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Well, it seems as if Uncle Suggy may spew the Death Spiral and the '"we had no restore confidence in the MBS Market' narrative as justification for the Net Worth Swipe.
WE know that's bull, but will a Jury?
About 5:15 pm today, Judge Lamberth at the end of todays proceedings indicated he sees Voir Dire wrapping up on Monday and then opening Statements on Tuesday, October 18th probably at 10am....
Today was those pretrial evidentiary motion arguments, Judge Lamberth said he might call counsel back on Friday afternoon to announce his decisions on those last motions
This weekend Judge Lamberth will decide which of the proposed Jury Voir Dire Questions will be allowed to be asked, and all day Monday they will pick a Jury with at least 2 alternates. Opening Statements start next Tuesday.
The Judge will ask the prospective questions to the prospective Jurors himself and one lawyer from each side will communicate with the Judge on the bench with headphones (probably)which ones to ask.
On Monday, they will start with 56 prospective Jurors which will then be whittled down to a 6 or 8 or 10 panel Jury after preemptory and for cause strikes
The Judge said about 1,000 prospective Jurors will be at the courthouse on Monday.
The Evidentiary Motions are the ones on PACER and the Proposed Jury Voir Dire Questions are the ones he will decide over the weekend.
He seems to have figured out the Shenanigans Uncle Suggy has pulled here but don't think that supercedes his legal analysis.
A lot of people writing stuff down on legal pads in the audience, the guy behind me told me he was taking some notes for some publication in New York (something real estate) , bumped into a Bloomberg reporter not sure who, not sure if any Shareholders we're in the audience, we all were wearing suits.
He's thinking about 2 weeks, he'll have a decision on final Jury Instructions probably next Monday which will be Voir Dire either 6 or 8 Jurors (maybe 10) with 2 or more alternates. , Uncle Suggy's lawyers and Hamish Hume argued pretrial motions, clearly Uncle Suggy doesn't want to let the Jurors see the Smoking Gun UST emails.....
Just got out of Lamberth's courtroom, Trial starts Tuesday likely, ran into a Bloomberg reporter, Skepi, Lamberth sends his love and kisses to you !
Skepi, I'm on Metro down to Judiciary Square, do you know why the stop is called is called 'Judiciary Square''?
If His Honor asks me, "Where's Skepi, doesn't he even care about what happens in court?". What should I tell him?
No thanks, you remember what Margaret told us about betting on court trials ! But you never did every thing Momma told you to do anyway, remember?
HeeeHeee!!!! Good one Skepi ! Now, after reading the latest Motion from Plaintiffs in theory it could be continued again, but I think the Judge is ready to get this one finally started after what 6+ years since the initial complaint.
"While the $1.6 billion amount reflects the drop in share prices on the day after the Net Worth Sweep was
announced, the only way in which the share prices after the Net Worth Sweep could have any
positive value is based on the market’s speculation (or conviction) that something as drastic as the
Net Worth Sweep could not possibly stay in effect. This must be the case, because so long as the
Net Worth Sweep remains in effect, it is literally impossible for any money to be distributed to
private shareholders, either in dividends or as liquidation proceeds. It’s impossible – period. Thus,
any positive value that Plaintiffs’ shares have after the Net Worth Sweep reflects (a) the market’s
judgment about whether the Net Worth Sweep will remain in effect, or instead will be invalidated
by litigation or otherwise (or trigger compensation of some kind, such as through this lawsuit),
plus (b) the market’s assessment of the value the shares would have if the Net Worth Sweep did
go away (discounted by the probability of that not happening).
Given that the market price for the GSE shares after the Net Worth Sweep reflects the
market’s judgment about the likelihood of the Net Worth Sweep being overturned through
litigation or otherwise, that price cannot be used to reduce the damages that seek to measure the
harm inflicted by the Net Worth Sweep. Rather, if share prices are to be the only way that damages
may be measured, a better use of them would be to measure the market capitalization reflecting
share price on August 16, 2012 – the day before the Net Worth Sweep was announced – and to
treat that as the measurement of the expected future dividends to the various classes as of that date.
Plaintiffs believe the market capitalization based on share price grossly understates that value, but
it is at least a minimum measure. The Net Worth Sweep eliminated the ability of Plaintiffs to ever
receive those dividends, and thus the August 16 market price represents a minimum valuation of
the harm caused by the Net Worth Sweep.
The foregoing analysis is an important part of any “lost value” analysis that is based on
share prices. It will naturally be a part of Dr. Mason’s testimony on the “lost value” measure of
damages, which he discussed in his report and which he concluded would understate the measure
of harm. Plaintiffs simply ask that Dr. Mason be permitted the right to serve a short rebuttal report
that clarifies the scope of this analysis. That will avoid any disputes about the scope of his
testimony at trial. It will ensure that the record reflects that Defendants were given full and fair
notice of the scope of the “lost value” theory that is being presented at trial, an opportunity to
depose Dr. Mason on that measure of damages, and to submit their own supplemental report if
they wish."
Why is the Government so worried about DeMarco testifying twice? I thought Uncle Suggy has done nothing wrong here !
"Mr. DeMarco was the Acting Director at FHFA from 2009
to 2014. He is the official who agreed to and signed the Third Amendment that imposed the Net
Worth Sweep that is at the heart of this case. Defendants cannot point to any other official who
had more knowledge or responsibility for the decision to agree to the Net Worth Sweep than Mr.
DeMarco. He is, therefore, the central witness in the case. His decision to agree to the Net Worth
Sweep has resulted in the GSEs transferring over $150 billion in value to the Treasury in excess
of the maximum that would have been transferred under the 10% senior preferred dividend that
the Net Worth Sweep replaced. It has nullified the rights of tens of thousands of private
shareholders, whose claims in this case are measured in the billions of dollars. It is not
unreasonable to expect him to make himself available twice."
I love it! The Plaintiff Shareholders are trying to make sure they get 2 cracks on the stand at the 'mental giant', Ed DeMarco, the ONLY known CONservator in HISTORY THAT TRANSFERRED ALL HIS WARDS ECONOMIC RIGHTS TO HIS PRINCIPAL AND DIDN'T DO PRISON TIME!
"Yet Defendants have waited until the eve of trial
to file a motion seeking to oust Mr. DeMarco from Plaintiffs’ case, and to have him reserved solely
for Defendants’ case"
"Thus, the issue of Mr. DeMarco being called by both Plaintiffs and Defendants is not new.
It has been known for four-and-a-half months. Yet Defendants have waited until the eve of trial
to file a motion seeking to oust Mr. DeMarco from Plaintiffs’ case, and to have him reserved solely
for Defendants’ case. There is no basis for this request, and it should be denied."
Not really, Lamberth has a tight docket and the elaborate questionnaire that one of the parties wanted was nixed by the Judge.
They can likely do Voir Dire in one to three days with some alternates and be ready to roll on October 17, 2022 at 10am.
Typically Judge Lamberth will ask the prospective Jurors if any of them have spouses or close relatives that work for the named Plaintiffs or Defendants.
Then an attorney from each side of the V gets to ask some probative questions to the prospective Jurors (the attorneys will typically have basic facts of the prospective Jurors from the court administrator for each prospective Juror).
Then the attorneys pick a limited number of prospective Jurors to strike (and the other side could object but it's up to Lamberth) and viola there's your Jury!
Now, typically when Jurors discover that they are spending the next 2-3 weeks of their lives deciding a contract dispute dread and disappointment can follow. Keeping them awake and paying attention (especially after lunch) can be challenging.
This procedure is largely repeated daily throughout courthouses across Amerika! And now that you are Chairman of the Activity Bus Committee at the nursing home, you can schedule a trip to your local courthouse and see for yourself if you are skeptical...
There was NO DEATH SPIRAL JUST A PURE MONEY GRAB BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FROM THE PLAINTIFF SHAREHOLDERS BACK POCKETS!
Didn't Moopan on behalf of the Gubmint argue to the Supremes that the Death Spiral was real and a justification for the Net Worth Swipe? Does anyone have a link to the oral argument transcript from the Collins case?
"....is not credible.", Is a polite way of saying, "Your Honor, this guy is a lying scumbag Piece of Sh*t!". HeeeHeee! Always be polite and respectful !
That's right Skepi, I may not get down there until 2pm or 3pm, but I would imagine it's Voir Dire and I can watch the Gubmint Goon lawyers use their limited strikes to get rid of any Jurors with an accounting/finance background and push for the lowest of the socioeconomic ladder as they can.
The folksy (pos!) Gubmint Goon attorney will really turnup the charm during closing argument spewing deception and lies about how the "US Government HAD to develop the NWS to save the evil mortgage banksters," type b**lsh*t.
We'll see what happens
The Secret Plan never mentioned the 240 YEARS part did it! The Net Worth Swipe really threw a wrench in the entire rehabilitation idea and the FHFA and UST are as recalcitrant as ever. We'll see what happens.
I'm going to try to get down to the pretrial Conference on Wednesday at 1pm (Rm 15), I'll give you an update whenever I can. I'll tell Judge Lamberth how much you hold the federal judiciary in such high esteem, HeeeHeee !
If he asks why you're not here, I'll just tell him as Chair of the Activity Bus Committee at the Nursing home the only available driver was a self proclaimed Wise Man and so the trip today was cancelled.
Thanks Navy for keeping up with the trial proceedings!
If there is a Jury award, there's the possible Takings Cause of Action and bedrock contract law that a principal is liable for expressly authorized actions of its agents (here FHFA and UST) if the federal government refuses to pay any of the Jury awards from their dastardly deeds with the Net Worth Swipe.
Guido pointed out a fund the UST keeps to pay for federal agency overreach and judgments, but would it be enough?
Well, why should 2 private corporations 100% controlled by a federal government agency conservator that has purposely breached Plaintiff Shareholders implied contractual right to share in the future profitability of their Corporations NOT have to pay the bill?
Could any damages awarded by a Jury and paid for by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac be recovered in a Takings or some type of other legal challenge?
SO, if the Jury finds for the Plaintiff Shareholders, what would the MAXIMUM loss (you can round to the nearest BILLION!) the FHFA would be on the hook for?
Sandra, sweetheart, why don't you run that by your Sherrod Brown political hire, your legal counsel here, or is the FHFA above both CONservatorship Law AND payment of any Jury monetary damages?
That's right, you can simply argue it's in the 'best interests of the public the FHFA serves' and avoid paying for the consequences of the FHFA'S outrageous breach of our Implied Contract!
HeeeHeee! No I actually ENJOY my profession, it involves smacking down Gubmint overreach on a daily basis, and my clients have MUCH more to worry about than something as trivial as pecuniary gain/loss! The federal government overreach here is especially obnoxious, coercive, and abusive and quite an injustice to existing shareholders that have had to painfully watch it play out, NOW FOR THE 15TH YEAR!
We'll begin to see if the current round of Litigation gets us any relief, if not I'm exploring 3 prospective lawsuits to launch against Uncle Suggy's bad behavior here.
Be PATIENT, multi Billion dollar litigation just takes time.....
That's right, Maria is not going to be pleased by these federal agency Gubmint Goons stealing all the private shareholders economic rights and transferring them to the UST.
Especially after SM said O'Bummer used the Swept funds to pay for Obamacare!
Ohhh, Good Times, Good Times!!!!
I'd love to see that! I've got meetings I need to attend that Tuesday through Friday but as soon as I get out, I'm making a beeline down to Constitution Avenue to watch that!
In Lamberth's trial, the Gubmint Goon lawyers know that their Big Lie 'Death Spiral' narrative that they spewed to the clueless 9 Justices on the Supreme Court in Collins will be exposed by the full daylight in this trial.
Their new bogus explanation (they've got $332B and counting reasons to continue deceiving triers of fact) will be to play the 'restoring the confidence of buyers in the MBS market by implementing the NWS'.
Look for the folksy Gubmint Goon attorney to spew the "we had no choice but to implement the NWS to reassure investors that the federal government will be there" angle.
But that's BOGUS as well and likely will rebutted by:
(1). There has NEVER BEEN an EXPLICIT GOVERNMENT GUARANTEE on GSE MBS
(2). Starving the GSES of 1st Loss Capital and transferring $308B in CASH assets from the GSES balance sheets to the UST IS the EXACT OPPOSITE of restoring confidence for MBS investors.
(3). HERA'S primary mandate (as in all Conservatorships) is to PRESERVE AND CONSERVE their Wards assets.
(4). The intent of the NWS as demonstrated by the overwhelming evidence was to make sure the GSES never where returned to the shareholders.
Ed DeMarco on 04/18/2013: "In addition, recent changes to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs), replacing the 10 percent dividend with a net worth sweep, reinforce the notion that the Enterprises will not be building capital as a potential step to regaining their former corporate status."
"The Administration has made clear that its preferred course of action is to wind down the Enterprises."
https://www.fhfa.gov/mobile/Pages/public-affairs-detail.aspx?PageName=Statement-of-Edward-J-DeMarco-Acting-Director-FHFA-Before-the-US-Senate-Committee-on-Banking-Housing-and-Urban-Affa359.aspx
Eddie, really? You and your Gubmint goons decided to Nationalize 2 profitable enterprises and take $332B from them and transfer $308 in CASH to the UST IN RETURN FOR NOTHING and NOT PUT THEIR $8T+ IN MBS LIABILITIES ON TOP OF THE OUTSTANDING $31T FEDERAL DEBT OUTSTANDING?
Oh, as a long term Shareholder, you're wanting me to ignore this?
Don't think so Eddie.....
Thanks Guido, so FHFA IS a Defendant in Lamberth's trial and that means it's possible for Plaintiff Shareholders to recover from the true source of our Economic Rights being obliterated?
That Ed DeMarco is a real mental giant, isn't he? Believing that his job was to force the US Congress to 'fix the broken system' of the Secondary Mortgage Market by depriving the GSES (who guarantee Trillions in MBS) OF ANY CAPITAL!
EDDIE YOUR JOB WAS TO REHABILITATE, GET THE SHIP UPRIGHT AND MOVE ON, NOT KEEP THE GSES IN A PERPETUAL CONSERVATORSHIP!
Ed DeMarco: "Honey, I have a court hearing this morning so that's where I'll be."
Wife: "What's going on?"
Ed:. "Apparently I upset some shareholders when I obliterated the value of their shares and gave $332B to the UST in return for nothing."
Wife: "Have a nice dear, I'm going to the Salon..."
Beginning October 17, 2022, Mario's and the US Government's Big Lie and Deception regarding the bogus 'death spiral' and Net Worth Swipe theft will see the light of day and American Jurors will hear about and decide what compensation is due for the Plaintiff Shareholders for the US Government's abusive and coercive conduct and breaking of the implied contract ALL Corporations have with their Shareholder Equity owners/investors.
Is Mario scheduled to be called as a Witness?
That's exactly right, despite the misnomer "living will", NONE of these alleged solutions have been tested in a real inevitable financial crisis.
In 1929 there was the Great Depression, roughly 80 years in 2008 there was the Great Recession/Financial Crisis. Each was characterized by a loss of investor confidence.
The government thinks it has come up with a solution with the 'living will' concept and plan required by all TBTF financial intermediaries.
If the next inevitable financial crisis occurs 80 years from 2008, I doubt many of us will see if the 'living will' solution works.
Time will tell....
Good point! After Defendants final shot at Summary Judgment fails, with all Discovery completed, and knowing exactly which facts and witnesses will and will not be seen by the Jury, both parties should be able to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the case.
However the facts of this case are bizarre and unique in many aspects.
Settling pretrial or during the trial may or may not optically be viewed politically by the Defense as 'rewarding the evil hedge fund guys' and the Defendants could actually welcome a Jury Verdict against them as justification to make the trier of fact the potential scapegoat instead of politics.
Who knows, but stay tuned as this bizarre drama continues and GLTA as we have unjustly been removed from the economic rights of our shares for a long long time.
No. 1938 was the year that Fannie Mae was created as a federal government agency and in 1968 the LBJ Administration along with a Democratically controlled Congress, decided to pass Legislation to privatize Fannie Mae and the S&L's were required to purchase shares as a condition of off loading their 30 year (PREPAYABLE at anytime) Fixed Rate Mortgages on an ongoing basis.
In 1968, it became an IMPLICIT government guarantee on the 30 year PREPAYABLE Fixed Rate Mortgages that any financial intermediary (mostly S&L's) sold to Fannie Mae. The S&L's could unload from their balance sheet mortgages instead of waiting for up to 30 YEARS to get paid back from the mortgagor. This freed up the S&L's to loan more mortgages to American Families.
In 1968, inflation (as now) was running rampant throughout the US Economy. The IMPLICIT (VERSUS EXPLICIT) GOVERNMENT GUARANTEE was chosen by Congress to AVOID KEEPING ALL THE CURRENT AND FUTURE MORTGAGES ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT LIABILITIES BALANCE SHEET AS NOW THEY WOULD BE KEPT ON FANNIE MAE'S PRIVATE CORPORATION BALANCE SHEET.
Read ANY GSE MBS Legal Prospectus, what does it say in BOLD WORDS ON THE FRONT PAGE: THESE MORTGAGES ARE NOT INSURED OR GUARANTEED OBLIGATIONS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
Freddie Mac was chartered in 1970 to offer competition to Fannie Mae.
What kind of Unelected Government Official in charge of rehabilitating the GSES GIVES AWAY ALL THE GSES FUTURE PROFITS INTO PERPETUITY FOR NOTHING IN RETURN!?
Ed DeMarco THAT'S WHO!
Guarantee you he will say, "But, but, but, we wanted to force Congress to figure out how the future of the Secondary Mortgage Market will work because the current system is broken."
THAT'S NOT YOUR JOB DOUCHEBAG!
It's the US Congress that should be deciding Major Questions of Economic Importance like the future of the Secondary Mortgage Market NOT AN UNELECTED FEDERAL AGENCY HEAD!
No he lives over in Gainesville VA, my son use to play little league baseball out there, its a bedroom community with new residential and commercial development. Virginia is finishing over $1B in highway infrastructure and toll roads, it's a very nice area.
Alot of highly paid Gubmint workers live out there and raise their families, it's in the 2nd fastest growing county in Virginia.
But old Mario got 'some plaining' to do doesn't he? !
He probably mistakenly thought he would never be where he's going to be later this month.
Shame on one of Uncle Suggy's highest paid and elevated Gubmint official in this whole Gubmint created mess with the Net Worth Swipe LYING DURING A DEPOSITION!
The money was transferred to the US Treasury General Fund and has already been spent on General Appropriations previously authorized by the Legislative Branch and through "Executive Orders" by the Executive Branch.
Let's not forget the wiping out of value from the 3rd Amendment Net Worth Sweep from firefighters and 1st responders who had their common and jps values wiped out in invested assets for their Pension Plans, like Austin and others!
This whole 14 year+ CONservatorship is just deeping the mistrust of the American Government by the American People and our recalcitrant federal government continues with their misguided path.
ZERO Culpability from our 'dear leaders' in the federal government and they seem to still erroneously believe that they did nothing wrong by implementing the 3rd Amendment (despite overwhelming evidence in Discovery) and transferring all the Plaintiff Shareholders Economic Rights over to a 3rd Party into perpetuity.
Where's Mario?
Judge Jones called the government a "Pay Day lender", Judge Sweeney, "acting like a monster", and Judge Brown, "no better than a Banana Republic"....