Anthony v. Am. Gen'l. Fin. Servs., Inc., No. 08-15983

Mortgage Notary Fee Assessment Action

In Anthony v. Am. Gen'l. Fin. Servs., Inc., No. 08-15983, an action challenging defendant American General Financial Services's assessment of mortgage notary fees that exceeded the statutory maximum set by OCGA section 45-17-11(b), the court affirmed the dismissal of the complaint in part where 1) the district court properly dismissed the plaintiffs' private civil claim under the Georgia notary fee statute; and 2) the district court did not err by dismissing plaintiffs' fraud and "money had and received" claims as filed outside the statute of limitations.  However, the court vacated in part where defendant possessed an express and affirmative statutory duty to disclose the maximum statutory notary fee of $4.00.

As the court wrote:  "The question is whether a debtor may sue to recover notary fees charged by a creditor in excess of the statutory maximum established by OCGA section 45-17-11(b).  The case returns to us after we certified questions to the Georgia Supreme Court.   See Anthony v. Am. Gen. Fin. Servs., Inc., 583 F.3d 1302, 1307 (11th Cir.2009) ("Anthony I ");  Anthony v. Am. Gen. Fin. Servs., Inc., 697 S.E.2d 166 (Ga.2010) ("Anthony II ")."

Related Resources

• Read the Eleventh Circuit's Decision in Anthony v. Am. Gen'l. Fin. Servs., Inc., No. 08-15983