Filed Date: Dec. 13, 1993
Closed Date: Dec. 13, 2003
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The Department of Justice filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut on December 13, 1993, alleging violations of the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601-3619, and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. §§ 1691-1691f. The Complaint alleged that the Defendant mortgage lender applied more rigorous standards when evaluating mortgage applicants from prospective black and Hispanic borrowers. The Complaint stated that the Defendant had rejected black and Hispanic applicants at twice the rate of white applicants during the preceding two years.
The parties submitted a consent decree the same day at the Complaint was filed. U.S. District Court Judge Alfred V. Covello approved the consent decree, and the case was voluntarily dismissed by the DOJ. The consent decree required the Defendant to continue several recently implemented anti-discrimination procedures, including a mortgage review committee, which conducted a second review of all rejected minority credit applications; a mortgage customer assistance program; and periodic self-evaluations. In addition, the consent decree also required the Defendant to provide lending data to the Department of Justice on a regular basis for the following three years.
Summary Authors
Andrew Nash (6/2/2008)
Covello, Alfred V. (Connecticut)
Droney, Christopher Fitzgerald (Connecticut)
Hancock, Paul F. (District of Columbia)
Hughes, John B. (Connecticut)
Bennett, Robert Stephen (District of Columbia)
Covello, Alfred V. (Connecticut)
Last updated Jan. 8, 2024, 3:01 a.m.
State / Territory: Connecticut
Case Type(s):
Fair Housing/Lending/Insurance
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: Dec. 13, 1993
Closing Date: Dec. 13, 2003
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
United States DOJ, on behalf of black and Hispanic citizens throughout New England who were denied home mortgages from 01/1990 through 10/1992, allegedly because of disparate standards and practices by the defendant.
Plaintiff Type(s):
U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff
Attorney Organizations:
U.S. Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Shawmut Mortgage Company, Private Entity/Person
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Fair Housing Act/Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601 et seq.
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1993 - 2003
Issues
General:
Discrimination-area:
Discrimination-basis:
Race:
National Origin/Ethnicity: