On September 25, 2014, after years of litigation on the role,
authority, and legal standing of Mortgage Electronic Registration
Systems, Inc. (MERS) to act on behalf of the mortgagee, the Rhode
Island Supreme Court issued 10 orders, each dismissing
Plaintiffs' appeals from a Rhode Island Superior Court judgment
in favor of MERS without further briefing and argument and
relying extensively on prior 2013 and 2014 decisions. The
Court's summary disposition of these 10 appeals, which were
before the Court at a conference in session, sends a strong message
that MERS litigation in Rhode Island is coming to an end.
The Court's orders recited and rejected three main
undercurrent arguments by Plaintiffs. First, Plaintiffs contended
Rhode Island law precludes MERS from acting in a nominee capacity
for the lender. Second, Plaintiffs contended that MERS lacked the
authority to assign their mortgages, and the subsequent
foreclosures were void for the same reason. Third,
