Giroux v. Fed. Nat'l Mortg. Ass'n

• Decision Date: 13 January 2016
• Docket Number: No. 15–1270.,15–1270.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — First Circuit
• Parties: Sharel L. GIROUX, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION, its Successor & Assigns, and MERSCORP Holdings Inc., its Successor & Assigns, Defendants, Appellees.

810 F.3d 103

Sharel L. GIROUX, Plaintiff, Appellant,
v.
FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION, its Successor & Assigns, and MERSCORP Holdings Inc., its Successor & Assigns, Defendants, Appellees.

No. 15–1270.

United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit.

Jan. 13, 2016.

810 F.3d 105

Michael J. DiCola, on brief for appellant.

Phoebe N. Coddington and Winston & Strawn, LLP, on brief for appellees.

Before HOWARD, Chief Judge, TORRUELLA and THOMPSON, Circuit Judges.

TORRUELLA, Circuit Judge.

Plaintiff-Appellant Sharel Giroux filed suit against Defendants–Appellees Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae") and MERSCORP Holdings, Inc., seeking an order enjoining the foreclosure sale of her home. The district court dismissed her claim, finding that it was barred on res judicata grounds in light of a similar case that she had brought in Belknap Superior Court in New Hampshire and which had been dismissed. Giroux moved to vacate the district court's judgment under Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a request which the district court summarily denied. Giroux solely appeals the denial of her Rule 60 motion, contending that the district court was required to provide reasoning for its order under Ungar v. Palestine Liberation Org., 599 F.3d 79 (1st Cir.2010). We affirm.

I.

In January 2007, Giroux executed a promissory note with American Home Mortgage Corporation ("AHMC"), secured by a mortgage on her home held by Mortgage Electronic Registrations Systems, Inc. ("MERS") as nominee for AHMC. In November 2008, the mortgage and note were assigned to Fannie Mae. In August 2011, Giroux filed suit in Belknap Superior Court, contending that Fannie Mae, Bank

810 F.3d 106

of America Corporation,¹ MERS, and BAC Home Loans Servicing, LP, lacked sufficient rights to enforce, transfer, or assign the note. Her claim was dismissed for lack of standing. Giroux subsequently appealed to the New Hampshire Supreme Court, which affirmed the decision of the superior court.

A foreclosure sale was scheduled for January 7, 2014. On January 6, Giroux filed a new complaint against Fannie Mae and MERSCORP Holdings² in Merrimack Superior Court in New Hampshire seeking to enjoin the sale. The action was removed to the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire on the basis of diversity jurisdiction. In June 2014, the district court dismissed Giroux's action, explaining that, because her most recent claims could have been brought before the Belknap Superior Court, her action was barred on res judicata grounds. In October, Giroux filed a motion to vacate the judgment under Rule 60(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which the district court subsequently denied in a one-word order. She appeals that decision here.

II.

1. Standard of Review

"[R]elief under Rule 60(b) is extraordinary in nature and ... motions invoking that rule should be granted sparingly." Karak v. Bursaw Oil Corp., 288 F.3d 15, 19 (1st Cir.2002). A party seeking redress under Rule 60(b)

must persuade the trial court, at a bare minimum, that [her] motion is timely; that exceptional circumstances exist, favoring extraordinary relief; that if the judgment is set aside, [s]he had the right stuff to mount a potentially meritorious claim or defense; and that no unfair prejudice will accrue to the opposing parties should the motion be granted.

Id. "[O]ur review is limited to the denial of the contested motion itself; we may not consider the merits of the underlying judgment." Ojeda–Toro v. Rivera–Méndez, 853 F.2d 25, 28 (1st Cir.1988). Given the district court's familiarity with the record and proceedings below, we review the district court's decision to grant or deny relief under Rule 60(b) for an abuse of discretion. Id. "Abuse occurs when a material factor deserving significant weight is ignored, when an improper factor is relied upon, or when all proper and no improper factors are assessed, but the court makes a serious mistake in weighing them." Bouret–Echevarría v. Caribbean Aviation Maint. Corp., 784 F.3d 37, 43 (1st Cir.2015) (quoting Indep. Oil & Chem. Workers of Quincy, Inc. v. Procter & Gamble Mfg. Co., 864 F.2d 927, 929 (1st Cir.1988) ).

Rule 60 is separated into six subsections, each of which "describes a particular basis for relief from judgment." Ungar, 599 F.3d at 83. Giroux seeks relief under three of these subsections, which are described in more detail herein.

2. Analysis

Under Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a "court may relieve a party or its legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding." Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b). Giroux contends that the district...