Do I have any recourse against my bank for telling me that a cashier's check I deposited was cleared and available, only to find out later that it was a fraud and I am left holding the bag? I asked before using the money for that very reason.
Banks have been sued for this sort of problem before, and the suits have been dismissed or the banks have won on appeal. When you deposit a check, you are accountable for it if it is not paid, even if your bank allows you to withdraw all or part of the funds.
What your bank told you was that you had legal access to the funds. That is quite separate from the time it takes a check to clear. With cashier's checks, funds have to be available for withdrawal in one business day. It often can take a week or more for a bank to learn that a deposited cashier's check is fraudulent.
Talk to an attorney if you want to get another opinion. You are indeed left holding the bag, unless you are able to identify and recover from whomever victimized you by giving you a bogus check.
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Banks have been sued for this sort of problem before, and the suits have been dismissed or the banks have won on appeal. When you deposit a check, you are accountable for it if it is not paid, even if your bank allows you to withdraw all or part of the funds.