. paying the full mortgage and something towards the arrears. Has to deal with some "legacy tax issues" and EBS case handler is giving him time.
Adjourned to 1 Feb despite neither party submitting an affidavit.

27 AIB vs SC
Adjourned to 1/2. AIB had submitted an appeal setting out the special circumstances for which they were applying for an adjournment.

28 AIB vs AK and AD from 2016
AIB wanted an order
€43k arrears on a balance of €123k
But borrower said she was going to the Insolvency Service.
Registrar: Why is this coming so late? You have been talking about this since last year.
Borrower making efforts to pay mortgage but 1st named borrower not making any payments.
Got a two month adjournment.

29 Start vs. MD
Adjourned to 1 Feb. Affidavit applying for adjournment filed. An offer to capitalise the arrears has been made.

31 AIB vs. JS and HS
Adjourned to 1 Feb
Legal basis for adjournment
Borrowers bankrupt in the UK.
Trustees were supposed to abandon their title but had not done so.
If AIB changed proceedings to go against Trustees, by the time the case would be heard, the trustees would probably have abandoned their title.

32 EBS vs BI
1 Feb. Has got a PIA - no affidavit required for adjournment.

33 BoI vs LS and CMcG
Adjourned 6 October. 2nd borrower in Oz. First borrower liaising with PIP.

35 EBS vs OB
Adjourned to 1/2. On affidavit. 6 month test period expect to finalise it.

37 AIB vs MM and AC
Adjourned to 29/3 . On affidavit. Interim Payment Arrangement.

38 AIB vs. SB
Adjourned for mention only.
Borrower present. Has a purchaser but AIB has not yet consented. Doesn't know the true level of the mortgage. (This sounded like a 3.65% tracker case.)

39 Tanager vs. LL and BL
Adjourned to 26th October for mention only.
Both borrowers have protection certs expiring in August.
Appealing the PIA.

40 ptsb vs. CM case from 2017 Order granted
Last payment: 7/1/2008 - over ten years ago.
Arrears of €62k on a mortgage balance of €65k
There is Judgement Mortgage on the property as well, but ptsb takes priority
Borrowed €65k (IR£51k) in 1993. Husband has since died. No mortgage protection in place.
Borrower not in court but had written to banks saying that her son would buy the house and repay the mortgage - but she had said that back in January as well.
Order granted with 9 months stay.
Costs awarded.

41 EBS vs MO'D and LW
EBS were seeking an order but their papers were not in order.
Borrower in court. Has been paying in full for 6 months and some extra towards arrears.
Adjourned to 1 Feb

42 EBS vs. EM
Sent to judge's list on 16th October
Wanted an adjournment but no affidavit. And no affidavit on 13th July either.

After Case 45 out of 60, adjourned until 2 pm.
 
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Comments

Borrowers get long adjournments

This was the last sitting before the summer holidays for the courts. Most of the cases were adjourned until 1 Feb. That is just over 6 months.

It just gets tougher and tougher for the banks - now they can't get adjournments without an affidavit
Now the Dublin Registrar is refusing adjournments if the banks have not filed an affidavit setting out why they want the adjournment.
As far as I know, she is the only Registrar to insist on this. Other banks operate more informally. If a bank asks for an adjournment, they just get it with no questions asked.

The Dublin Registrar is extremely formal and legalistic
No one is allowed speak unless they are on record. For example, if a solicitor attends court but is not on record, he is told to sit down. I have seen the wife of the borrower attempting to speak and being told to sit down. MABS is not allowed to speak. Financial advisors to the borrowers are not allowed to speak.

In all the other courts I have attended, it's more informal. In fact, on occasion, in Dublin when another Registrar fills in, the MABS solicitor is allowed to speak.

The banks, especially AIB and EBS, make it difficult for themselves.
Their paperwork is often defective. Wrong names are frequent.

Mortgage to Rents figure often in these cases
The borrowers will nearly always get an adjournment if they mention that they have applied for MTR even if they haven't a hope in hell of qualifying for it.
 
The process used to be much more efficient

In the past she did a quick First Call which was used to dispose of the majority of cases very quickly :
  • Cases where the banks were applying for a strike out
  • Cases where the banks were applying for an adjournment
  • In particular cases, where it was the first time in court and the adjournment was automatic
The first call would be dealt with in about 30 minutes and most of the public and the legal teams could leave.

Adjournments were granted without the need for an affidavit. The lender still had to say why they wanted an adjournment and she often attached conditions to it. But it was dealt with fairly quickly. Now the barrister or solicitor has to read out the affidavit in court.

When the second call came, most of the people had gone, so there were fewer people in court and it was easier to hear what was happening.

Now the Registrar is hearing each case in sequence. So case no 60 which might be disposed of in 20 seconds had to wait from 10.30 to probably around 3 pm for his case to be called. In the past, it would have been dealt with by 11 am or 11.30 at the latest.

So throughout you have a very full, very hot and very noisy court.

At my previous visit on 1 June, the First Call took so long, that many of the cases which were put to second call were not reached by 1.15 when the session finished. I don't know what happened to them. I assume that they were just rescheduled for a few months' time.
 
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Brendan,

In reply to your query above about FIS - a claimant can be single, but there must be at least one dependant child in order to claim the payment.
 
Why if EBS are paying top lawyers is the paperwork so abysmal. Ultimately this cost is borne by mortgage holders in higher rates.

What is the law as regards who can speak. Can the different registers have different rules.

It's amazing that you can not pay your mortgage for 10 years and still stay in the property.
 
there must be at least one dependant child in order to claim the payment.

Thanks for that and it makes sense. It's odd that he never mentioned it. Usually the Registrar asks who is living in the house. If there is a child, they are even less likely to grant an order or else they will grant a very long stay. But in this case, they granted a long stay anyway.

Brendan
 
What is the law as regards who can speak. Can the different registers have different rules.

It's the enforcement of the rules which is different. There is a law that only solicitors and barristers and those involved can speak. But I am not sure if the Registrar's Court is actually a court. As I say, no other Registrar adopts this approach.

Brendan
 
Why if EBS are paying top lawyers is the paperwork so abysmal.

I have raised this with AIB on numerous occasions.

I suspect that they are not top lawyers. The top lawyers are dealing with the big commercial properties. I would guess that the firms doing repossessions of family homes and retail debt collection generally are not from the top drawer of the legal profession. Likewise, the hottest shots in the banks are probably not in the arrears area.

Brendan
 
It's the enforcement of the rules which is different. There is a law that only solicitors and barristers and those involved can speak. But I am not sure if the Registrar's Court is actually a court. As I say, no other Registrar adopts this approach.

Brendan

How could you find out if it's a court or not? Maybe you could ask one of the barristers you met, or the court staff. If those involved can speak then how come the spouse of one could not and one presumes they were also on the mortgage.
 
I have raised this with AIB on numerous occasions.

I suspect that they are not top lawyers. The top lawyers are dealing with the big commercial properties. I would guess that the firms doing repossessions of family homes and retail debt collection generally are not from the top drawer of the legal profession. Likewise, the hottest shots in the banks are probably not in the arrears area.

Brendan

Bet they are charging top dollar though. Are you sure the banks don't hire the top firms?

Aside from that. How technically difficult is it to get the correct names on routine documents that you deal with all the time. A 12 year old could manage that. With no qualification.

Plus it's their job. To get things right. Surely. This is not complex stuff in any case.
 
Hi Bronte

Here is an exact transcript from a case before Judge Linnane on 1 June. I sent this on to the guys in charge of arrears in AIB.

1. 2014/02455 EBS Mortgage Finance - V - JC and MC : Ivor Fitzpatrick & Co. Solicitors / All Def: Barron Morris Solicitors

Barristers present for both sides – although there was no need for the barrister for the borrowers to speak.

28th October 2016 – Adjourned Generally with liberty to re-enter.

EBS was seeking permission to re-enter these proceedings.

Judge: This was adjourned in 2016 because of an agreement to sell the property. There is a mismatch between the “evidence” and pleadings. Who drafted the pleadings?

Barrister: They were drafted inhouse. By the legal firm. I don’t know the name of the specific person.

Judge: In 2016, when I adjourned this generally, I said that the papers need to be rectified before it is re-entered and the proofs should be in order. Did anything happen since?

Barrister: The borrowers moved out , so it was no longer a PPR.

Judge: Why does the grounding affidavit not say this? Why don’t they get the proceedings correct? If the person drafting it has not got the right skills to draft it…

Barrister apologises.

Judge: With this firm, the person attending is never the person who drafted the proceedings.

The papers are not in order.

(to barrister for EBS) You know this because you have worked before with this firm.

Judge: Put back to second call for you to find out why nothing was done to fix the proceedings.

Second Call

Barrister: The person who drafted the proceedings is not available, they are on holidays…

Judge: Everyone in this firm of solicitors seems to be on vacation or on honeymoon or doing something else. Was there a note on file about my orders the last time?

Barrister: Yes. In March 2016, the former solicitor for the defendant said … There was a disconnect between who lives in the property (i.e. whether or not it is a PPR)

Judge: That is not the issue. Have you read the file? In March 2014, there was an EU endorsement. Why?

Barrister: There was no need for that. A template was used.

Judge: A computer button was pressed and these proceedings were not reviewed.

On 22/10/2015 the Registrar adjourned this case – because the plaintiff did not comply with a court order

On 21/4/2016, she refused an adjournment as it was the 5th time on the list.

Who is the plaintiff on the Civil Bill?

Barrister: EBS Mortgage Finance

Judge : And who is the property charged to?

Barrister: EBS Buidling Society granted the mortgage – the interest was transferred…

Judge: Whoever in this firm is drafting is using a template of a computer

I have asked someone senior from this firm of solicitors to attend court. When is that due?

Barrister: At the end of June.

Judge: She should review some of these files to understand why so many orders are refused.

I am refusing to re-enter these proceedings. Costs to the defendant. That might encourage them to review the files before issuing proceedings.

In future I will strike out these cases.
 
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