German bank Bayerische Landesbank (“BayernLB”) filed suit against Merrill Lynch on May 2 in New York Supreme Court, claiming that Merrill Lynch knowingly made misrepresentations in its offering materials relating to $324 million in residential mortgage-backed securities.  The complaint alleges that the offering materials falsely claimed that the mortgage loans had been underwritten to strict underwriting standards, and that Merrill Lynch misrepresented that it had conducted due diligence on the underlying loans before purchasing and securitizing them.  BayernLB asserts claims for common law fraud, fraudulent inducement, and aiding and abetting fraudulent inducement, and seeks compensatory, rescissory, and punitive damages.  Complaint.