On December 4,  2009, an en banc panel of judges from  the District Court of Nevada affirmed the bankruptcy court’s denial of MERS’  motion for lift of stay in the case of MERS  v. Chong, No. 09-661 (D. Nev.) and seventeen other consolidated cases.  Because of the individual facts of each case, the opinions differ slightly but  each ultimately concludes that MERS failed to sustain its burden of proof to  show that it was the real party in interest pursuant to the requirements of  Bankruptcy Rule 7017.  The court in Chong stated that: “Since MERS admits  that it does not actually receive or forfeit money when borrowers fail to make  their payments, MERS must at least provide evidence of its alleged agency  relationship with the real party in interest in order to have standing to seek  relief from stay.”  NACBA’s Amicus  Project and the Center for Responsible Lending filed an amicus brief in the  case.  Click below for the opinions in MERS v. Chong and MERS v. Zeigler., No. 2:09-cv-0676.