Appeals court rules against man who was denied continuance in foreclosure proceedings

NEW ORLEANS - A homeowner who lost his home through foreclosure has lost an appeal against a national mortgage company.

BAC Home Loans Servicing L.P. (BAC) foreclosed and sold Ashley Martin’s house after he allegedly failed to pay his monthly mortgage fees. The mortgage company claims it  sent various letters of notification to Martin and took action after receiving no response.

Martin sued in a district court claiming wrongful foreclosure after the house was sold to the Federal National Mortgage Association without his participation.

Martin’s argument in court failed on several grounds and he filed for a continuance that was rejected by the lower court due to his filing a late response to BAC’s motion for summary judgment.

Martin accused the court of abusing its discretion because it chose to deny his motion for continuance. However, because Martin filed his request for continuance after his given deadline, the court found that it did not abuse its discretion and upheld its decision to deny his motion for continuance.

Judges Jerry Edwin Smith, Edward C. Prado and Priscilla Owen upheld summary judgment in favor of BAC.

Case No. 12-30565.