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An Ohio law, known as a mortgage release statute, requires a mortgage lender to record a release of the mortgage within 90 days of the mortgage being paid in full. If the mortgage holder fails to record the release by the deadline, then the statute further states that the borrower under the mortgage and the current owner of the property that had secured the mortgage can recover monetary damages in the amount of $250 from the mortgage holder that violated the statute.

In the case of Voss v. Quicken Loans, L.L.C., et al., 2026-Ohio-531, the Supreme Court of Ohio announced on February 19, 2026, that anyone seeking damages from a mortgage holder for failing to timely record the mortgage release need not prove that they were actually harmed by the failure to record. In other words, it is enough for a plaintiff seeking to enforce the statute to demonstrate the legal injury that the party has suffered, even in the absence of any actual harm caused by the failure to record.

The Supreme Court of Ohio’s holding should act as a warning to lenders in Ohio who take a mortgage interest in real property to secure the loan. Once the loan is paid, the lender must be sure to record the release of the mortgage within 90 days. The mortgage release statute and the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the statutory language create a nearly strict liability standard for the failure to timely record the release.

On a positive note for Ohio lenders, in another part of its decision, the Supreme Court of Ohio held that an amendment to the mortgage release statute that was passed in the wake of the pandemic and which established that a class action lawsuit could not be filed for any violation of the statute that occurred in calendar year 2020, was proper and enforceable.

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