JJND Enterprises, LLC v. Ditech Financial LLC, 011521 NVCA, 80248-COA

• Docket Nº: 80248-COA
• Opinion Judge: GIBBONS, C.J.
• Party Name: JJND ENTERPRISES, LLC, Appellant, v. DITECH FINANCIAL LLC, F/K/A GREEN TREE SERVICING LLC, Respondent.
• Judge Panel: Tao, J. Bulla, J.
• Case Date: January 15, 2021
• Court: Court of Appeals of Nevada

JJND ENTERPRISES, LLC, Appellant,

v.

DITECH FINANCIAL LLC, F/K/A GREEN TREE SERVICING LLC, Respondent.

No. 80248-COA

Court of Appeals of Nevada

January 15, 2021

UNPUBLISHED OPINION

ORDER OF AFFIRMANCE

GIBBONS, C.J.

JJND Enterprises, LLC (JJND), appeals from a district court order granting a motion for summary judgment, certified as final pursuant to NRCP 54(b), in a quiet title action. Eighth Judicial District Court, Clark County; Kenneth C. Cory, Judge.

The original owner of the subject property failed to make periodic payments to her homeowners' association (HOA). The HOA recorded a notice of delinquent assessment lien and later a notice of default and election to sell to collect on the past due assessments and other fees pursuant to NRS Chapter 116. The HOA acquired the property at the resulting foreclosure sale and then conveyed it to JJND, which filed the underlying quiet title action against the predecessor to respondent Ditech Financial LLC, f/k/a Green Tree Servicing LLC (Ditech)-the beneficiary of the first deed of trust on the property. After Ditech's predecessor asserted a counterclaim for quiet title, Ditech substituted into the action, and the parties filed competing motions for summary judgment. The district court ruled in favor of Ditech, finding that the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) owned the underlying loan such that 12 U.S.C. § 4617(j)(3) (the Federal Foreclosure Bar) prevented the foreclosure sale from extinguishing Ditech's deed of trust. This appeal followed.

This court reviews a district court's order granting summary judgment de novo. Wood v. Safeway, Inc., 121 Nev. 724, 729, 121 P.3d 1026, 1029 (2005). Summary judgment is proper if the pleadings and all other evidence on file demonstrate that no genuine issue of material fact exists and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Id. When deciding a summary judgment motion, all evidence must be viewed in a light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Id. General allegations and conclusory statements do not create genuine issues of fact. Id. at 731, 121 P.3d at 1030-31.

On appeal, JJND initially challenges the summary judgment for Ditech on grounds that it was time-barred from seeking affirmative relief based on the Federal Foreclosure Bar. But, as recently recognized by our supreme court, Ditech's claims-which stemmed from the underlying mortgage contract-were subject to the six-year...