Wells Fargo, Ocwen Seek Tweak to ERISA Mortgage Appeal Opinion

Ocwen Financial Corp. and Wells Fargo Bank NA asked the Second Circuit to revise its decision reviving a lawsuit attempting to hold them liable under ERISA for alleged pension losses tied to mortgage-backed securities.

Wells Fargo and Ocwen—now known as Onity Group Inc.—want the appeals court to remove language from its March opinion suggesting that residential mortgage-backed securities trusts are ERISA plan assets simply because they qualify as “equity interests” under the relevant federal regulations.

A federal district judge ruled in 2023 that the securities don’t qualify as plan assets under ERISA—and thus there’s no valid claim under the statute—because ...