BALDOCK, Circuit Judge.
Plaintiff Commonwealth Property Advocates, LLC, acquired title to three pieces of real property in Utah from three defaulting borrowers. Plaintiff then filed three suits in diversity against various Defendants which held interests in the property, seeking to prevent foreclosure. Plaintiff argued Defendants had no authority to foreclose because the notes in each case had been securitized and sold on the open market. Because the security follows the debt, Plaintiff argued, once Defendants sold the security they could not
The following facts are found in Plaintiff's complaints and the attached exhibits. In appeal 10-4182, the original borrower received two loans totaling $309,000 from American Sterling Bank, secured by real property in Bountiful, Utah. Each security interest was memorialized by a promissory note and a deed of trust naming as beneficiary Defendant Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems ("MERS") in its capacity as nominee for American Sterling.
In appeal 10-4193, the original borrower received $1,135,400 from GreenPoint Mortgage Funding to acquire real property in Sandy, Utah. In exchange, the borrower executed a promissory note in favor of GreenPoint. The borrower also executed a deed of trust in favor of Meridian Title Company. The trust deed named MERS as both the beneficiary and GreenPoint's nominee and expressly gave MERS the right "to foreclose and sell the property." Defendant BAC Home Loans Servicing later became the servicer of the note, and Defendant ReconTrust was named as substitute trustee. According to the complaint, "the obligation under the Note was pooled and sold by Lender ... as securities to numerous investors unknown." When the original borrower defaulted, ReconTrust served a notice of default and intent to sell. Plaintiff acquired title to the property via quitclaim deed about seven weeks later. Plaintiff then filed suit
In appeal 10-4215, the original borrower executed two promissory notes totaling $1,250,000 in favor of Defendant First Horizon Home Loan Corporation. The borrower secured these notes by two deeds of trust in property in Alpine, Utah. The trust deeds named Meridian Title Company as trustee. Both deeds of trust designated MERS as the beneficiary and as First Horizon's nominee, and both gave MERS the right to foreclose and sell the property on First Horizon's behalf. First Horizon pooled the obligations on the notes and sold them as securities to various investors. First Horizon also substituted eTitle as the trustee, but did not initially record the substitution. The original borrower defaulted on the loan, and trustee eTitle filed a notice of default. The original borrower then quitclaimed the property to Plaintiff. Plaintiff sued First Horizon and MERS, asserting "causes of action" for (1) "stay of pending sale," (2) "estoppel/declaratory judgment," (3) declaratory judgment, (4) quiet title, and (5) "refund, fees and costs." The district court granted Defendants' motion to dismiss, and Plaintiff appealed.
Plaintiff's complaints are difficult to construe, but they appear to raise three substantive claims for relief.
Plaintiff's third claim, seeking to quiet title, rests upon two grounds. First, Plaintiff asserts that Defendants' failure "to retain any interest in the obligation under the Note voided any title or power they might have under the Trust Deed, and rendered said Trust deed unenforceable by them." Second, Plaintiff alleges that "[r]ecordation of the plaintiff's deed to the subject property prior to the recordation of any assignment of the Trust Deed, renders any such assignments void and unenforceable against the subject property" under Utah Code Ann. §§ 57-3-102 and 57-3-103. Plaintiff seeks to quiet title in its favor, thus "freeing title to the subject property of the lien of the Trust Deed and leaving any obligation under the Note unsecured...."
Plaintiff appears to raise only one issue on appeal.
We first address Defendants' arguments challenging our jurisdiction. In appeal 10-4193, Defendants argue we cannot consider the merits of the 12(b)(6) motion because Plaintiff appealed only the denial of its "motion to reconsider." In appeal 10-4215, Defendants argue Plaintiff lacks standing to sue, because Plaintiff's injury is self-imposed and because Plaintiff is seeking to assert a third party's rights.
We may construe Plaintiff's motion to reconsider as relevant to appeal 10-4193 either as a motion to alter or amend the judgment under Fed.R.Civ.P. 59(e) or as motion for relief from the judgment under Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b). If a motion is timely under both rules, how we construe it depends upon the reasons expressed by the movant. Jennings v. Rivers, 394 F.3d 850, 855 (10th Cir.2005). A Rule 59(e) motion is the appropriate vehicle "to correct manifest errors of law or to present newly discovered evidence." Phelps v. Hamilton, 122 F.3d 1309, 1324 (10th Cir. 1997) (quoting Comm. for the First Amendment v. Campbell, 962 F.2d 1517, 1523 (10th Cir.1992)). A Rule 60(b) motion is appropriate for, among other things, "mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect" and "newly discovered evidence that, with reasonable diligence, could not have been discovered in time to move for a new trial." Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b)(1), (2). The district court did not construe Plaintiff's motion as either a Rule 59 or Rule 60 motion, but simply denied it. Plaintiff's motion was filed within fourteen days of the district court's order, meaning it was timely under Rule 59(e). The motion appears to be properly characterized as a Rule 59(e) motion, because Plaintiff claimed the district court "overlooked the applicable statute and the facts." We accordingly construe it as a Rule 59(e) motion. "[A]n appeal from the denial of a motion to reconsider construed as a Rule 59(e) motion permits consideration of the merits of the underlying judgment, while an appeal from the denial of a Rule 60(b) motion does not itself preserve for appellate review the underlying judgment." Hawkins v. Evans, 64 F.3d 543, 546 (10th Cir.1995). Because we construe Plaintiff's motion as one brought under Rule 59(e), we may consider the merits of the district court's underlying dismissal.
Defendants next challenge Plaintiff's standing as relevant to appeal 10-4215. The doctrine of standing has both a constitutional and a prudential component. To have standing under Article III, Plaintiff must assert an injury that is (1) concrete, particularized, and actual or imminent, (2) fairly traceable to the Defendants' challenged action, and (3)
One element of prudential standing is "the general prohibition on a litigant's raising another person's legal rights." Elk Grove Unified Sch. Dist. v. Newdow, 542 U.S. 1, 12, 124 S.Ct. 2301, 159 L.Ed.2d 98 (2004). Defendants in 10-4215 argue Plaintiff is attempting to assert the rights of a third party, the original borrower on the mortgage. Defendants cite Shire Development v. Frontier Investments, 799 P.2d 221, 222-23 (Utah Ct.App.1990), for the proposition that "a plaintiff lacks standing to sue about a contract to which he is not a party." Plaintiff has not, however, asserted any contractual rights. Instead, Plaintiff alleges Defendants have no legal or contractual authority to foreclose. Because Plaintiff is the current owner of the real property, a foreclosure would injure Plaintiff directly. Therefore, Plaintiff also has prudential standing, and we may proceed to the merits.
We review a Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal de novo, accepting as true all well-pleaded factual allegations in the complaint and viewing them in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. Smith v. United States, 561 F.3d 1090, 1098 (10th Cir.2009). In evaluating a motion to dismiss, we may consider not only the complaint, but also the attached exhibits and documents incorporated into the complaint by reference. Id. "To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to `state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.'" Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 1949, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007)). When reviewing a 12(b)(6) dismissal,
Our first task is to determine exactly what cause or causes of action Plaintiff is asserting. Plaintiff's "causes of action" listed in its complaints are actually forms of relief. Because Plaintiff asserted no federal claims and brought this case in diversity, its claims for relief must be grounded in state law. Plaintiff, however, asserted no common law basis for its claims and waived its only claims based on Utah statutes.
Utah law relating to trust deeds gives a trustee the power to sell the trust property if the borrower breaches an obligation relating to the secured property. Utah Code Ann. § 57-1-23. In addition, the beneficiary may elect to have the foreclosure conducted according to the "law for the foreclosure of mortgages on real property." Id. The trustee may exercise the power of sale even "without express provision for it in the trust deed." Id. Thus, under § 57-1-23 the only trustee Defendant in this case, ReconTrust, had apparent authority to foreclose. Additionally, all the trust deeds in this case said "MERS (as nominee for Lender and Lender's successors and assigns) has the right: to exercise any or all of [Lender's] interests, including, but not limited to, the right to foreclose and sell the Property." This language appears to give MERS the right to foreclose on behalf of not only the lenders but also the lender's successors and assigns.
Nevertheless, Plaintiff argues the trust deed provisions giving MERS this right are invalid because they conflict with Utah Code Ann. § 57-1-35. Plaintiff also appears to argue § 57-1-35 deprived ReconTrust of the power to foreclose as a trustee.
The Utah Supreme Court has never addressed the effect of § 57-1-35 on the power to foreclose. While these appeals were pending, however, the Utah Court of Appeals addressed Plaintiff's arguments and interpreted § 57-1-35. Commonwealth Prop. Advocates v. Mortg. Elec. Registration Sys., Inc., 263 P.3d 397 (Utah Ct.App.2011), cert. denied, Utah State Courts Appellate Docket No. 20100888 (Dec. 14, 2011). Commonwealth involved a suit brought by Plaintiff in Utah state court making almost identical claims and arguments to those it has put forth here.
The state court then addressed Plaintiff's reliance on § 57-1-35. The court said, "The plain language of this statute
Id. (quoting Marty v. Mortg. Elec. Registration Sys., 2010 WL 4117196 (D.Utah Oct. 19, 2010)). The court went on to "reject [Plaintiff]'s assertion that Utah Code section 57-1-35 prohibits the original parties to the Note and Deed of Trust from agreeing to have someone other than the beneficial owner of the debt act on behalf of that owner and its successors and assigns to enforce rights granted in the trust deed." Id. at 404 (internal citations and brackets omitted). The court upheld the district court's entry of summary judgment against Plaintiff.
The Utah Court of Appeals' decision in Commonwealth effectively disposes of these three cases. "When exercising diversity jurisdiction, we apply state law with the objective of obtaining the result that would be reached in state court." Butt v. Bank of Am., N.A., 477 F.3d 1171, 1179 (10th Cir.2007). If the state's highest court has reached an issue, "[t]he federal court must defer to the most recent decisions of the state's highest court." Wankier v. Crown Equip. Corp., 353 F.3d 862, 866 (10th Cir.2003). Where the state's highest court has not addressed the issue, we still follow the state's intermediate court decisions absent "convincing evidence that the highest court would decide otherwise." Webco Indus., Inc. v. Thermatool Corp., 278 F.3d 1120, 1126 (10th Cir.2002) (citing B.F. Goodrich Co. v. Hammond, 269 F.2d 501, 505 (10th Cir. 1959)). According to the Supreme Court, "Where an intermediate appellate state court rests its considered judgment upon the rule of law which it announces, that is a datum for ascertaining state law which is not to be disregarded by a federal court unless it is convinced by other persuasive data that the highest court of the state would decide otherwise." West v. Am. Tel. & Tel. Co., 311 U.S. 223, 237, 61 S.Ct. 179, 85 L.Ed. 139 (1940).
We have no reason to believe the Utah Supreme Court would reach a different result than did the Utah Court of Appeals. The court of appeals' decision is based on a straightforward reading of the statute. Even assuming Plaintiff is correct that securitization deprives Defendants of their implicit power to foreclose
Accordingly, the judgments in appeals 10-4182, 10-4193, and 10-4215 are AFFIRMED.