Jon A.C. Vonder Haar
| Office | Northern California |
| Phone | 707.522.1100 ext 1112 |
| Fax | 707.522.1101 |
| jvonderhaar@smithdollar.com |
Biography
Mr. Vonder Haar is an experienced litigator and advisor to lenders and secondary market investors for mortgage banking related matters. He has considerable experience in mortgage fraud recovery, including, but not limited to, actions involving escrow agent, closing attorney, closing protection letters, fidelity bonds, title insurance, mortgage brokers, appraisers, buyers, sellers, developers, and other liable third parties. Mr. Vonder Haar defends lenders in litigation concerning regulatory compliance including, but not limited to, RESPA, TILA, and contested foreclosures. He also is experienced in drafting closing instructions and advising lenders in proper closing procedures.
Before practicing in the field of mortgage banking, Mr. Vonder Haar represented physicians in defense of medical malpractice claims and later represented national insurers in coverage and bad faith litigation.
Mr. Vonder Haar started his legal career as a certified student representing clients in open court for the Solano County Public Defenders Office. He then interned in the felony division of the Santa Clara County Public Defenders Office.
Bar admissions
• California Supreme Court and all California State Courts
• United States District Court, Central District of California
• United States District Court, Northern District of California
• United States District Court, Eastern District of California
• United States District Court, Southern District of California
• United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• United States District Court, District of Colorado
• United States District Court, Northern District of Florida
• Multiple State and Federal pro hac vice admissions in Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho, Minnesota, Nevada, and Tennessee.
Education
- John F. Kennedy University, School of Law, J.D.
- California State University, Chico, B. S. Business Administration (Finance)
Professional associations and memberships
- California State Bar Association
- Member, Sonoma County Bar Association
Publications and Presentations
- 2011-Settlement Agent Fraud: Prevention and Recovery - MBA's Quality Assurance and Residential Underwriting Conference
- 2009-Fraud for Big Profits- MBA's Quality Assurance and Residential Underwriting Conference
- 2008-Mortgage Fraud Blog Conference, Miami, FL
- 2008-ACI 5th Annual Preventing, Detecting And Resolving Mortgage Fraud, Scottsdale, AZ
- Daily Herald Recorder (2007)
M&I Bank FSB v. Ty Coughlin et al., No. CV09-2282-PHX-NVW, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88485 (D. Ariz. Aug. 9, 2011). Overturned existing case law and established that Arizona's 90-day statute of limitation for seeking a deficiency does not apply to non-borrowers and non-guarantors, and that a lender's loss after foreclosure is not a "deficiency" under Arizona's anti-deficiency statutes, when recovery is sought against non-borrowers and non-guarantors, i.e., seller, escrow agent, mortgage broker, etc.
M&I Bank FSB v. Ty Coughlin et al., No. CV09-2282-PHX-NVW, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88485 (D. Ariz. Nov. 10, 2011). Established that seller-funded down payments are a staple of mortgage fraud and that an escrow agent is required to ensure borrower's down payment is from the borrower, if required by the Lender's Closing Instructions, even if such is not a function of the escrow agent. Lender was granted summary judgment against: (1) seller for fraud for submitting borrower's down payment to the escrow agent to close the transaction; and (2) escrow agent for failure to "source" the borrower's down payment to ensure it was from the borrower, pursuant to the Lender's Closing Instructions.
Awards and designations
- American Jurisprudence Award for Criminal Law
- Corpus Juris Secundum Award for Criminal Law