Rusty Perdew has substantial experience in complex commercial, class action, and tort litigation in jurisdictions across the country, specializing in residential mortgage litigation.
Mr. Perdew represents mortgage lenders, servicers, secondary market participants (including securitizers and securitized trusts), and foreclosure trustees in individual and class action litigation. His experience includes defending against alleged violations of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA and FACTA), the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), various state False Claims Acts, provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and Bankruptcy Rules, and various state unfair and deceptive trade practices acts, as well as claims for fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, and breach of contract.
Examples of Mr. Perdew’s recent cases include:
- Defending False Claims Act, or qui tam, cases alleging mortgage industry defendants made false statements regarding MERS to avoid paying county recorder fees;
- Defending lawsuits filed by counties, county commissioners, and county attorneys alleging mortgage industry defendants failed to record mortgage assignments, depriving counties of revenue and allegedly damaging the integrity of county records;
- Defending subpoenas and claims initiated by United States Trustees, Chapter 13 trustees, and debtors within bankruptcy proceedings;
- Defending various secondary mortgage participants from securities claims filed by investors in mortgage-backed securities alleging defendants made false statements regarding underwriting standards and appraisal methods;
- Defending class action and individual claims filed by borrowers alleging that the use of MERS as a mortgagee or beneficiary invalidates a mortgage or deed of trust;
- Defending class actions filed by borrowers alleging violations of TILA and other claims in connection with payment option adjustable rate loans (“Option ARM loans”);
- Defending class actions alleging that a pre-screened “firm offer of credit” violated the FCRA;
- Defending a class action alleging that a mortgage servicer violated ECOA by failing to provide an “adverse action” notice in connection with a request for a loan modification;
Representative Experience
Mr. Perdew has tried cases to verdict and obtained defense verdicts in state and federal courts across the country. Examples of defense verdicts and rulings Mr. Perdew has obtained are:
- State of Hawaii ex rel. Barry Bates, Civil No. 10-1-0160-01 (Haw. Cir. Ct.). Mr. Perdew was part of a joint defense team that obtained a dismissal of this False Claims Act case based on the public disclosure jurisdictional bar.
- Bonte v. U.S. Bank, N.A., No. 09-2455 (7th Cir. Oct. 19, 2010). Mr. Perdew obtained the dismissal of a TILA rescission claim for failure to state a claim because none of the allegedly-inaccurate disclosures were considered "material" under TILA. Mr. Perdew argued the appeal before the Seventh Circuit, which affirmed the dismissal.
- Velazquez v. GMAC Mortgage, LLC, 605 F. Supp. 2d 1049 (C.D. Cal. 2008); 2009 WL 2959838 (C.D. Cal. Sept. 10, 2009). Mr. Perdew secured the dismissal of several of plaintiffs’ TILA claims, and opposed plaintiffs’ attempt to substitute class representatives, ultimately leading to the voluntary dismissal of the case.
- Murray v. GMAC Mortgage, LLC, 532 F. Supp. 2d 938 (N.D. Ill. 2007), aff’d 2008 WL 1781160 (7th Cir. 2008). Mr. Perdew helped to obtain summary judgment on behalf of a mortgage lender in a “firm offer of credit” case under the FCRA, with the court finding no evidence that the lender had willfully violated the statute. The ruling was affirmed on appeal.
- Chatz v. BearingPoint, 364 B.R. 308 (N.D. Ill. 2007). Mr. Perdew and another Locke Lord partner tried this case to a bankruptcy judge and obtained a complete victory on behalf of their client, a well-known accounting firm, against a $23 million claim alleging a negligent common stock valuation.
Education
- J.D., Northwestern University School of Law, 1999
Moot Court - B.A., summa cum laude, Bradley University, 1996
Bar Admissions
- Indiana, 2000
- Illinois, 1999
Admitted To Practice
- Supreme Court of Illinois, 1999
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 1999
- Supreme Court of Indiana, 2000
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, 2001
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, 2005
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, 2007
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, 2007
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, 2007
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, 2009
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2009
Publications & Presentations
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Author,
"Locke Lord QuickStudy: Expert Testimony Required Under Consumer-Expectation Test,"
Locke Lord
(September 21, 2011)
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Co-Author,
"Locke Lord QuickStudy: Chicago Amends Vacant Building Ordinance,"
Locke Lord
(August 11, 2011)
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Co-Author,
"Locke Lord's QuickStudy: Seventh Circuit Makes it Easier for Removing Defendants to Satisfy the Amount in Controversy Requirement,"
Locke Lord
(April 7, 2011)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Reform,"
Locke Lord
(November 29, 2010)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Claim for TILA Rescission- Dismissed by Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals,"
Locke Lord
(October 21, 2010)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Novel ECOA Claims Asserted Against Lenders & Servicers Regarding Loan Modification Requests,"
Locke Lord
(March 11, 2010)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Seventh Circuit Joins First and Fifth Circuits in Rejecting TILA Rescission Class Actions,"
Locke Lord
(September 25, 2008)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Federal Reserve Board Adopts Significant Revisions to Regulation Z,"
Locke Lord
(July 24, 2008)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Fair Credit Reporting Act Update: FTC And FRB Issue Proposed Regulations Requiring Creditors To Send Risk-Based Pricing Notices,"
Locke Lord
(May 29, 2008)
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Co-Author,
"Client Alert: Seventh Circuit Limits Its Holding In Cole v. U.S. Capital And Clarifies The Requirements For Making Firm Offers Of Credit Under The Fair Credit Reporting Act,"
Locke Lord
(April 16, 2008)
Professional History
Professional Affiliations & Achievements
Mr. Perdew is currently an adjunct professor in two classes at Northwestern University School of Law—Trial Advocacy and Civil Discovery. In that capacity, he instructs, critiques, and grades law students on courtroom skills, including direct and cross-examination, opening statements, and closing arguments. He also lectures and directs classroom exercises regarding various aspects of pre-trial discovery.
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