Overland Direct v. Esola Capital Investment CA4/1

facts needed to resolve this appeal are relatively few. Overland Direct, Inc. (Overland), a subsidiary of Overland Direct (Israel), Ltd. (Overland-Israel), made loans to California property owners secured by liens on real property. The loans were funded by Israeli bondholders who were represented by Aurora Fidelity Trust (Aurora). In the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis, deeds of trust securing Overland’s loans were assigned to Esola and its owner, Daniel Tepper. Overland claimed the assignments were fraudulent, prompting litigation in multiple courts to adjudicate competing property

2 claims.1 Broadly speaking, this appeal involves the alleged assignment of two deeds of trust, one concerning the Friar property and the other concerning a different property in El Cajon, California.

A. Background Facts

Overland loaned Michael Cartwright $960,000 in 2007. The note was secured by a first deed of trust on real property owned by his business, Cartwright Termite & Pest Control, LLC in El Cajon (the Cartwright

property).2 That same year Overland also made a $1.3 loan to Sarkis Grigoryan to construct a 14-unit apartment building on the Friar property. This one-year loan…