Oct 14 (Reuters) - Law firm Boies Schiller Flexner is

pushing back against litigation misconduct claims in a proposed

class action against United Wholesale Mortgage, hoping to derail

the home lending giant's bid to dismiss the case and recoup

legal fees.

The six-month-old lawsuit alleged that UWM conspired with

brokers to force home buyers into expensive mortgages and

pocketed billions of dollars in excess fees.

UWM last month asked the court to throw out the case and

sanction the plaintiffs' lawyers at Boies Schiller, arguing that

the firm is in league with a hedge fund that is shorting UWM

stock.

In a court filing on Friday, Boies Schiller denied colluding

with the hedge fund, Hunterbrook Capital, calling UWM's bid to

sanction the firm a "side-show." It said no entity associated

with Hunterbrook was paying for the proposed class action, and

that the law firm has "has no interest - none - in any trade by

any Hunterbrook entity on UWM's stock."

Pontiac, Michigan-based United Wholesale Mortgage declined

to comment on Monday. The lender has denied the allegations in

the lawsuit.

New York-based Boies Schiller declined to comment. It

pointed to an earlier statement that called United Wholesale's

collusion claims a "baseless attempt to further distract from

the underlying issues" in the case.

A Hunterbrook representative did not immediately respond to

a request for comment.

Boies Schiller filed the lawsuit in April on behalf of four

home buyers after Hunterbrook's media arm, Hunterbrook Press,

published an investigation questioning the mortgage company's

practices.

Boies Schiller has said the nonprofit Hunterbrook Foundation

shared data analysis and research with the law firm before the

lawsuit was filed.

In its request for sanctions and dismissal in September, UWM

accused Hunterbrook and Boies Schiller of mounting a

"coordinated campaign to disparage its business and destroy its

stock value."

Boies Schiller in its new filing said UWM had made "specious

allegations" of professional misconduct.

"Counsel and plaintiffs - without qualification - had

complete control over whether and when to commence this action,"

the law firm said.

The case is Escue v. United Wholesale Mortgage LLC, U.S.

District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, No.

2:24-cv-10853.

For plaintiffs: John Zach and Marc Ayala of Boies Schiller

Flexner; and Brandon Hubbard of Dickinson Wright

For defendants: Jeffrey Jones, Stephen Cowen and Rebekah

Byers Kcehowski of Jones Day

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