Opinion ID: 2560072
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Testimony before the Commission

Text: Joseph testified before the Commission on Judicial Conduct during its investigation. In September 2005, Commission counsel asked Joseph to identify the lender that requested information about mortgages on the Valhalla property. He answered, I don't recall which bank it was with. I think it was GreenPoint. When asked the same question during his December 2005 appearance before the Commission, Joseph stated, I don't know which one, but I guess it was GreenPoint or whatever. Commission counsel reminded Joseph of his previous testimony that a GreenPoint underwriter requested this information; he responded, Okay, then that's who it was then. Later during the December 2005 appearance, Commission counsel told Joseph that the GreenPoint underwriter assigned to his loan application denied speaking to him. Joseph replied, I guess then the underwriter was Global [Equity] or the broker was Global. When Commission counsel represented that the Global loan originator also denied speaking to Joseph, he testified: If he said he had no conversation with me, obviously, I had no conversation with him, but I did have a conversation with somebody pertaining to this information from one of these mortgage companies. But in June 2007, Joseph testified before the referee that he discussed the mortgage on the Valhalla property not with GreenPoint or Global Equity, but rather with his attorney, Edward Koester, or one of the banks he was working with. Koester testified before the referee that he had asked Joseph for a letter from Battista stating the amount of the obligation and payment history, but did not say that he had asked for or received the particular documents Battista furnished.