It defends executive against accusations of stealing brand
Wholesale lender OCMBC, Inc. has filed a countersuit against Home Mortgage Alliance Corp (HMAC) in response to allegations of trademark theft and employee poaching.
The countersuit, filed in the Superior Court of the State of California in Orange County, comes after HMAC’s initial lawsuit on May 23, which accused OCMBC and its former executive, Michael Turturro, of stealing the “Jet Mortgage” brand from HMAC.
The original lawsuit claimed that Turturro, previously the divisional president of HMAC’s Jet Mortgage division, conspired with OCMBC to misappropriate confidential information, employees, and other resources associated with the division. HMAC alleged that this amounted to an unlawful takeover of the Jet Mortgage brand, including its trademarks and business pipeline.
In its court filing, OCMBC denied all claims made by HMAC and initiated a countersuit on behalf of Turturro and his personal corporation, “Jet Alliance.”
The wholesale lender fired back that HMAC founder Alfred Hanna had previously been barred by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) in 2017 due to misconduct linked to another company, “Affiliated Funding Corporation” doing business as “In-House Lender.”
OCMBC contended that Hanna failed to disclose this history to Turturro before recruiting him and his team, which OCMBC claimed constitutes a breach of duty.
The countersuit further alleged that Hanna’s prior actions prevented regulated entities such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD, VA, and warehouse banks from conducting business with him.
Read more: OCMBC dismisses ‘baseless’ suit from HMAC over alleged brand theft
“Hanna’s actions, including denying employees their due pay and refusing vendors their contractual payments, which left Michael Turturro and his team no choice but to seek other employment,” OCMBC said in a statement. “Despite this, Hannah has continued to defame Turturro throughout the industry, both publicly and privately, including with Turturro’s own vast book of personal, past business relationships.
“Employees have every right to choose their place of employment, without fear of reprisal or retaliation. Hanna and HMAC are in continuous violation of various laws. OCMBC remains committed to defending its employees who exercise their rights and are being unjustly persecuted by disreputable entities.”
OCMBC, Inc. is a wholesale mortgage lender and servicer licensed in 47 states and the District of Columbia. The company offers various mortgage products and services, including non-QM loans.
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