When were Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac placed into conservatorship?

FHFA placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship on September 6, 2008, at the height of the financial crisis. Treasury committed up to $200 billion of support in exchange for senior preferred stock and warrants for 79.9% of the common.

What was the Net Worth Sweep?

The Net Worth Sweep was the August 2012 Third Amendment to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements. It replaced the fixed 10% dividend with a sweep of 100% of each GSE's net worth every quarter — in perpetuity.

When did the DC Circuit hear oral argument in the GSE appeal?

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit heard oral argument on April 21, 2026 before Judges Walker, Childs, and Ginsburg. Elwood argued for FHFA, Hume for the Class plaintiffs, and Barnes for the Berkley plaintiffs.

FanniegateTimeline

16 years. One conservatorship. One appeal left.

The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac saga, from the September 2008 conservatorship through the April 21, 2026 D.C. Circuit oral argument. Every ruling, filing, and inflection point in one scroll.

Shareholder winGovernment winProceduralGlen's marker

Scroll

Sep 20082008

Conservatorship declared

FHFA places Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship at the height of the financial crisis. Treasury commits up to $200B in support in exchange for senior preferred stock and warrants for 79.9% of the common.

The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) had been signed into law just weeks earlier, creating FHFA and handing it conservator / receiver powers over the GSEs.

~2009 – 20112009-2011

GSEs draw ~$190B from Treasury

Fannie and Freddie draw on the Treasury commitment as crisis-era loan losses flow through. The media narrative hardens around the word 'bailout' even as the underlying business stays cash-generative.

Aug 20122012

The Net Worth Sweep

Treasury and FHFA execute the Third Amendment to the PSPAs, swapping a fixed 10% dividend for a sweep of 100% of each GSE's net worth every quarter — in perpetuity.

The amendment was announced on August 17, 2012. Shareholders would later argue that internal government emails showed officials knew the GSEs were on the verge of massive profitability when they restructured the dividend.

20132013

Cash machine turns on

Fannie and Freddie report record profits and — under the new sweep — wire every dollar of it to Treasury. Total payments begin to race past what the GSEs originally drew.

Jun – Jul 20132013

First wave of shareholder suits

Perry Capital, Fairholme, and Washington Federal file the opening salvo of lawsuits in the D.C. District Court and the Court of Federal Claims, challenging the sweep under APA, HERA, and takings theories.

CasePerry Capital LLC v. Lew (D.D.C. No. 13-cv-1025)

20132013

Glen takes his position

Glen Bradford begins the long hold in Fannie and Freddie securities that still defines his portfolio today. The position eventually concentrates in junior preferred shares (FNMAS, FMCKJ, FMCCS).

Sep 20142014

Fairholme loss at district court

Judge Royce Lamberth dismisses the lead D.C. District challenges to the sweep, citing HERA's anti-injunction provision. Plaintiffs immediately signal appeal.

CasePerry Capital LLC v. Lew (D.D.C.)

Feb 20172017

D.C. Circuit affirms on APA claims

The D.C. Circuit affirms dismissal of the APA challenges under HERA's bar on judicial review, but revives breach-of-contract and breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims — the seed of the eventual damages trial.

CasePerry Capital LLC v. Mnuchin

Cite864 F.3d 591 (D.C. Cir. 2017)

Sep 20192019

Fifth Circuit: FHFA structure unconstitutional

The en banc Fifth Circuit holds FHFA's single-director-removable-only-for-cause structure violates the separation of powers. The constitutional argument is now alive.

CaseCollins v. Mnuchin

Cite938 F.3d 553 (5th Cir. 2019) (en banc)

Jun 20212021

Supreme Court: Collins v. Yellen

The Supreme Court affirms that FHFA's removal protection was unconstitutional but declines to unwind the Net Worth Sweep as a remedy, remanding for further proceedings on possible retrospective relief.

CaseCollins v. Yellen

Cite594 U.S. 220 (2021)

The same day, President Biden removed FHFA Director Mark Calabria. The win-on-structure / loss-on-remedy split is what forced the remaining damages track that reached trial in 2022.

Oct – Nov 20222022

Lamberth jury trial

The consolidated D.C. class case finally reaches a jury trial on breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. The first trial ends in a hung jury after weeks of testimony.

CaseIn re Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement Class Action Litigations (D.D.C.)

Aug 20232023

Jury verdict for shareholders

On retrial, the jury finds for the plaintiff classes and awards damages for the Third Amendment's impact on the junior preferred and common shareholders. The first time the sweep is ruled against at trial.

Post-trial motions and the government's notice of appeal followed, teeing up the D.C. Circuit review that became the April 2026 oral argument.

20242024

FHFA appeals to the D.C. Circuit

The government files its notice of appeal and opening brief. Plaintiffs cross-appeal on discrete issues, including the Berkley plaintiffs' separate track.

20252025

Briefing complete

Merits briefing wraps on both the government's appeal and the Berkley cross-appeal. The D.C. Circuit sets oral argument for spring 2026.

Apr 14, 20262026

Hume / Barnes letter reshapes oral argument

One day after the court divides shareholder argument time, Hamish Hume (Class) and Brian Barnes (Berkley) file a joint letter proposing a subject-matter split of the 20 minutes. The government does not object.

Full story: Hume Hits Back

Apr 21, 20262026

D.C. Circuit oral argument

Elwood argues for FHFA. Hume argues for the Class. Barnes argues for Berkley. The panel: Walker, Childs, Ginsburg.

Oral argument recording is available from the D.C. Circuit. Glen's read on the bench: bullish-leaning.

Listen to the recording

Apr 23, 20262026

Angel V dismissed with prejudice + anti-filing injunction

Judge Robin M. Meriweather dismisses Joshua J. Angel's fifth pro se complaint (No. 25-cv-2040) with prejudice and bars him from filing in the Court of Federal Claims without leave of the Chief Judge.

The court rules Angel's claims accrued in 2013 with the Net Worth Sweep and the six-year Tucker Act limitations period expired in 2019. Citing O'Diah and Bergman, Meriweather imposes anti-filing sanctions under RCFC 11(c).

Full case tracker

Apr 27, 20262026

Angel files motion for reconsideration

Four days after dismissal, Angel files a 36-page motion for revision and reconsideration arguing the court got the Trump-statement timeline factually wrong: Angel IV was dismissed June 2024, but Trump's 'implicit GUARANTEES' post was May 27, 2025.

Angel also attaches a $62B settlement proposal (Exhibit C) structured as a Net Worth Sweep adjustment with ~1.5% attorney fees, contingent on the FHFA / Treasury IPO termination proposal filing.

Both filings hosted here

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Now

Awaiting opinion.

With oral argument heard, the case sits with the D.C. Circuit panel. Based on historical pacing in this docket, an opinion is expected between July 2026 and January 2027.

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