article: On September 13, 2012, the United States filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina against Bank of America, alleging violations of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. Specifically, the federal government alleged that Bank of America discriminated against disabled mortgage applicants by requiring all disabled applicants to submit a letter from their doctors indicating the amount of the disability income they received. In some cases, the U.S. claimed that Bank of America required disabled loan applicants to provide information about the nature and severity of their disability as a condition of receiving a mortgage. The federal government further alleged that Bank of America discriminated against applicants receiving public assistance in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunities Act. The federal government asked the court for an injunction as well as monetary damages. A consent order was submitted on October 10, 2012 and later amended on December 6. The Court (Chief Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr.) approved the order, which prohibited Bank of America from requiring applicants to submit a letter from a doctor and required Bank of America to institute a monitoring program, train staff on the new policies, maintain a complaint resolution program, and to compensate affected applicants. According to the press release from the Department of Justice, Bank of America paid a minimum of $370 million in the settlement to about 200,000 borrowers. The order was to remain in effect for 42 months following the approval date. On June 5, 2013, the case was reassigned to Magistrate Judge David S. Cayer. The consent order terminated without any further litigation, and the case is now closed.
summary: On September 13, 2012, the United States (on behalf of disabled individuals applying for home mortgage loans while receiving Social Security Disability Insurance) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court Western District of North Carolina against Bank of America. The federal government claimed that Bank of America has violated the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunities Act. The case resulted in a Consent Order which required Bank of America to change its policies and pay a minimum of $370 million to approximately 200,000 borrowers.