A $1 billion lawsuit was filed on Wednesday against Bank of America, the second largest bank in the US, by the Department of Justice. BofA has been accused of bank mortgage fraud which significantly contributed to the housing crisis. BofA became trapped in the scheme dubbed the “High-Speed Swim Lane” or “Hustle” – when in 2008, they acquired Countrywide Financial, who were already rumored to be approving risky loans when it introduced its “Hustle” program to expedite more loans, drastically doing away with a system which had previously ensured that the mortgages approved were being made to buyers who could in all actuality afford their house notes.  A top U.S. attorney said the bank’s fraud was “spectacularly brazen in scope.” The government states that these loose mortgage lending practices have ended up costing tax payers $1 billion.