Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyers Blog

The term "too big to fail" has been used to describe the strength of banks entrenched in the mortgage foreclosure battle with homeowners. Florida has become a sort of poster child in foreclosure cases where more residents enter foreclosure each day. For now, the momentum seems to be shifting in favor of the consumer especially in light of a new development from the Florida Bar charging Florida attorneys with the duty to disclose shoddy foreclosure paperwork to the Court.

This development was reported in a Florida Bar News article which details a meeting of the Bar's Professional Ethics Committee at the Bar's Annual Convention in June. The committee voted 20-6 to uphold a Bar staff opinion advising a lawyer representing a bank that the duty existed.

The lawyer posed this scenario to Bar staff: a bank uses two employees to review and prepare affidavits necessary in a foreclosure. Employee one personally verifies the figures in the affidavit and signs off in the presence of a notary. Employee two uses an assistant to verify figures but signs off as if she personally reviewed them, sometimes not even in the presence of a notary. The lawyer wanted to know if he was required to report this client's activities. He also asked whether that duty remained when the disclosure would not change the outcome of the case, or if the case was closed or pending.

The Ethics Committee responded by saying that it doesn't matter what stage the case is in, but that Florida Rule of Professional Conduct 4-3.3 Candor Toward the Tribunal makes shoddy documents "false evidence", and proper for disclosure without condition. The opinion also cites Rule 4-1.2(d) prohibiting assistance of criminal or fraudulent client conduct, Rule 4-3.4(b) that prohibits fabrication of evidence or assisting a witness in false testimony, Rule 4-8.4(a) prohibiting violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct or assisting another in doing so, Rule 4-8.4(c) barring an attorney from conduct that constitutes dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation and Rule 4-8.4(d) which prohibits a lawyer from conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice as violations for a failure to disclose faulty foreclosure docs.

The Bar's opinion concluded that the attorney should advise the client to correct the affidavits or that he would have to withdraw and disclose the issue to the Court. The attorney also should withdraw from further representing the client in cases where they refuse to disclose the truth, being careful to make minimal disclosures when doing so.

This is just the latest development in the fight against some of the unscrupulous tactics that many banks and their attorney's have been perpetrating for a number of years. A Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer hopes this latest measure by the Florida Bar stops many of those actions.

President of the Florida Bar, Mayane Downs, says that the Bar has seen an increase large increase in the number of complaints and investigations of attorney misconduct as a result of foreclosure fraud and some may pay the ultimate professional price, disbarment. The Florida Bar, the body responsible for monitoring and investigation attorney conduct, has seen the number of fraud cases and the number of attorney's under investigation rise from 28 investigations on 23 attorneys in 2010 to 222 investigations on 157 attorneys open so far in 2011.

The substance of the investigations are not made public but complaints normally range from forged signatures on court documents, forged notarizations on documents and other illegal and unscrupulous activities designed to speed up the foreclosure process. These investigations do not include the wide-ranging investigations into the 8 Florida "foreclosure mills" including the now defunct Law Offices of David J. Stern. Many foreclosure defense attorneys question why no one from any of the "foreclosure mills" has yet to be suspended or face professional sanctions as a result of the investigations.

Many attorneys didn't believe that the media allegations of foreclosure abuses would result in official investigations by the Florida Bar but that appears to not be the case. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit where one of the 8 "foreclosure mills" is opposing counsel, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today to see what foreclosure defense options may be available to you.

As a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer wrote in early January, new Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is expanding her Office's investigation into "robo-signing" and falsification of documents by investigation firms other than the five firms initially under investigation.  At the time of Mrs. Bondi's announcement, she declined to specify which additional firms were being investigated. A Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer has learned that at least three other firms are being investigated and the letters from the Attorney Generals' office are attached below which were obtained through freedom of information requests.

The Letters inform the Kahane & Associates, The Law Office of Daniel Consuegra, and Albertelli Law Firm that a preliminary investigation regarding complaints received by the AG regarding allegations of unfair, deceptive and unconscionable practices by the firms in regards to their handling of mortgages which are in default.

New Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is expanding the investigation into the foreclosure mess begun by her predecessor beyond the initial allegations of the falsification of court documents and widespread "robo-signing." The Attorney General's office did not give specifics as to which firms are facing allegations and nor did it indicate a timetable for the investigation to be finalized.

The investigation has now been expanded to include allegations of misconduct by attorneys and other staff who worked at the large Florida law firms many are now calling "foreclosure mills." In addition to the allegations of attorney misconduct, the investigation will include: law firms padding their bills in order to obtain higher final judgments for mortgage lenders during the foreclosure process, law firms filing foreclosure lawsuits before the lender or servicer actually shows it has an interest in the mortgage, lawyers and law firms routing business to title companies owned by other attorneys in their law firm, and lawyers presenting blank bills to the court that do not show the actual cost of their services.

A Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer is glad that the new Attorney General has continued, and even widened, the investigation into the practices of the notorious Florida "foreclosure mills." If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit and want to see what defenses may be available to you, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer today.

With 11 law schools located within Florida there is no shortage of new, young attorneys looking for work. Now many of those attorneys may face Florida Bar investigations as a result of their role in the foreclosure crisis that has gripped the state. More than 260 attorneys work at Florida's four largest "foreclosure mills" and 48 percent of those have been practicing for less than three years. Homeowners advocates are now beginning to place blame on these inexperienced attorneys by calling into questions whether the foreclosure crisis would have reached these levels if "novice lawyers" had not been doing the legal work.

After being laid-off from their positions at the Law Office of David J. Stern, many of the new attorneys have had little trouble finding work. The attorneys, many who had been employed by the firm for less than one year, have been scooped up by other existing "foreclosure mills" and other firms who are looking to create foreclosure practices.

If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit brought by one of the notorious Florida "foreclosure mils," contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today to have your case reviewed to determine what defenses may be available to save your home.

With scores of complaints from Florida homeowners, foreclosure defense lawyers and investigations by both the Florida Attorney General's Office and the U.S. Congress, the Florida Bar says they are not getting formal complaints against attorneys who commit foreclosure fraud. While the Florida Bar has suspended or disbarred over 200 attorneys so far this year none have been a result of complaints of foreclosure fraud. But by taking several proactive steps, the Florida Bar thinks this trend will quickly change.

The head of the Florida Bar, Mayanne Downs, is now asking judges statewide to report any and all instances of foreclosure fraud or fraud on the court, including sending copies of orders judges write where they mention some form of misconduct. While judges will now be on the lookout for foreclosure fraud it is up to Florida homeowners and their attorneys to challenge the fraudulent behavior in front of the court so judges are aware that the fraud is happening. To deal with the anticipated increase in foreclosure fraud complaints the Bar has instituted a new category solely dedicated to tracking foreclosure fraud complaints. In the month of November, the Bar is already investigating 43 reports of foreclosure fraud.

If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit and you feel that a foreclosure fraud has been perpetrated against you, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today for a complimentary case review.

The good news is that Foreclosure filings declined nationwide in May. The bad news is that foreclosure filing in the Jacksonville area have risen more than 55%. According to the Florida Times-Union, foreclosure filings in Jacksonville area rose from 2,415 in April to 3,789 in May. The sharp increase may have been caused by more homeowners trying to renegotiate their mortgages and falling victim to foreclosure or the fact that mediation between the lender and the borrower is now required in all residential foreclosure cases. Unfortunately for Jacksonville homeowners, foreclosure filings could continue to rise throughout the year due to high unemployment rates and the continuing failure of government mortgage-assistance programs.

Simply because you have been given a foreclosure notice does not mean that you automatically lose your home. In many cases a foreclosure lawsuit has legal defenses that a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer can advise you of. Many people are under the mistaken belief that they do not need to answer the lawsuit properly because of a scheduled mediation. This is not true and even if you elect to participate in a court ordered foreclosure mediation, you must respond timely to the foreclosure lawsuit. Contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer to discuss your options and rights.