Nativi v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 223 Cal. App. 4th 261 (2014)

Citation: Nativi v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 223 Cal. App. 4th 261 (2014)
Parent Document: Nativi v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 223 Cal. App. 4th 261 (2014)
Jurisdiction: California (state)
Effective Date: 2014-01-23
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2650742/nativi-v-deutsche-bank-national... ↗

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Unless otherwise specified, all further references to the PTFA or Act are to this
cited public law as amended in 2010.
1
National Trust Company as Trustee for American Home Mortgage Assets Trust 2007-5
Mortgage-Backed Pass-Through Certificates, Series 2007-5 (Deutsche Bank or Bank)
was the beneficiary under the deed of trust and the purchaser at the foreclosure sale.
Appellants sued respondents Deutsche Bank National Trust Company (in its nontrustee
capacity), Deutsche Bank (as trustee), and American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc.
(AHMSI).
The trial court granted respondents' motion for summary judgment based on its
determination that the foreclosure sale extinguished the lease under California law and,
therefore, the immediate successor in interest did not step into the shoes of the landlord.
The court concluded that the federal PTFA merely required the Bank, as the immediate
successor in interest, to give a 90-day notice to vacate the premises to appellants and it
imposed no affirmative duty on the Bank to assist such tenants in recovering possession
of the leased premises. The court further found that appellants could not establish that
the Bank excluded them from the property or put their belongings in the backyard.
Appellants now challenge the trial court's interpretation of the PTFA. They assert
that the Act created a landlord-tenant relationship between the Bank and them for the
duration of their lease. The appeal raises difficult questions regarding the proper
interpretation of the PTFA and the potential liability of an immediate successor in interest
in foreclosed residential real property for breach of the implied covenant of quiet
enjoyment and wrongful eviction under California law. The parties have not raised any
contention regarding the validity of the PTFA or asserted that Congress exceeded its
authority in enacting it. An amicus curiae brief was filed on behalf of the National
Housing Law Coalition, National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, the AARP,
the National Fair Housing Alliance, and the California Reinvestment Coalition in support
of appellants. The American Legal and Financial Network filed an amicus curiae brief
that supports respondents' position.

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