Brian Browdie, American Banker

A federal judge has ruled that the multistate mortgage settlement does not bar a lawsuit by the government against Wells Fargo (WFC) over its lending practices before and after the financial crisis.

The suit, filed in New York in October by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, may proceed, Judge Rosemary Collyer of the U.S. District Court in Washington ruled on Tuesday. The Justice Department charges the nation’s fourth-biggest bank by assets with wrongdoing in connection with loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration over roughly a decade beginning in May 2001.

Wells Fargo contended that a $25 billion pact the judge approved in April among Wells Fargo, Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (NYSE:C), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Ally Financial, the Justice Department and 49 states bars the lawsuit.

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