The appeals court reversed parts of the July 2025 order that had allowed foreclosure (AI image)
A New York man who took out a mortgage in 2005 has managed to overturn a court ruling that had gone in favour of a bank seeking to foreclose on his property. The US Bank National Association had accused Moses Sukljian of failing to make his loan payments and secured a favourable ruling in 2025. As a result, the earlier judgment in the bank’s favour could not stand.
The bank had failed to provide sufficient proof concerning documents used to transfer the right to enforce the loan, according to the ruling published by the New York State Unified Court System. However, on Friday, a state appeals court reversed the decision after finding that the bank had not provided enough evidence to prove it had the legal right to enforce the loan.
The 2005 mortgage and foreclosure dispute
The matter reached court in July 2023, when US Bank National Association filed a foreclosure lawsuit. In July 2025, the lower court accepted the bank’s position. It claimed Sukljian had defaulted on the loan and sought permission to proceed with the case. It ruled that the documents were sufficient, removed Sukljian’s defence and directed that the outstanding debt be calculated. Sukljian, however, appealed, arguing that the bank had not proved its right to enforce the original loan.
The appeals court had to examine whether US Bank National Association was legally entitled to bring the foreclosure case in the first place. When the bank first filed its lawsuit, the copy of the promissory note it submitted did not contain an endorsement establishing its right to enforce the loan. There was also no accompanying allonge containing the necessary endorsement. This left the court unable to establish whether the documents had been properly attached to the note when the foreclosure proceedings began.