LOS ANGELES (CNS) – A Supreme Court ruling on Monday, May 1, helped clear a path forward for a number of lawsuits the city of Los Angeles has brought against major banks for alleged discriminatory lending practices.
By a 5-3 vote, the court ruled that a city can be an “aggrieved person” in a lawsuit against a bank over violations of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, and not just an individual. The ruling was made regarding a lawsuit the city of Miami had brought against Bank of America for alleged predatory lending practices against African-Americans and Latinos.
The ruling could impact lawsuits Los Angeles has brought against JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo in 2013 and 2014. The city alleges the banks engaged in predatory lending practices that caused the mass foreclosures that occurred in the city in the 2008 recession.
The Supreme Court ruling could have tripped up the city’s lawsuits had it gone the other way.
Rob Wilcox, a spokesman for City Attorney Mike Feuer, said the office was reviewing the ruling and had no comment.