Lepe

We hold that the victim of an identity theft, whose name and other personal information were used without authorization for the purpose of obtaining a loan secured by a purchase money deed of trust to acquire real property, may, as the only claimant, recover undistributed surplus proceeds deposited with the court that remained after a trustee sale of the property and the satisfaction of creditors.

BACKGROUND

An unknown perpetrator used the name, other personal information, and credit of claimant (defendant and appellant) Aurora Lepe to purchase real property—an act of “identity theft.” The perpetrator obtained a loan secured by a purchase money deed of trust to acquire the property. Without Ms. Lepe’s knowledge, title to the property was taken in her name, and her name was signed on a promissory note as the maker and on a deed of trust as trustor. The beneficiary under the deed of trust foreclosed, and the trustee, petitioner (plaintiff) CTC Real Estate Services, sold the property at a trustee sale. Following the trustee sale and payments to the lienholders (the holders of first and second deeds of trust), there were surplus funds, presumably because the real property…