(Creative Commons)

The lawsuits contend that banks strung along borrowers who paid their mortgages on time, failing to follow up on loan modifications they had promised to borrowers. In the process, lenders lost paperwork repeatedly and led hoemowners on for years.

This series of lawsuits is the latest factor in the foreclosure mess. In recent weeks, banks have come under fire for robo-signing thousands of foreclosure documents without properly reviewing them. The Obama Administration has refused to get involved, opting instead to put pressure on the banks to speed up the review process.

To read more about the lawsuits, read here.