Deposition of Claire Swazey

7/27/2019 Deposition of Claire Swazey

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Deposition of Claire Swazey, 6/5/2013

206-682-9339 www.vanpeltdep.com 888-4WA-depVan Pelt, Corbett, Bellows, Court Reporters

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON

IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF PIERCE______________________________________________________________

)DION R. HARGROVE, )

)Plaintiff, )

)vs. ) No. 12-2-14656-5

)NORTHWEST TRUSTEE SERVICES, )

)INC., et al. )

)Defendants. )______________________________________________________________

DEPOSITION UPON ORAL EXAMINATION

OF

CLAIRE SWAZEY______________________________________________________________

9:03 a.m.June 5, 2013

787 Maynard Avenue SouthSeattle, Washington 98104

JACQUELINE L. BELLOWS

CCR 2297


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Page 2

1 I N D E X O F E X A M I N A T I O N

2 Page----

3Examination

4By Ms. Dao ------------------------------------ 6

5By Mr. Katz ----------------------------------- 115

6

7 Re-Examination

8 By Ms. Dao ------------------------------------ 117

9

10

11

12 I N D E X O F E X H I B I T S

13 No. Description Marked Identified--- ----------- ------ ----------

141 Notice of Default, 4-10-10, RCO 1095 16 17

15 - 1097

2 Deed of Trust, 7-14-08, RCO 1172 - 27 2716 1182

17 3 Assignment of Deed of Trust, 4-4-12, 45 45RCO 1102 - 1103

184 Individual Message, 4-6-12, RCO 1049 46 46

19 - 1050

20 5 Individual Message, 4-6-12, RCO 1051 49 49

21 6 Beneficiary Declaration, 7-5-12, 54 54RCO 1105

227 Foreclosure Loss Mitigation Form, 58 58

23 3-29-12, RCO 1094

24 8 Appointment of Successor Trustee, 61 614-30-12, RCO 1104

25


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Page 3



3 9 Notice of Foreclosure, Effective date 67 67

4 5-15-12, RCO 1106 - 1107

5 10 Notice of Trustee's Sale, 5-15-12, 73 74RCO 1124 - 1127

611 Washington Notary Bond, 1-12-10 76

712 Notice of Trustee's Sale, 3-29-10 76 76

813 Recording Cover Sheet, 1-12-12 77

914 Notice of Default and Election to 80

10 Sell, 4-26-12

11 15 Notice of Default and Election to 82Sell, 4-26-12

1216 Copy of Note, RCO 1183 - 1186 85 85

1317 Note, RCO 1091 - 1093 86 86

1418 Declaration of Mailing, 8-20-12, 86 86

15 RCO 1148

16 19 Declaration of Mailing, 9-17-12, 87 87RCO 1149

1720 Postponement of Trustee's Sale, 88 88

18 8-17-12, RCO 1362

19 21 Notice of Postponement, 8-17-12, 88 88RCO 1142

2022 Notice of Postponement, 9-14-12, 89 89

21 RCO 114322 23 Notice of Postponement, 10-19-12, 90 90

RCO 1146

2324 Notice of Postponement, 11-16-12, 91 91

24 RCO 1147

25


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Page 4



325 Notice of Discontinuance of Trustee's 91 91

4 Sale, 2-19-13, RCO 1152

5 26 Notice of Discontinuance of Trustee's 92 92Sale, 2-26-13, RCO 1153

627 Individual Message, 2-20-13, RCO 1076 95 96

728 Subpoena for Deposition, 6-5-13 112

8

9

10 INDEX OF QUESTIONS NOT ANSWERED

11 Page Line Question____________________________________________

12 14 24 "I'm asking you if you have either an increase ordecrease in your salary."

1394 5 "Has Mr. Katz ever walked into your office and asked

14 you for access to this particular file?"94 21 "And my question is, with regard to canceling the

15 sale, what specific instruction do you get fromMr. Katz?"16

17

18 INDEX OF ADDITIONAL DISCOVERY REQUESTS

19 Page Line Material Requested__________________________________

20 115 7 Hargrove electronic file and nonjudicial foreclosurechecklist

21

22

23

24

25


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Page 5

1

2 APPEARANCES

3 For the Plaintiff:

4HA THU DAO

5 LAW OFFICE OF HA THU DAO787 Maynard Avenue South

6 Seattle, Washington 98104

7

8 For the Defendants:

9 CHARLES E. KATZROUTH CRABTREE OLSEN, P.S.

10 13555 SE 36th Street 300Bellevue, WA 98006

11

12

13 Court Reporter: JACQUELINE L. BELLOWS

VAN PELT, CORBETT, BELLOWS14 401 Second Avenue South 700

Seattle, WA 98104

15

16 * * * * * * * * * *

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25


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Page 6

1

2 CLAIRE SWAZEY, having been first duly sworn

3 by the Court Reporter, appeared

4 and testified as follows:

5

6 E X A M I N A T I O N

7 BY MS. DAO:

8 Q Good morning, Ms. Swazey. My name is Han Dao, and I

9 represent Dion Hargrove, the plaintiff in this case. And I

10 just want to go through a few ground rules with you.

11 Have you ever gotten your -- well, first of all, please

12 state your name and your address for the record.

13 A My name is Claire Swazey. And I don't divulge my address or

14 other personal information.

15 Q You can give your work address if you want.

16 A Oh, okay. Certainly. It's 13555 Southeast 36th, Suite 100,

17 Bellevue, Washington. I think the zip is 98006.

18 Q And please give the court reporter the spelling of your last

19 name.

20 A S-W-A-Z, like zebra, E-Y.

21 Q Have you ever been deposed before?

22 A Yes.

23 Q And how many times?

24 A I don't remember how many. Several.

25 Q More than three?


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1 A Don't remember.

2 Q More than two?

3 A Don't remember.

4 Q More than one?

5 A Probably.

6 Q Do you remember when's the last time you were deposed?

7 A I don't.

8 Q Can you even guess how long ago it was?

9 A About 15, 18 years.

10 Q Okay. So is it fair to say that none of these depositions

11 have anything to do with your job at Northwest Trustee?

12 A Which depositions?

13 Q The depositions that --

14 A Before?

15 Q -- where you were testifying.

16 A Yeah, they did not.

17 Q The ground rules are that the proceedings are recorded. And

18 so I need you to be audible: Yes, no. Don't nod. Don't

19 shake your head 'cause Jackie can't capture any of that.

20 A Got it, yeah.

21 Q The questions that I'm asking you, I would like for you to

22 think about them thoroughly before answering.

23 A Uh-huh.

24 Q And no uh-huh.

25 A Okay.


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Page 8

1 Q Audible yes or no. If you need to take a break, let me

2 know; but finish your answer before you get the break.

3 A I understand.

4 Q All right. Did you take any actions before you came here

5 today to prepare for this deposition?

6 A Yes.

7 Q Can you tell me what that was. I'm not going to ask you

8 anything about what you told Mr. Katz or your conversation

9 with him but just the steps.

10 A I attended a class on giving depositions. I mean on

11 testifying.

12 Q When was that?

13 A Well, it's not testifying.

14 Q When was this class?

15 A A couple months ago.

16 Q You took a class in how to attend depositions; correct?

17 A Yeah.

18 Q And who gave this class? And where did you take it?

19 A My firm gave it. It was at the address I gave you.

20 Q Your firm is Northwest Trustee?

21 A No. It was actually given at Routh Crabtree Olsen.

22 Q Was the class given to a number of people or just you?

23 A A number of people.

24 Q And what else did you do beside taking this class?

25 A Nothing.


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Page 9

1 Q Did you look at any files?

2 A No.

3 Q With regards to the file for Dion Hargrove and this

4 property -- and I just want to state the address: 9817 66th

5 Avenue East in Puyallup -- did you look at any papers, any

6 documents before you came here?

7 A No.

8 Q Did you look at your computer screens or search your

9 database for information relating to the case?

10 A No.

11 Q Are you under any kind of medications or conditions that

12 would influence the -- your ability to recall or answer

13 questions today accurately and completely?

14 A No.

15 Q Without reviewing any documents before you came, did you

16 bring any documents with you?

17 A No.

18 Q We -- I gave a subpoena to Mr. Katz. Did you have a chance

19 to look at the particular subpoena I sent?

20 A Yes.

21 Q It asks for a number of documents. You did not bring any

22 today?

23 A I did not bring any today.

24 Q Was it at the directive of Mr. Katz, or did you on your own

25 decide that you were not going to bring any?


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Page 11

1 Q Great. Okay. Thank you for that.

2 How long -- okay. First of all, you are employed by

3 Northwest Trustee?

4 A Yes.

5 Q And tell me about your history of employment, starting out

6 when you were first hired until up to today.

7 A Okay. I will. I started April 15, 2009.

8 Q What was the position at that time?

9 A It is -- well, it was then called analyst.

10 Q What's that? I'm sorry.

11 A The position title was at the time called analyst.

12 Q Tell me the scope of that job.

13 A I -- the job is to run a team of individuals who perform the

14 statutory steps of the nonjudicial foreclosure process.

15 Q How big was the team in 2009?

16 A 2009 I was in training. It was just me.

17 Q Then what happened next?

18 A In 2010 I got a team.

19 Q How big is that team?

20 A Three people other than myself.

21 Q And did your title remain analyst, or did it change in 2010?

22 A It did not change in 2010.

23 Q What happened after 2010?

24 A Around 2011 that title for all teams was changed to

25 foreclosure team manager.


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1 Q Did that mean a promotion to you?

2 A No.

3 Q In 2011 did the team grow in size?

4 A No.

5 Q So it's four people total?

6 A Yes.

7 Q And what happened after 2011?

8 A I don't understand the question.

9 Q Did the team size change? Did your position as team manager

10 change?

11 A No to both.

12 Q Did your salary change?

13 A I don't discuss salary.

14 Q I'm just asking you whether it changed or not.

15 A I'm trying to remember. Yes, I believe there was a change.

16 Q A change for the uptake, meaning an increase? I'm not

17 asking you for numbers. I'm just asking whether it went up

18 or down.

19 A I'm not comfortable discussing what I make with you.

20 Q I'm not asking you what you make. Understand. The ques --

21 A You're asking me about increases.

22 Q And I asked what direction. I'm not asking for a number.

23 A Well, I don't want to discuss it.

24 Q You don't have a choice. Now, if your lawyer instructs you

25 not to answer, then we'll stop and we'll table the question.


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Page 13

1 We'll ask the judge to decide. But you are not at liberty

2 to say "I don't want to answer."

3 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object to that. The

4 witness has answered the question the way she's going

5 to answer the question.

6 Q (By Ms. Dao) So you can answer. If you know the answer, you

7 can answer. If you refuse, I'm going to ask him to

8 basically put it on the record. Again I'm only asking you

9 for a directional question. It's either up or down.

10 Did your salary change for the increase or the

11 decrease? I'm not asking you how much.

12 A Mr. Katz already stated that I've answered the question the

13 way I've answered the question.

14 Q No, you have not.

15 MS. DAO: So let me clarify, Mr. Katz. Are you

16 instructing her not to answer?

17 MR. KATZ: I haven't instructed her anything. All

18 I stated was she's answered the question the way she's

19 going to answer it. I can't compel her to make any

20 certain type of answer. So you've asked her a personal

21 question. She's given you an answer. If she doesn't

22 want to answer the question, I can't make her do that.

23 MS. DAO: I'm not asking you to "make her."

24 Q (By Ms. Dao) Let me say this again, Ms. Swazey: You have to

25 answer the question whether you like it or not. And until


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1 and unless he tells not to, you will give an answer.

2 A I'm not giving personal information to you.

3 Q Not personal --

4 A I consider that personal information.

5 Q You're not listening to me. It's not your decision to make.

6 I ask the questions. You give the answer.

7 A Not if it's personal. Sorry.

8 Q Let me ask you the question again. I'm not asking how much

9 you make, how much you gained. Do you understand that?

10 There's nothing personal about that. The question --

11 MR. KATZ: Don't argue with her, please.

12 MS. DAO: I am not done. Let me finish my

13 question.

14 MR. KATZ: You can question. Just don't argue

15 with her.

16 MS. DAO: I'm not arguing.

17 Q (By Ms. Dao) I'm explaining to you.

18 A Isn't a gain an increase?

19 Q I'm asking you -- no, I'm sorry.

20 What was your answer? You had a gain in salary in

21 2000 --

22 A No. I'm taking what you said. You said I'm not asking you

23 about any gains.

24 Q I'm asking you if you have either an increase or decrease in

25 your salary.


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1 A That's a personal question that I decline to answer.

2 MS. DAO: For the record, the witness has refused

3 to answer the question.

4 Q (By Ms. Dao) In -- as a team manager, describe your duties

5 for me.

6 A Okay. I oversee a number of files that are assigned to my

7 team. I oversee all the steps of the nonjudicial

8 foreclosure process and supervise my team as they do those

9 things. And I oversee it from the beginning, when we

10 receive a referral, to the very end when we take it to sale.

11 Q Did you do some of the work yourself in addition to

12 supervising other team members?

13 A Yes, I do.

14 Q Then what do you -- when you say "oversee," what exactly do

15 you do?

16 A Well, it's like a -- it's a supervisory position. So I

17 ensure that their work is done.

18 Q And this team of yours, do you focus on a particular loan

19 type? Servicers? Or do you take assignments at random?

20 A It's any file that is assigned to my team.

21 Q Who does the assignment?

22 A The firm.

23 Q And "the firm" being Northwest Trustee?

24 A Yes.

25 Q How is the assignment process carried out?


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1 A The files are designated -- various types of loans and

2 servicers are designated to different teams as a division of

3 labor.

4 Q What does your team do? What kind of servicers and what

5 kind of loans?

6 A Mostly Washington; major mortgage companies and banks;

7 mostly conventional Fannie Mae, FHA, VA. And I also handle

8 all the Washington nonjudicial reverse-mortgage referrals

9 for the company.

10 Q In particular, your duties relating to foreclosure in this

11 case, do you have recollection of this file? Do you know

12 which file we're talking about?

13 A I have a very vague recollection.

14 MR. KATZ: Just for the record, you mean the

15 Hargrove file?

16 MS. DAO: Correct.

17 [Deposition Exhibit No. 1 marked.]

18 Q (By Ms. Dao) The court reporter handed to you Exhibit 1 to

19 your deposition. I want you to take a look at Exhibit 1,

20 and take your time.

21 A Okay. [Complies.]

22 Q Did this jog your memory about your work, your personal work

23 on the case?

24 A No.

25 Q At all?


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1 A No, ma'am.

2 Q Do you have any doubt that that document, Exhibit 1, which

3 is the Notice of Default that I handed you, is one of the

4 documents that you prepared?

5 A No, I have no doubt of that.

6 Q And you don't have any recollection about putting it

7 together? Is that what you're saying?

8 A Correct.

9 Q So is it your testimony that you don't have any specific

10 recollection to offer me as far as my client's file, the

11 Dion Hargrove property?

12 A I have nothing specific. I do recall having the Dion

13 Hargrove file, and that's just about it.

14 Q All right. So let's talk about how Exhibit 1 came about.

15 Can you tell me what you know about Exhibit 1.

16 A Yes. This was issued because he was behind and in default

17 on his mortgage payments and I was asked to proceed to

18 foreclosure.

19 Q Who asked you?

20 A I was asked by my client, City Mortgage, Incorporated.

21 Q How did you get asked by City Mortgage?

22 A I received a referral from them asking me to foreclose on

23 the subject property.

24 Q What is the method of that referral? How was it transmitted

25 to you?


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1 A They send them to the company, and the company then sends

2 them to the individual foreclosure team manager.

3 Q What's the format for that? Is it paper form? Is it

4 electronic? Is it email?

5 A We receive electronic notifications.

6 Q Tell me how you personally got it in this case.

7 A We receive it from the client. Once it's received by the

8 firm's automation division, the firm then notifies me that I

9 have this file.

10 Q And the notification is via email?

11 A The notification is in my system. They send me an alert;

12 and, when I click on the alert, it tells me which file and

13 that it's, in this case Mr. Hargrove, this subject property.

14

15 Q When you refer to "system," are we talking about computer

16 system?

17 A Yeah, our computer system.

18 Q What's the name of that program?

19 A File Tracking System.

20 Q This is -- the transmission that you got, you said from the

21 company, not from City Mortgage directly?

22 A Correct.

23 Q So you got alerted to a new referral?

24 A Correct.

25 Q And you open it up?


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1 A Yes, ma'am.

2 Q You indicated that City Mortgage is a client.

3 A Yes.

4 Q Now, the day of Exhibit 1 is April 10, 2012. Can you just

5 take a look and confirm for me.

6 A [Complies.] That is the date of the notice of default.

7 Q Can you tell me when City Mortgage became a client of


9 A No. I don't know.

10 Q How do you know that they are a client?

11 A Because I receive work from them.

12 Q Beyond that, how do you know that they are -- that they have

13 a client relationship with your company?

14 A Because my company told me: Claire, City Mortgage,

15 Incorporated, is your client.

16 Q Who told you that and when?

17 A Jeff Stenman in 2010.

18 Q Is it fair to say that City Mortgage is a long-term client?

19 You're still doing work for City Mortgage?

20 A Yes; that's fair to say.

21 Q When you received the alert, tell me about the alert itself.

22 Was it -- did it come from Northwest Trustee?

23 A Yes.

24 Q Did it come from an individual and who that person was?

25 A It came in our computer system. So it's not from a person.


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1 It's from the computer system.

2 Q And what did that alert contain?

3 A It contained a sort of hyperlink where I click, and it takes

4 me to this file, file number here.

5 Q So the hyperlink, now that takes you to file No. 730725623;

6 correct?

7 A Correct.

8 Q Is that a file number that is generated by Northwest

9 Trustee?

10 A Yes.

11 Q And so now you get hyperlinked to another system, or is it

12 the same system?

13 A It's our -- it's my system. It will actually take me to my

14 electronic file on which I will work.

15 Q Are we talking, still, about the File Tracking System?

16 A Yes.

17 Q When you got to this link and you opened it up, what did you

18 see? What information were you provided with?

19 A The file, the subject property address, the borrower name,

20 the default information, the client, the date it was

21 referred, that's -- and the arrearage.

22 Q And all of this information were provided to you via the

23 hyperlink. So is it fair to say that there was no papers?

24 A That's correct.

25 Q And do you know who input the data into the system for you


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1 to look at?

2 A It was put in by automation. They have some sort of

3 interface. I'm not familiar with it.

4 Q "They" as in Northwest Trustee --

5 A Northwest Trustee's automation has some sort of interface

6 with which, forgive me, I'm not familiar; and it interfaces

7 with the origin point of the referral, from City Mortgage in

8 this case. And then the information is then populated to a

9 file for me. I'm not party to any of that.

10 Q Do you have any idea -- so first of all, is it fair to say

11 that you don't know where the data came from, other than the

12 interfacing in general?

13 A I'm sorry. I'm not understanding.

14 Q Do you know where the data came from?

15 A Oh, data. Where the data came from?

16 Q Yes.

17 A The origin point would have been City Mortgage.

18 Q You're guessing?

19 A No. the origin point would have been, will be City Mortgage

20 on its referral.

21 Q And how do you know that?

22 A Because it comes from City Mortgage to us.

23 Q Okay. And explain that for me.

24 A Well, when I go into my file, I can see their referral.

25 There's a referral sheet that is imaged for me that is from


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1 my client, City Mortgage.

2 Q You're talking about the image having designations or labels

3 pertaining to City Mortgage?

4 A Yeah. It's their letterhead.

5 Q That's what I'm trying to get at. These are indicators.

6 Because you just told me that you have no idea about the

7 origin as where the data came from the interfacing; correct?

8 A Right. The IT, from the IT standpoint, you know, I don't.

9 But when I look at a client referral that has my name and

10 their name on it, their letterhead, then I know that they

11 have truly referred the file to me and when.

12 Q And the hyperlink gives you all the information regarding

13 the default and need for foreclosure. Is that fair to say?

14 A The hyperlink itself is the means to take me to my file.

15 It's my file that has that data in it.

16 Q Okay. And when you went to the hyperlink, what did you do?

17 Did you download the file and save it onto your computer, or

18 is it stored in the cloud somewhere that you can just sign

19 on and go to it whenever you want?

20 A When I'm in that system to get -- to look at the hyperlink

21 and click upon it, I'm in File Tracking. So when I click

22 upon it and I'm immediately taken to my file, I'm still in

23 File Tracking in a file already created. So that file's

24 already there and does not have to be created. They have

25 basically told me: Look, Claire, we've created this file


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1 for you.

2 Q When you say "they," you're referring to the computer?

3 A Yes.

4 Q I just want to make sure.

5 And the information that is contained in the notice of

6 default, Exhibit 1, did it come from your file entirely?

7 A Yes.

8 Q So you drew the information from this file system called

9 File Tracking?

10 A Yes.

11 Q And you obtained information from that system to compose or

12 to prepare the notice of default?

13 A Yes.

14 Q And when you look at Exhibit 1, do you recall whether you're

15 the person that prepared the notice of default or someone

16 else, like a team member, who did that?

17 A I don't recall which one of us did it.

18 Q Even though Exhibit 1 has your name on it, is that an

19 indicator that you might have done it or not?

20 A No. It is an indicater that I am the contact.

21 Q So tell me a little bit about how -- or not a little bit.

22 But tell me to the best of your ability how this notice of

23 default, Exhibit 1, got put together.

24 A Okay. The team member, whoever's working it, will review

25 all of the information from the client that has been


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1 provided and imaged. They will review the copy of the deed

2 of trust; and then they will review the information that is

3 in File Tracking, FTS for short.

4 Q FTS?

5 A Yeah, it's the abbreviation. It might be easier to say.

6 They ensure accuracy and that all the information

7 matches up and that the addresses in the mailing matrix are

8 correct and complete. And then they, then, electronically

9 prepare the notice of default.

10 Q So electronically preparing it means what?

11 A Well, we're paperless. So when you draft a -- when we draft

12 a document, we prepare it electronically. It is drafted and

13 then imaged to the file and then subsequently sent out.

14 Q By looking at Exhibit 1, you're not sure whether you're the

15 one that actually did the preparation?

16 A Correct.

17 Q And since you don't know for sure if you or someone else, is

18 it the case that team members would perform the duties that

19 you just described and put your name on it as a contact?

20 A My name would go on any notice.

21 Q Any and all?

22 A Correct. Any foreclosure notice that goes out to the

23 borrower from my team, as opposed to anyone else's team,

24 will have my name on it as the contact.

25 Q So who are the members of your team? What are their names?


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1 MR. KATZ: Can you clarify the time frame for

2 members of the team?

3 Q (By Ms. Dao) In 2012 when this notice of default was

4 prepared.

5 A Okay. In 2012 I had Benjamin Lynch; Diana Curd, C-U-R-D;

6 and Kristin Mayne, M-A-Y-N, like Nancy, E.

7 Q Just so I can be absolutely sure, were you involved in April

8 of 2012 in the preparation of notices of default at all?

9 A Occasionally, when I pitch in to help, I will run notices.

10 Q Would that be fair to say that that's a seldom occurrence as

11 opposed to a daily occurrence?

12 A I would say more occasionally than seldom. It's as needed

13 basis. Yeah, "occasionally" would be a better word than

14 "seldom." I think "seldom" makes it sound like it almost

15 never happens, and that's just not true.

16 Q And you pitch in when what? The volume is getting too high?

17 You're short handed? Tell me when you would pitch in.

18 A Both of those, when I feel the volume is high, when I'm

19 shorthanded, which one often goes with the other. But

20 either way, either or both of those occurrences are an

21 occasion for me to pitch in and help and do whatever needs

22 to be done including but not limited to running notices.

23 Q If Exhibit 1 doesn't jog your memory about whether you

24 actually prepared it, what would you do if a member of your

25 team had prepared it and put your name on it?


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1 A They would submit it for review, and either I would review

2 it, or a team lead could review it.

3 Q Of the individuals whose names you just mentioned, in this

4 instance, Exhibit 1, who would have reviewed Exhibit 1?

5 A I would have reviewed it.

6 Q But you're not sure?

7 A I know I was reviewing all the notices of default.

8 Q How did you review Exhibit 1?

9 A I cross checked everything in the electronic file against

10 the notice.

11 Q And basically that's just you're -- that's the task of

12 visual inspection: Reviewing the information against the

13 paper copy?

14 A Right I would have reviewed all these data that are specific

15 to Mr. Hargrove, to this particular file. I would have

16 reviewed all that specific data against the information

17 provided to us by the client and by our title company.

18 Q You mentioned that you were given access to a copy of the

19 deed of trust in the case.

20 A Correct.

21 Q And the access -- the deed of trust that you had access to

22 in the Hargrove case, what kind of format did you have

23 access to?

24 A What I do recall for sure about this file is that, because

25 on every single file I received a copy, a recorded copy,


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1 from the title company.

2 Q That would be uniformly done? So that's how you're sure in

3 this case?

4 A Truly, yes.


6 Q (By Ms. Dao) Take a look at Exhibit 2 that has just been

7 handed to you by the court reporter.

8 A Okay. [Complies.]

9 Q Does Exhibit 2 appear to be a copy from the title company

10 that you just referred to?

11 A I don't know the origin point, whether this particular copy

12 came from the client or whether it came from the title

13 company.

14 Q I'm going to ask you to look at the footers on the bottom of

15 each of these pages.

16 A Okay.

17 Q And I will represent to you that it has "RCO" stamped next

18 to a numerical designation. Do you see that?

19 A Yes.

20 Q And I will represent to you that these documents were

21 provided to me by Mr. Katz from RCO legal. I also want you

22 to look at other footers, especially the one that says

23 "printed on 4-10-2012 at 1:45:15 a.m." Do you see that?

24 A Yes.

25 Q Do you know anything about that footer?


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1 A I really don't.

2 Q So the fact that you -- the fact that Exhibit 1 has a

3 April 10, 2012, date --

4 MR. KATZ: Exhibit 2, is that what you're

5 referring?

6 MS. DAO: No, I'm talking about Exhibit 1.

7 Q (By Ms. Dao) Ms. Swazey, the date of Exhibit 1, on the last

8 page -- I'm sorry -- is 4-10-2012; correct?

9 A Yes.

10 Q Now I'm asking you to look at that footer on Exhibit 2 that

11 has the same stamped date.

12 A I see that.

13 Q And do you know if there's any significance or connection

14 between the printing date there and Exhibit 1?

15 A I'm not familiar with this footer.

16 Q The deed of trust itself is familiar to you?

17 A I don't know that I recall this specific one, but I see it

18 now.

19 Q Do you have any -- do you have doubt that that is a true and

20 correct copy of the deed of trust?

21 A No.

22 Q No doubt?

23 A No.

24 Q I want you to take a look at page two of Exhibit 2. And I'm

25 going to ask you to look at the designation of the lender.


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1 Do you see it there?

2 A Yes.

3 Q Who was the lender on Exhibit 2?

4 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. The document

5 speaks for itself.

6 Q (By Ms. Dao) I'm just going to have you read it and tell me.

7 A MERS is nominee for lender Pierce Commercial Bank.

8 Q Is Pierce Commercial Bank a client of Northwest Trustee?

9 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. Are you asking

10 her about corporate clients that a corporate

11 representative would need to testify to or just her

12 knowledge?

13 MS. DAO: Please, no speaking objections.

14 A I really don't know.

15 Q (By Ms. Dao) Your testimony is that City Mortgage is the

16 client who informed you, Claire Swazey, that Mr. Hargrove,

17 was in default; correct?

18 A That's correct.

19 Q What is the connection between City Bank and Mr. Hargrove,

20 other than what they told you?

21 A City Bank is the holder of the note and servicer of the debt

22 to which Mr. Hargrove is obligated.

23 Q And please tell me where you got that information from.

24 A From City Mortgage.

25 Q In what form?


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1 A They -- I do not -- I'm trying to remember. I don't have

2 the file in front of me. I do know that they gave me a

3 referral. They told me that they were servicing this debt,

4 and they asked me to foreclose upon it.

5 Q When you said they were the "holder," of the promissory

6 note? Is that what you testified?

7 A Correct.

8 Q How did you know that?

9 A On this one, I do not know if I've seen the declaration or

10 not indicating such. At this point all I know, all I recall

11 in this particular file, is that they indicated to me that

12 they had this -- that they were servicing this loan, the

13 loan was in default, it was this deed of trust with this

14 information provided that you see in this notice of default.

15 Q I'm going to ask you to look at Exhibit 2 again. Tell me

16 where City Mortgage is on this document.

17 A It's not on there.

18 Q So what conclusions did you draw if any looking at this deed

19 of trust and comparing it to what City Mortgage told you?

20 A I concluded that they were servicing this -- the debt

21 evidenced by this deed of trust.

22 Q What is the evidence on the deed of trust that said they

23 have any rights to the loan?

24 A It is not on the deed of trust.

25 Q That's what I'm trying to make clear; right?


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1 A Yeah.

2 Q So you did not look at the deed of trust and conclude that

3 City Mortgage is the holder of the note and the owner of the

4 loan?

5 A Not from reviewing the deed of trust.

6 Q So how did you come to the conclusion that they are the

7 holder of the promissory note?

8 A Because I received a foreclosure referral from City

9 Mortgage.

10 Q Is that all? Is there any other indicators that confirms

11 that for you?

12 A Without having the file in front of me, that's all I can

13 recall.

14 Q Routinely, though, routinely, when you receive a referral,

15 is there any other sources of information?

16 A At referral stage, day one, I generally only have the

17 referral.

18 Q Okay. The deed of trust doesn't really confirm or disprove

19 what City Mortgage told you?

20 A Correct.

21 Q And were you concerned all, in reviewing the deed of trust,

22 Exhibit 2, and seeing nothing relating to City Mortgage?

23 A No, I was not.

24 Q And why not?

25 A Because, because services and assignees and assignors change


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1 routinely in the mortgage business.

2 Q But do you have any personal knowledge about this particular

3 loan, how the loan was transferred?

4 A Not to my recollection.

5 Q Is there anything in Exhibit 1 or Exhibit 2 that would clue

6 you in to any other sources that would confirm your belief

7 that City Mortgage is in fact the holder of the promissory

8 note in this case?

9 A Not from these exhibits.

10 Q Is there any other sources that you can think of?

11 A It would depend on the file, and I don't have the file in

12 front of me.

13 Q The file is not in front of you because I asked for it and

14 you didn't bring it today?

15 MR. KATZ: I will object. You didn't ask for the

16 foreclosure file.

17 Q (By Ms. Dao) And I asked for it in discovery and I --

18 A You never asked me.

19 Q Well, I asked your attorney. Let me ask you: What file are

20 we talking about? I want to make sure I have complete

21 records to ask you questions.

22 A Okay.

23 Q What is the file of Dion Hargrove that you know of at


25 A Well, the file that I know of is that the one in File


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1 Tracking System: 730725623.

2 Q And you're talking about an electronic form.

3 A Yes.

4 Q Is there a -- which is downloadable and being printed;

5 correct?

6 A That's correct.

7 Q If I asked, if I asked you to go back today, tomorrow, do

8 you have the capability of downloading the entire file?

9 A Sure.

10 Q So that's what I'm going to ask you to do, because if you're

11 talking about a missing -- you're not looking at the file,

12 it's going to be very difficult and unfair for you to answer

13 questions, would you say?

14 A It depends on the questions.

15 Q I just asked you the question what other sources.

16 A What I do know is that I did not take this to sale and I did

17 not get very far with this file. So how illuminating that

18 would prove to be, I can't tell because this is not a file

19 that I took to sale or got very far on.

20 Q Sure. Let's just focus on your testimony that City Mortgage

21 is the holder of the promissory note that my client signed

22 at closing. Do you agree with that statement?

23 A I can't recall if I was furnished with a declaration as to

24 that because I do not know if I got to that stage where I

25 would have asked for one.


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1 Q When Exhibit 1 was prepared -- let me just go back to

2 Exhibit 1, Ms. Swazey, literally what you did is took City

3 Mortgage's words and have the exhibit prepared?

4 A Correct. Not just words. I mean there were documents they

5 furnished to us.

6 Q What I'm asking you is you said that Exhibit 2, the deed of

7 trust, doesn't give you that, does it?

8 A That's correct.

9 Q What other documents possibly that would give you the

10 comfort of putting City Mortgage and the information in

11 Exhibit 1?

12 A The fact that they had copies of the note and deed of trust,

13 the fact that they had the loan terms would have, would have

14 done it for me.

15 Q All right. All right. That's a fair answer.

16 What in your mind is the holder status?

17 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object to the extent it

18 calls for a legal conclusion.

19 MS. DAO: Objection noted.

20 Q (By Ms. Dao) You can answer.

21 MR. KATZ: Answer if you can.

22 A Well, I really can't. I don't have the answer to that.

23 Q (By Ms. Dao) So why did you say that?

24 A I misspoke because I do not know if I got as far as asking

25 for a declaration on this file.


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1 Q I'm only asking to you to look at Exhibit 1. Maybe it will

2 be helpful for you look at Exhibit 1 again, please.

3 A Okay.

4 Q I am going to ask you to look at -- there's no page number.

5 But it will be the second page under paragraph K of

6 Exhibit 1. Do you see the sentence that says, "The owner of

7 the note is City Mortgage, Inc."?

8 A Yes.

9 Q Tell me where you got that information from.

10 A I was proceeding based on the referral documents sent to me.

11 Q And nothing else?

12 A Correct.

13 Q And the next paragraph indicates that the loan servicer for

14 this loan is City Mortgage. Do you see that?

15 A Yes.

16 Q Did you get that information also from City Mortgage?

17 A Yes.

18 Q Then also on page 2 were all the amounts. Do you see in

19 paragraph D, "itemized account of the arrears"?

20 A Yes.

21 Q And paragraph E, there's more amounts. Do you see that?

22 A Yes.

23 Q Did all of these numbers come from the same referral that

24 you had spoken about?

25 A Yes.


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1 Q Could it be any other sources that gave you these numbers?

2 A Actually, yes, the costs there are from our costs in doing

3 the work. It's the loan payment and balance data that would

4 come from the servicer.

5 Q Let me just be very specific. Are you talking about

6 paragraph D still?

7 A Yes.

8 Q What costs item are we referring to?

9 A Anything that says "costs" are amounts that we, that we

10 provide.

11 Q Let's start out with one. From top to bottom, tell me which

12 amount specifically that would be Northwest Trustee's cost.

13 A Any of the costs, actually all of them. If it's costs, it's

14 our costs, not their costs.

15 Q So let's go to the first item of costs that says "lender's

16 fees and costs." Do you see that?

17 A Yes. That's their costs. I was talking about where it just

18 says "costs."

19 Q Oh, okay. I see what you're saying.

20 A And "Trustee's fee," okay, that's Northwest Trustee

21 Services' fees and costs. So those weren't provided to me

22 by the lender.

23 Q The cost total of 1,416.95, you're saying that those costs

24 were incurred by Northwest Trustee?

25 A Yeah. That's one cost. That's the one for the title


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1 report.

2 Q I see. I'm sorry. I apologize. Let me go back to lender's

3 fees and costs. You testified that that's not incurred by

4 Northwest Trustee at all?

5 A Correct.

6 Q That would be -- who is the lender?

7 A City Mortgage.

8 Q And that would be their fees and costs. But you don't have

9 any idea what the makeup for that amount of $967.42?

10 A Not off the top my head on this file.

11 Q Okay. Where would that figure come from?

12 A It would have come from the referral financials sent to us.

13 Q And the term "lender fees and costs," is that -- you said

14 that the lender is City Mortgage?

15 A Correct.

16 Q So let's go to trustee's fees of $435. Is that what

17 Northwest Trustee charges City Mortgage?

18 A Yes.

19 Q And then the items follow the heading of "costs." Those are

20 either paid for by Northwest Trustee or incurred by


22 A Incurred by Northwest Trustee.

23 Q Not necessarily paid for? What's the difference?

24 A They are paid for and then forwarded to the client for

25 reimbursement.


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1 Q The numbers under paragraph E, "additional monthly payment,

2 additional late charge," do you see that?

3 A Yes.

4 Q Did those numbers also come from the referral from City

5 Mortgage?

6 A Yes.

7 Q And then paragraph, paragraph F, I take it, that that is the

8 total of everything?

9 A Yes.

10 Q And it was either one member of your team or you as

11 employees for Northwest Trustee that added up all the

12 numbers and came up with that total?

13 A They were input into File Tracking, and File Tracking

14 propagated the total to the notice.

15 Q You guys did not do that manually?

16 A The individual amounts are entered in manually.

17 Q But the adding them up is not?

18 A Correct.

19 Q The under paragraph K, that reads "The owner of the note is

20 City Mortgage, Inc." How -- did that information again come

21 from the referral?

22 A Yes.

23 Q And did it come from that exact format, "The owner of the

24 note is City Mortgage, Inc.;" or is that a product of

25 Northwest Trustee creating the sentence in that form?


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1 A I actually don't recall.

2 Q Do you agree that the notice of default, Exhibit 1, is the

3 form?

4 A Yes.

5 Q And that the fields are populated or input, but the text is

6 basically a form?

7 A Yes.

8 Q So is it fair to say that the owner-of-the-note blank space

9 where you populate the information is part of the form?

10 A Yes.

11 Q So in essence, Exhibit 1, your team and/or you just

12 populated information from the referral?

13 A Correct.

14 Q You don't make a decision about this particular sentence or

15 conclusion that the owner of the note is City Mortgage?

16 A I make a decision in that I make sure that, if it says "City

17 Mortgage," that I have a City Mortgage referral.

18 Q But beyond that you don't know whether it's true that City

19 Mortgage is the owner of the note at this juncture when you

20 prepared Exhibit 1?

21 A Right.

22 Q Is that correct to say?

23 A Correct.

24 Q Then including the statement here that the loan servicer for

25 this loan is City Mortgage, would the same consideration


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1 apply, meaning it's a form; you populate the name into it;

2 you make sure the client is City Mortgage?

3 A Correct.

4 Q And beyond that, the preparation of Exhibit 1, you don't

5 have -- you didn't have any independent information, meaning

6 you didn't go out and make sure that the owner the note was

7 City Mortgage?

8 A I didn't do that, but I had independent information in that

9 I did title research.

10 Q What did the title research tell you?

11 A They provided me with the deed of trust.

12 Q What else?

13 A They provided me with a copy of the deed to the property.

14 And they would have -- without having the file in front of

15 me, it's hard to tell. But they would have provided me with

16 other title documents pertaining to that property and that

17 ownership of Mr. Hargrove.

18 Q So I show you Exhibit 2, dated -- or not dated, Exhibit 2.

19 And you agree that the name of City Mortgage is nowhere in

20 Exhibit 2; correct?

21 A Correct.

22 Q So that document didn't help you to confirm who owns the

23 note?

24 A That is correct.

25 Q You refer to other documents. Can you even think of what


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1 they are, that the title company provided you with?

2 A Without having the file in front of me, no. But I know that

3 they always provide me with vesting deeds, copies of subject

4 deed of trust, copies of our recordings.

5 Q What are the documents that would confirm for you that City

6 Mortgage is the owner of the note?

7 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. You've asked this

8 question three times.

9 MS. DAO: Your objection is noted.

10 A I would rely on such information that was provided to me by

11 the lender.

12 Q (By Ms. Dao) So now it's a little bit different. By the

13 "lender," who's the "lender"?

14 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. This is the third

15 time you've asked that question.

16 Q (By Ms. Dao) You can answer that question if you know.

17 A City Mortgage.

18 Q What makes you conclude that City Mortgage is the lender?

19 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. That's the fourth

20 time you've asked this question. If you continue to do

21 this, we're going to end this deposition.

22 MS. DAO: You can object.

23 MR. KATZ: She's answered your questions. And if

24 you're just going to repeat the same questions, we're

25 finished.


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1 MS. DAO: You can call it off right now if you

2 want. But I'm going to have the reporter reread the

3 question 'cause I think you just said -- you answer it

4 differently each time.

5 So can I have the last question and her answer,

6 please.

7 [Requested material read.]

8 Q (By Ms. Dao) Who is the lender?

9 A I tend to use the terms interchangeably. You may view it as

10 a colloquialism. I often will say "lender," "servicer,"

11 "client."

12 Q Is that a matter of habit, or is it a matter of official

13 business when you deal with foreclosure cases?

14 A It is the way I speak.

15 Q I'm not concerned with the way you speak. I need to be

16 precise.

17 A Okay.

18 Q All right? So I need you to -- you sent out Exhibit 1 to my

19 client which contained certain information.

20 A Right.

21 Q And my client had a right to rely on it. So I'm just trying

22 to get to the accuracy of the information contained in

23 Exhibit 1.

24 A I understand.

25 Q So when I ask you a question pertaining to Exhibit 1, I'd


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1 like your answer to be to the best of your ability, not,

2 Well, as a matter of speaking. Does that make sense?

3 A Right. But I'm human, and sometimes the speech is to the

4 best of my ability.

5 Q You are handling foreclosures where you sell people's homes.

6 Am I correct?

7 A Correct.

8 Q Do you think that it's important for them to know that you

9 understand the differences and make the distinction or not?

10 A Yes. But they are not here.

11 Q What do you mean "they are not here"?

12 A All those people are not here. I happen to use the word

13 "lender" interchangeably with you.

14 Q Okay. Let's stop there. When you use that interchangeably,

15 does it mean they mean the same thing?

16 A No. They don't mean the same thing.

17 Q All right. Let's clarify. Who is the lender in this case

18 that you believe to be?

19 A I only know who the servicer is.

20 Q Okay. And that is City Mortgage?

21 A Right.

22 Q And you know that from them telling you that they are the

23 servicer?

24 A Correct.

25 Q So when you say "lender," did you mean the servicer?


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1 A I did.

2 Q Is that true?

3 A Is which true?

4 Q Is the lender the same as the servicer in this case with

5 Mr. Hargrove?

6 A I do not know.

7 MR. KATZ: It's been an hour. Can we take a

8 break? Do you want a break?

9 THE WITNESS: Sure.

10 MS. DAO: All right. Let's take five minutes.

11 [A brief recess was taken.]

12 MS. DAO: Back on the record. Would you read back

13 where we left off.

14 [Requested material read.]

15 Q (By Ms. Dao) All right. Ms. Swazey. I'm going to ask you

16 to look at the last page of Exhibit 1, the notice of

17 default. And under paragraph L, No. 2 -- do you see that?

18 A Yes.

19 Q And can you read that to me.

20 A "The creditor to whom the debt is owed is City Mortgage,

21 Inc.," slash, "City Mortgage, Inc.," dash, "MD."

22 Q How did you know or how did Northwest Trustee know that the

23 creditor to whom the debt the owed is City Mortgage in that

24 sentence?

25 A From the referral and any other documentation the lender --


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1 servicer may have provided to us.

2 Q And aside from the information provided to you by City

3 Mortgage, can you think of any other sources that would

4 confirm for you that the creditor to whom the debt is owed

5 is in fact City Mortgage?

6 A If there was an assignment.

7 Q An assignment of what?

8 A Assignment of deed of trust.

9 Q And as of April 10, 2012, do you know if you had that

10 assignment?

11 A I do not recall.

12 [A brief recess was taken.]


14 Q (By Ms. Dao) The court reporter just handed you Exhibit 3,

15 Ms. Swazey. Can you take a look.

16 A Yes.

17 Q Is that the assignment of deed of trust that you just

18 referred to?

19 A Yes.

20 Q Does this Exhibit 3 jog your memory about whether or not you

21 rely on that at the time that you prepare or at the time

22 that Exhibit 1 was prepared?

23 A It was recorded a day later. So no.

24 Q All right. You can put it away, then.

25 Let me go back to Exhibit 1, the last page that I was


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1 asking you questions about. And under paragraph L on the

2 last page, No. 1, do you see that it contains an amount that

3 my client allegedly owed? Do you see that?

4 A Yes.

5 Q $477,588?

6 A Yes.

7 Q Where did you get that figure from?

8 A From the referral financials.

9 Q Okay. That would be the only source that the figures could

10 have come from?

11 A Yes.


13 Q (By Ms. Dao) The court reporter has handed you Exhibit 4.

14 Take a look, please

15 A [Complies.] Okay.

16 Q Is that exhibit familiar to you?

17 A Not specifically. It looks like a classic City Mortgage

18 payoff quote, though.

19 Q Do you agree that Exhibit 4 pertains to my client's loan?

20 A Yes.

21 Q And property?

22 A Yes.

23 Q Now, the exhibit is entitled "Individual Message." Can you

24 explain where Exhibit 4 comes from.

25 A A message sent to us by City Mortgage.


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1 Q From the same system that you referred to earlier, or is it

2 from a different system?

3 A It originated from City Mortgage and was sent to my

4 computer.

5 Q Via email or via the client tracking system?

6 A I'm not sure how this particular message was brought in.

7 Q It has your name on it. Would you agree?

8 A Right.

9 Q It also has a date and time stamped on it. Do you see that?

10 A Yeah.

11 Q Would that reflect the true date and time that the message

12 came in?

13 A It reflects the time it was sent, yes.

14 Q And next to your name it has the parentheses and the

15 designation of "Routh Crabtree Olsen PS." Do you see that?

16 A Yes.

17 Q Do you work for Routh Crabtree or RCO?

18 A They are my parent law firm.

19 Q But people can send you correspondence either via the law

20 firm or via Northwest Trustee?

21 A They can.

22 Q Are you physically housed in the same building with RCO?

23 A Yes.

24 Q And are you on different floors, or are you on the same

25 floors?


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1 A Different floors.

2 Q Where is the Northwest Trustee located primarily?

3 A First floor.

4 Q And the law firm is?

5 A Second and third and in another locations.

6 Q In terms of access, do the lawyers for RCO have access to

7 Northwest Trustee files?

8 A I don't know.

9 Q Do you, as an employee of Northwest Trustee -- and your

10 parent company's RCO -- do you have access to their files?

11 A No.

12 Q Do you know -- I asked you before how the foreclosure files

13 are maintained, and you indicated it's paperless.

14 A Correct.

15 Q So for example, the Hargrove file would not be in paper

16 form?

17 A Correct.

18 Q How would one access the file?

19 A Through that file in File Tracking System.

20 Q It would require a password? Login?

21 A Correct.

22 Q Exhibit 4 was sent to you. Would that be fair for us to

23 conclude?

24 A Yes.

25 Q What does it represent?


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1 A It represents a payoff calculation.

2 Q As of?

3 A Good through May 1st, 2012.

4 Q Would you say that Exhibit 4 was part and parcel of the

5 referral package or not?

6 A Yes.

7 Q So it could be part of the referral package?

8 A Yes.

9 Q Does Exhibit 4 allow to you confirm that the referral came

10 in on April 6?

11 A Yes.

12 Q And in looking at the figures that Exhibit 4 gives you,

13 would you or your team members have relied on these numbers

14 to commence the nonjudicial foreclosure on Mr. Hargrove?

15 A Yes, we would.


17 Q (By Ms. Dao) You've now been handed Exhibit 5. And can you

18 take a look and tell us what Exhibit 5 is.

19 A It's additional financial data from City Mortgage to us for

20 this referral.

21 Q And it came in addressed to you personally; correct?

22 A Yes.

23 Q It came in at -- on the same date and same time as

24 Exhibit 4?

25 A Right. Yes.


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1 Q And would you have reviewed Exhibit 5 in working on the

2 Hargrove file?

3 A Yes.

4 Q Would you have utilized it for purposes of putting together

5 the nonjudicial foreclosure?

6 A Yes.

7 Q And Exhibit 5 informs us that this is an FHA loan. Would

8 that be correct to conclude?

9 A No. It says "FHA," slash, "VA," slash, "PMI." Case number

10 is redacted here. So I actually don't know what loan type

11 this was.

12 Q When you go to the bottom of Exhibit 5, do you see comments

13 there, that -- do you see the comments in bold lettering

14 there?

15 A Yes.

16 Q And what -- and it reads that: "You should take all actions

17 to preserve our rights to a deficiency if permitted by law."

18 Do you see that?

19 MR. KATZ: Which exhibit are you on?

20 THE WITNESS: [Indicating.]

21 MS. DAO: Did I hand you the wrong one?

22 MR. KATZ: Yeah. That's not the exhibit I have.

23 MS. DAO: Oh, okay. I don't have another copy of

24 that one.

25 MR. KATZ: That's okay.


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1 THE WITNESS: He can use mine.

2 Q (By Ms. Dao) My question to you is: Do you see that

3 comment?

4 A Yes.

5 Q To the best of your knowledge, is there a deficiency in a

6 nonjudicial foreclosure in Washington on a primary?

7 A No, there's not.

8 Q Exhibit 5 has various amounts, "principal and interest on

9 next scheduled payment," "escrow portion." Do these numbers

10 come into play in your preparation of the nonjudicial

11 foreclosure on the Hargrove case?

12 A Yes.

13 Q Exhibit 5, is if you read from top to bottom, it has right

14 underneath the "FHA/VA/PMI" -- do you see that?

15 A Yeah.

16 Q There's a sentence there or there's a statement there that

17 reads: "Seller," slash, "servicer," the number sign, colon,

18 "CMI." Do you see that?

19 A Yeah.

20 Q What is your understanding of that particular reference?

21 A City Mortgage, Inc., is the seller, slash, servicer as

22 designated on this message.

23 Q What is your understanding of that reference if you have

24 any?

25 A That they're telling you the seller/servicer is CMI.


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1 Q Do you know the seller of what?

2 A No.

3 Q And the servicer of what?

4 A The loan.

5 Q So you understand they're the servicer of the loan, but the

6 seller you don't know?

7 A Right.

8 Q You mentioned earlier that as of the preparation of the

9 notice of default, you did not have the beneficiary

10 declaration. Do you recall that?

11 A Right.

12 Q And when would you -- in this case when did you get a copy

13 of the beneficiary declaration?

14 A I don't remember when I got a copy of the beneficiary

15 declaration on this particular file.

16 Q At what juncture would you have gotten one?

17 A I would have one before I run, set, and record the notice of

18 trustee sale.

19 Q Before?

20 A Yes.

21 Q Is that a prerequisite?

22 A Yes.

23 Q And by what law?

24 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object to any legal

25 conclusion.


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1 Answer if you can.

2 Q (By Ms. Dao) You can answer.

3 A Per instructions by our management.

4 Q The instruction is what exactly?

5 A That I obtain a beneficiary declaration before running the

6 notice of sale.

7 Q Besides the class that you took on how to attend a

8 deposition, did you take any other classes on how to do your

9 job in nonjudicial foreclosure in the state of Washington?

10 A Over the years, I've had a lot of training. To be honest, I

11 really couldn't remember all of it -- I mean to list all of

12 it. I've had a lot of training over the years.

13 Q Can you name one of the more recent ones?

14 A Oh, are you talking classes?

15 Q Any kind of training.

16 A Concerning?

17 Q Nonjudicial foreclosures in Washington.

18 A I attend two meetings every other week with other managers

19 and with the senior managers to whom we report. I view that

20 as additional training.

21 Q What are the likely contents of these meetings?

22 A They all vary. It's whatever comes up, you know. A meeting

23 that you have in January isn't going to be the same thing as

24 a meeting you have in March.

25 Q Right. But is it all pertaining to your job in doing


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1 nonjudicial foreclosures in the state of Washington? Does

2 it pertain to other things in as well?

3 A The former.

4 Q Have you ever sat down and read the Deed of Trust Act of

5 Washington, the law that governs the work that you do?

6 A Yes.

7 Q When was the last time you sat down and read it?

8 A I don't remember the last time I read in its entirety from

9 start to finish, but I've read various clauses within the

10 past month.

11 Q Do you recall whether you were ever furnished with a

12 beneficiary declaration in this case?

13 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. You've asked this

14 three times now.

15 Go ahead ask answer if you can.

16 A I don't recall.

17 Q (By Ms. Dao) I don't have one to show you is why I'm asking

18 you. So you don't recall whether you got one or not?

19 A Correct.

20 Q Okay.


22 Q (By Ms. Dao) Does No. 6 jog your memory as far as the

23 beneficiary declaration?

24 A That is one of our beneficiary declarations; and it does

25 describe this loan, this debt.


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1 Q Do you know who prepared the declaration, Exhibit 6?

2 A My firm drafts them and has the lender execute them.

3 Q When you look at Exhibit 6, they designate a name for the

4 signer; is that correct?

5 A Yes.

6 Q Do you know how your firm comes to know whose name to put

7 there?

8 A We do not type that name. We just type "City Mortgage,

9 Incorporated, beneficiary."

10 Q Tell me about the mechanics. Your firm prepared it, and

11 then what? It gets sent out from your firm?

12 A Right.

13 Q In looking at Exhibit 6, can you tell me how it was sent out

14 and how you got it back?

15 A It was sent to City Mortgage, and then they would have --

16 they actually overnight mail these to us.

17 Q And to the best of your knowledge, did you contact the

18 person whose name appears on Exhibit 6?

19 A No.

20 Q Is there any possibility for any of your team members to

21 have contacted that person?

22 A No.

23 Q Is it routine for Northwest Trustee to verify who signs the

24 beneficiary declaration?

25 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object because that's a


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1 question for the Northwest Trustee to answer.

2 Answer it if you can.

3 A Could I get the question again?

4 Q (By Ms. Dao) Let me rephrase. In -- well, you testified

5 that Northwest Trustee prepared the declaration. It's in

6 blank; correct?

7 A What do you mean by "in blank"?

8 Q There's no specification of who's to sign. There's no date

9 filled in.

10 A Right, I mean. But this loan information and City Mortgage,

11 Inc., I mean that's in there.

12 Q Northwest Trustee, your company, your team, doesn't

13 determine who's going to sign the declaration?

14 A Right. We send it to City Mortgage.

15 Q And did you follow-up in this case to see who was going to

16 sign it and when you're going to get it back?

17 A Not this one. We got it back pretty quickly. I mean here

18 we ran our NOD April 10th, and then less than a month later,

19 we have this. I'm sure this would have taken very little

20 follow-up.

21 Q On April 10, 2012, or in April, City Mortgage was a client

22 of Northwest Trustee?

23 A Yes.

24 Q When did Northwest Trustee become the trustee to foreclose

25 on this property?


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1 A I don't recall.

2 Q Can you -- in the normal course of business, how is the

3 sequence if you understand my question? You get a referral.

4 You use the referral to prepare the notice of default;

5 correct?

6 A Yes.

7 Q And at that juncture, you did not have basically the

8 beneficiary declaration.

9 A Right, we did not.

10 Q Is that routine or not necessarily?

11 A That is routine.

12 Q In April of 2012, there is a relationship between Northwest

13 Trustee and City Mortgage?

14 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object. That's a question

15 for Northwest Trustee to answer.

16 But answer if you can, Claire.

17 A Can I get the question again?

18 Q (By Ms. Dao) Do you remember your testimony that City

19 Mortgage is the client of Northwest Trustee?

20 A Right.

21 Q And they were a client in April 2012?

22 A Yes.

23 Q And so at that juncture, did Northwest Trustee become the

24 trustee?

25 MR. KATZ: Object to the extent it calls for a


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1 legal conclusion.

2 But answer if you can.

3 A I don't recall on this particular file. We would always be

4 trustee before we run a notice of sale. But I don't recall

5 if I got that far with this file off the top of my head.

6 Q (By Ms. Dao) I guess I just want to understand. When you

7 get the referral from City Mortgage in April, they were a

8 client?

9 A Yes.

10 Q Was Northwest Trustee, your company, acting as a successor

11 trustee at that time?

12 A No. The notice of default says as its agent.

13 Q So what changed from City Mortgage being a client and

14 Northwest Trustee becomes a trustee for the purpose of the

15 sale?

16 A I don't know that we became trustee. I don't remember if we

17 set sale. I don't remember if we got that far. So far I've

18 looked at the beneficiary declaration and the notice of

19 default.


21 Q (By Ms. Dao) I'm asking you to look at No. 7, which is the

22 foreclosure loss mitigation form. Do you see that?

23 A Yes.

24 Q And does it look familiar to you at all?

25 A Yes.


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1 Q And so explain to me how the exhibit came about.

2 A It is a declaration that City Mortgage drafts and provides

3 to us and that we must have before running most notices of

4 default.

5 Q So it's a statutory requirement?

6 A I'm not an attorney. It does depend on the file.

7 Q But in your -- well, let me just ask you some foundational

8 questions. Do you as the team supervisor of your team and

9 in your capacity as an employee for Northwest Trustee, are

10 you aware of the existence of a manual or procedure book on

11 how to process these files?

12 A What kind of procedure book?

13 Q On what to do once a referral is made.

14 A I go through the statutory steps. I don't have a book,

15 really.

16 Q Do you have a checklist?

17 A Yes, I do.

18 Q And where is this checklist?

19 A It's electronic. It's in each file in the electronic file

20 tracking system.

21 Q What does this checklist contain?

22 A It contains the needed events for the statutory steps to

23 foreclosure and documents needed to be able to perform that.

24 Q Do you share this checklist with your team members?

25 A Yeah. Anyone pulling up that file can see that checklist.


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1 Q Do you personally refer to it in order to conduct your work

2 on a day-to-day basis?

3 A Yes.

4 Q And to the best of your knowledge, has that checklist been

5 provided to me?

6 A I don't know.

7 Q Going back to Exhibit 7, do you recall how you received the

8 exhibit?

9 A City Mortgage sent it to us.

10 Q Was it part of the referral package, or can you tell?

11 A I'm not sure.

12 Q How do you know that it was sent to you by City Mortgage?

13 A Because we have it and provided it to you.

14 Q Now, the checklist -- or I'm sorry. The document,

15 Exhibit 7, has the box of No. 3 marked 'X'. Do you see

16 that?

17 A Yes.

18 Q And this says the declaration or the statement by someone

19 from City Mortgage that they have complied with RCW

20 61.240.0319(5)?

21 A Right.

22 Q Are you familiar with that provision of the statute?

23 A Not offhand.

24 Q So fair to say that, when you received Exhibit 7, you took

25 it at face value?


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1 A Yes.

2 Q You did not make any inquiries or follow-up to City Mortgage

3 to determine whether they in fact complied with that

4 provision?

5 A Right.

6 Q Would that be fair to say that that happened in this case,

7 in the Hargrove case, that you did not follow up, you didn't

8 call anybody, you just accepted the form?

9 A I received the declaration, and I relied upon it only.

10 Q This is Exhibit 7 we're talking about?

11 A Correct.


13 Q (By Ms. Dao) I'm going to ask you to look at Exhibit 8.

14 Does it look familiar to you?

15 A Yes.

16 Q What is Exhibit 8?

17 A It is an appointment of successor trustee.

18 Q I see that the header of Exhibit 8 has your name and

19 address. Do you see that?

20 A Yes.

21 Q Does that denote anything as far as your involvement in the

22 exhibit?

23 A It denotes one of my team would have prepared the document,

24 submitted it to the client for execution, and then received

25 the original back.


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1 Q So Exhibit 8 is something that Northwest Trustee prepared?

2 A Yes.

3 Q And before preparing Exhibit 8, did you or a member of your

4 team call up City Mortgage and say, We want to know who's

5 going to sign this assignment -- appointment of successor

6 trustee?

7 A No. We would have looked at the assignment, and we would

8 have known.

9 Q So the designation for City Mortgage is there because

10 Northwest Trustee put it there?

11 A Right.

12 Q Do you see the signature on Exhibit 8 of "Jacqueline M.

13 Wagner"?

14 A Right. Yes.

15 Q Do you know who she is?

16 A It says here she's a document control officer.

17 Q But beyond what it says there, do you have any personal

18 knowledge who she is?

19 A No.

20 Q Do you have any personal knowledge as to what her position

21 entails?

22 A No.

23 Q Do you know what a document control officer does?

24 A I have only a rough guess, which is that they prepare and/or

25 execute documents.


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1 Q And you have never spoken to Jacqueline M. Wagner?

2 A I can't say that. I speak to a lot of people from that

3 department, a lot; and I may have heard from her. I don't

4 recall this particular individual.

5 Q What department are we talking about?

6 A The document control department.

7 Q To the best of your knowledge, there's a document control

8 department for City Mortgage?

9 A Yes.

10 Q Is there any reason why Northwest Trustee would prepare the

11 appointment and not City Mortgage?

12 MR. KATZ: I'm going to object to the extent that

13 calls for the corporate response.

14 Answer it if you know.

15 A I don't know.

16 Q (By Ms. Dao) Does Northwest Trustee prepare all appointments

17 of successor trustee?

18 MR. KATZ: The same objection.

19 Answer it if you can.

20 A I can't speak for Northwest Trustee. I can only speak as to

21 what I do on my team.

22 Q (By Ms. Dao) What do you and your team do?

23 A Any file where we are not already appointed as trustee, we

24 do prepare an appointment of successor trustee and give it

25 to the lender -- sorry, the servicer to execute and return


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1 to us in original form.

2 Q The verbiage that appears on Exhibit 8, who determined the

3 text or the verbiage that goes into Exhibit 8?

4 A It is a form.

5 Q So it's a form, and you extract some information from an

6 official document and plug it in there?

7 A It extracts information from the File Tracking System in

8 which we have previously put the information regarding the

9 deed of trust and any assignments.

10 Q Is that the same tracking system we've been talking about?

11 A Certainly.

12 Q All right. And when you look at Exhibit 8, you can tell

13 when it was recorded; correct?

14 A Yes.

15 Q And the recording of Exhibit 8 was not was done by your --

16 by you or members of your team? Or not?

17 A We don't record documents. Our title company does, in this

18 case First American Title.

19 Q When you said "your title company," what do you mean by

20 that?

21 A The title company that has provided the foreclosure title

22 insurance.

23 Q You don't mean that Northwest Trustee owns that title

24 company?

25 A Northwest Trustee does not own First American Title.


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1 Q So the logistic of this Exhibit 8 is that Northwest Trustee

2 prepared it, sends it out, gets it back; and then somehow it

3 gets recorded?

4 A Well, I know exactly how it gets recorded. I wouldn't say

5 "somehow."

6 Q Tell me.

7 A We send it to City Mortgage with a cover sheet saying,

8 Please record this document, saying which document it is,

9 then Please provides us with the recording information. And

10 they do, and we follow up as needed.

11 Q City Mortgage calls for this document to be recorded. Is

12 that your testimony?

13 A No. We cannot foreclose on a deed of trust if we are not

14 the trustee. So this document enables us to be the trustee

15 and provides us with power of sale.

16 Q When you send it out to City Mortgage -- I just want to be

17 clear on your last bit of testimony. You send it out to

18 City Mortgage. It gets signed, and then it gets returned to

19 you?

20 A Yes.

21 Q From there, how did it get recorded?

22 A We then take the physical, original document, attach a cover

23 sheet, note our file that we have it. We attach a cover

24 sheet instructing, in this case First American Title, to

25 record this document and then let us know. And then we send


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1 it to First American Title.

2 Q And then after recording, they return it to you?

3 A They -- I am not sure if they record about all the

4 originals. I know that I get electronic copies from them,

5 and I also will receive emails with recording information.

6 Q So now that

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Deposition of Claire Swazey

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