Henson

ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS [29]

I. INTRODUCTION

This Court has previously been called upon to solemnly interpret considerable issues of federal law with far-reaching implications. This is not one of those cases. Instead, the Court must confront a surprisingly unsettled issue in the often-perplexing Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”): what Congress meant when it precluded liability “for services actually performed,” including what the word “services” means. See 12 U.S.C. § 2607 (c)(2).

Plaintiffs Melissa Henson and Keith Turner contend that Defendant Fidelity National Financial Inc. violated RESPA when it received “marketing” fees from UPS, Federal Express, and OnTrae in exchange for referring overnight delivery business to the carriers via Fidelity’s escrow subsidiaries. Fidelity moved to dismiss Plaintiffs Melissa Henson and Keith Turner’s putative class-action Complaint, and the Court granted in part that Motion — thus eliminating Henson from the action as well as Turner’s claim under 12 U.S.C. § 2607 (b).

After answering, Fidelity moved for judgment on the pleadings, arguing that the Court’s previous findings regarding…