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The story gets even harder to give it the benefit of the doubt as details further unveil. According to an article by Corporate Counsel, all three testifying executives agreed that "Mayopoulos was a good lawyer and had done good work in his five years at BofA." There were no signs of any impropriety or wrongdoing. So, if Mayopoulos was doing such a good job, why was he fired overnight? To save money? That weak argument is debunked by Moynihan's own testimony.

Moynihan's testimony was critical as he acted as Mayopoulos' replacement for 44 days. If you suspend your disbelief for a minute, and assume that BofA absolutely had to save money by firing Mayopoulos, the fact that his replacement only lasted 44 days gives the story even less credence.

Consider the fact that Moynihan didn't ask why Mayopoulos was fired. If you were taking over for someone fired, that might be the first question that would come to mind. Moynihan claims that he thought it was part of a 10 percent cut in executive staff. I guess he didn't wonder if he'd be next on this "downsizing" list.

Moynihan never had to worry about that. While he has his detractors, see "Attorney in Charge of Merrill Lynch Eyeing BofA CEO Job," he's also has the backing of CEO Kenneth Lewis, who may have been grooming him to take over his position (Lewis will be departing December 31st). Lewis had discussions with the Board to try to hold on to Moynihan who was threatening to leave for greener pastures unless he was being offered better opportunities with the bank. So it comes as no surprise that when Ken Lewis offered him the GC job, he accepted. You have to give it to Lewis, this was a clever albeit unscrupulous way to kill two birds with one stone. Get rid of someone whose legal advice you don't want to hear, and hold on to your "golden child" in one swift move.

Congress does not seem to be buying the far-fetched stories it has been presented with by BofA executives, which they've called "very curious," "troubling" and not believable. Congress is also unlikely to appreciate the backstabbing and deceitful practices that are now coming to light. After all, this episode came at a great cost to taxpayers; BofA received a total of $45 billion in government aid, which included an injection of $20 billion after it threatened to pull out of the Merrill Lynch merger. And that's no laughing matter.

According to an article by Corporate Counsel, Mayopoulos was fired without notice and without reason, after trying to speak with BofA's CFO, Joe Price, following the disclosure. That fateful discussion never took place, as Price all of the sudden became "unavailable" and Mayopoulos was fired the next day.

Mayopolous was given the boot after five years on the job, having received outstanding performance evaluations, and being assured he would be the general counsel for the newly merged company. Mayopolous was in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and in the hands of unscrupulous executives.

What's a GC to do when his client is disclosing inaccurate information? Based on the figures he was provided, Mayopoulos did what every good GC would have done in his place. He discussed it with his outside counsels at Wacthtell. Because the amount originally disclosed, $5B, was similar to Merrill's previous losses, and because the bank had indicated it expected losses to remain nearly the same, all the lawyers concluded in a conference call on Nov. 20 "that disclosure was not warranted," as reported in the Corporate Counsel article.

Clearly, that changed when the numbers came to $15.3 billion. A number that BofA would use to threaten a pull-out from its Merrill Lynch merger, which eventually earned the bank another $20 billion in federal bailout funds. An expensive slight of hands for taxpayers, which Congress is now trying to unravel.

Mayopoulos' treatment sure leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. One has to wonder how Mayopoulos, whose family still lives in Charlotte on the same street as the soon-to-be former BofA CEO, Kenneth Lewis, has been dealing with this ugly slap in the face. I wouldn't be surprised if the neighbors aren't greeting each other on their way to work (Mayopoulos is now GC of Fannie Mae).

The story does not end here as other BofA executives are scheduled to testify before Congress, including Mayopoulos' temporary replacement and controversial figure, Brian Moynihan (See: "Attorney In Charge of Merrill Lynch Eyeing BofA CEO Job"). Stay tuned.