Major SJC decision on acknowledgements

HUGE decision from the SJC today in Bank of America v Casey

http://www.mass.gov/courts/docs/sjc/reporter-of-decisions/new-opinions/11943.pdf

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court answers questions certified to it from US 1^st Circuit of case originating in bankruptcy court. For registry of deeds purposes, the main issue is that the SJC holds that an acknowledgement clause that does not name the person or persons whose acknowledgement is being taken is DEFECTIVE and SHOULD NOT be recorded.

However, the decision also holds that an attorney affidavit properly drafted in accordance with MGL c.183, s.5B, may cure that defect on an already recorded document with a defective acknowledgement.

May recording statistics

Here are some recording statistics from May 2016 compared to numbers from last May:

This May, there were 635 deeds recorded, a 26% increase from last May (502)
. . . there were 1031 mortgages, a 15% increase from last May (895)
. . . there were 20 foreclosure deeds, a 17% decrease from last May (24)
. . . there were 48 orders of notice, a 55% increase from last May (31).
. . . there were 5194 documents recorded, a 12% increase from last May (4643).

Year-to-date, there were 2734 deeds recorded, a 22% increase from last year (2249)
. . . there were 4346 mortgages, a 3% increase from last year (4222)
. . . there were 96 foreclosure deeds, a 37% increase from last year (70)
. . . there were 213 orders of notice, a 50% increase from last year (142).
. . . there were 23631 documents recorded, a 10% increase from last year (21541).