A federal judge in Colorado ruled against a motion to dismiss from Rocket and Solidifi over
The homeowner involved, Francesca Cheroutes, is part of the
The appraisal company involved, Maverick Appraisal Group and its owner, Maksym Mykhailyna, were not part of this motion. It had filed its own answer to the Cheroutes' complaint in March.
Solidifi was the appraisal management company which hired Mykhailyna to perform the valuation.
In his ruling, Judge Gordon Gallagher acknowledged the Rocket/Solidifi arguments, "that they cannot be held responsible for the alleged discriminatory actions of Mykhailyna and his company, Maverick, because Movants are constrained by regulations intended to insure appraiser independence."
But when it came to Rocket's arguments, Gallagher said the mortgage lender did not address "plainly alleged theories of liability" when it asked to dismiss the entire claim, as "Such relief would not be proper."
In response, Rocket remains steadfast that it did not discriminate in any way against the homeowner.
The Justice Department alleged Rocket could have corrected the appraisal but "this is 100% false," the company said in a statement.
"Rocket Mortgage had no 'authority to correct' the appraisal as a matter of law," the statement continued.
"It's also important to note that Rocket Mortgage offered the homeowner a path to challenge the appraisal through
Meanwhile, Gallagher wrote that the plaintiffs had "sufficiently alleged Solidifi's vicarious liability" in the case.
The judge said factual allegations in the complaint indicate that, by mutual consent, Mykhailyna acted on Solidifi's behalf in appraising Cheroutes' property. He furthermore said that Mykhailyna "was subject to Solidifi's control over the methods and manner it carried out the task," the ruling stated.
NMN reached out to Solidifi for a comment but did not immediately receive a response.
