Current Developments in Lender Liability Law — Commercial Context Part III

Lender Liability in the Commercial Context
Banks are under fire today from our elected representatives, stock market analysts, and regulators. Now the banks find their own customers are suing them as they try desperately to escape paying their debts. Their claims against banks can be asserted affirmatively or they can emerge as defenses to a bank’s collection efforts.

“Lender liability” claims can take many forms. Today we are seeing a dramatic rise in such claims in both the commercial and consumer contexts.

On June 2, 2009, Foley & Lardner LLP hosted the third of our three-part Web conference series on lender liability. The first two parts focused on consumer claims and defenses. The third part of our series focused on the commercial context. In our third session, Foley Partners Nancy J. Geenen, William J. McKenna, and Andrew J. Wronski covered lender liability issues in loan origination, loan administration, workouts, foreclosure proceedings, and in bankruptcy proceedings.

Topics included:

• Primary theories: Breach of contract (especially oral promises), fraud, duress, negligence, conversion, defamation, infliction of emotional distress (California), RICO, and other Statutory Liability
  
• Developing theories: Constructive fraud based on fiduciary duty, breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing, failure to properly supervise construction loan, improper control and interference with borrower operations and contracts
  
• Your best defenses, including a review of the impact on lender liability claims of written credit agreement statutes

For more information, please contact John Vicars at [email protected] or 312.832.5122.