Craig A. Dodds v. Carrington Mortgage Services LLC

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas granted Carrington Mortgage Services LLC’s motion for summary judgment in Craig A. Dodds’s challenge to foreclosure of a Texas homestead. The court held that the plaintiff’s wife’s subsequent express consent validated the home-equity lien under the Texas Constitution, and the plaintiff’s failure to respond left Carrington’s evidence undisputed.

Holdings

1. A nonresponsive party leaves the movant's factual assertions undisputed, but the court must still determine whether the undisputed facts are material and entitle the movant to judgment as a matter of law. Carrington met that standard.
2. An owner's spouse who did not initially consent to a homestead lien may subsequently consent to and thereby validate the lien. Deborah Dodds's subsequent express consent validated the loan.

Questions Presented

1. Whether summary judgment was proper when Dodds failed to respond and Carrington's evidence was undisputed.
2. Whether a spouse's subsequent express consent validates a homestead lien that was not initially created with the spouse's consent under Article XVI, Section 50 of the Texas Constitution.

Disposition

other