ALBANY – Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft exercised due diligence while advising an investor about securitized commercial mortgage loans, the Court of Appeals ruled Thursday, dismissing the last remaining claim in a legal malpractice suit against the firm.

The court concluded in the 6-0 decision that no triable issues of fact exist against Cadwalader in the action brought by the Nomura Asset Capital Corporation and the related Asset Securitization Corporation.

Cadwalader advised Nomura about a 1997 transaction in which $1.8 billion worth of commercial mortgages were accumulated in a “D5″ securitization pool. Specifically, Nomura's complaint alleged that Cadwalader advised it that an Illinois hospital property Nomura appraised at $68 million qualified for favorable federal tax treatment as real estate mortgage investment conduit (REMIC) trusts.