July 12 (
Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG, Germany’s biggest bank, and its MortgageIT unit are seeking dismissal of a $1 billion suit by the U.S. government claiming they lied to qualify thousands of risky mortgages for a government insurance program.
The U.S. claims Deutsche Bank and MortgageIT falsely certified that they properly assessed the default risk of borrowers, qualifying loans for insurance by the Housing and Urban Development Department’s Federal Housing Administration, according to a complaint filed May 3 in Manhattan federal court.
“The complaint is long on unsupported and conclusory rhetoric but short on facts and legal underpinnings,” Deutsche Bank argued in a court filing yesterday. “It utterly fails to state any basis on which to hold Deutsche Bank liable for alleged conduct that occurred before it acquired MortgageIT and in which it had no involvement.”
The U.S. sued under the False Claims Act, which permits it to seek triple damages and penalties of more than $1 billion. ..............(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-11/deutsche-bank-mortgageit-ask-court-to-throw-out-u-s-lawsuit.html