Mortgage Fraud

Term Paper # 100364

Canadian Studies
Law > Property

Mortgage Fraud

An analysis of the implications of mortgage and title fraud and legislation to attempt to prevent it.

793 words () | 5 sources | MLA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses mortgage and title fraud. It discusses a 2005 Ontario Court of Appeal decision regarding fraudulent mortgages and its implications. The paper then looks at who the victims are in mortgage fraud. It examines the pending legislation of the Ontario government which will attempt to address some of the problems involved in mortgage and title fraud. Finally, it looks at how property owners may protect themselves through title fraud insurance.

From the Paper:

"However, this proposed action plan is not the proper solution to this problem. In effect, while mortgage and title fraud has always been a problem, the current crisis relates directly to the Ontario Court of Appeals ruling in 2005 that judged fraudulent claims to be legally valid. In fact, the proposed Bill 152 does not address this issue but only restores title to the real owner but leaves him/her responsible for the fraudulent mortgage (Aaron). Clearly, the Ontario government is responding to public concern in this area, and the possibility that the Court will not - in its review of its earlier decision - be willing to admit that it made a mistake and reverse this precedent-setting ruling. I would argue that if banks were legally responsible for the mortgage, they would have the incentive for greater diligence than they are currently exercising. Thus, it would be more legally and economically efficient if this situation is resolved through the legal system that exacerbated the problem."

Sample of Sources Used:

Aaron, Bob. "Title fraud bill faces troubled future." The Toronto Star. October 28, 2006: N15.
Adair, Jim. "Ontario Law Society Urges Action to Curb Mortgage Fraud." RealtyTimes. April 21, 2005. Retrieved November 5, 2006. http://realtytimes.com/rtcpages/20050421_camortgagefraud.htm
Levy, Harold. "Banks defend home-fraud record." The Toronto Star.
Levy, Harold. "Judge chides bank in mortgage fraud 'plague'." The Toronto Star. November 1, 2006: A1, A8.
Somerset, Jay. "Mortgage Fraud is Sweeping Across Canada." Macleans. January 12, 2006. Retrieved: November 5, 2006. http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/justice/article.jsp?content=20060116_119456_119456