Posts Tagged ‘pinellas foreclosure attorney’
Ft. Lauderdale Sun Sentinel- Another Gutting Article on David J. Stern
Author: Matthew D. Weidner, Esq.
The foreclosure mills have gutted our court systems and are costing taxpayers millions of dollars…and none has cost you and I more money than David J. Stern from South Florida. Where are any state or federal or Bar officials? Why is nothing being done to seize assets to help pay the public back for all this loss? It’s just a disgusting tragedy that will apparently keep costing all of us major money…..and now from the Sun Sentinel:
Two announcements last week appear to have doomed Plantation foreclosure attorney David J. Stern’s ambitions to become a national player in the repossession of homes lost by Americans during the economic downturn.
It was only a little over a year ago that Stern jumped at the opportunity to push his business and wealth to a whole new level. The underlying plan was to take the legal and financial model that had made Stern rich and successful, and reproduce it in other states.
In January 2010, the Plantation-based lawyer consummated a deal under which he took a key piece of his law firm’s operations public, with Wall Street backers agreeing to buy him out for a staggering $145 million, plus reams of stock in the newly minted corporation.
The last hopes for that grand venture appear to have vanished.
The Foreclosure Mills and The Florida Legislature Want To Change The Florida Constitution!
Author: Matthew D. Weidner, Esq.
The Florida SUPREME Court passed a rule. A very simple rule really. It said, “Foreclosure mills and banks, please, pretty please, tell the truth.” That’s all the rule is. And despite how simple and basic this rule is, the banks and foreclosure mills have gone nuts. First then just ignored this rule all across the state. To this day, some of the foreclosure mills continue to ignore the rule or play games with it. Far too often they get away with it. Letting them get away with it is a dramatic example of the breakdown in our entire system of government because judges were the last line of defense against corporations gone wild. When judges refuse to enforce laws designed to protect the common man, the corporation’s Rule of Law becomes institutionalized.
And now the Florida Legislature wants in on the action. The legislature is bought and paid for by the banks and foreclosure mills. The legislature is incensed that judges might a) pass rules to require truth and integrity and b) pass rules that impede the foreclosure mills from grinding along with their misdeeds. Never mind that this is the Florida SUPREME Court we’re talking about here. After all, what do they know? And so the response of the Florida Legislature is to introduce a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution that would gut the Florida Supreme Court and the third branch of government.
“No court shall have the power, express or implied, to adopt rules for practice and procedure in any court. Court rules of practice and procedure may be recommended by the Supreme Court to be adopted, amended or rejected by the legislature in a manner prescribed by general law. If there is a conflict between general law and a court rule, the general law supersedes the court rule.”
Scary really, and hopefully the Florida Senate will realize just how obscene this amendment is. But it is a dramatic example of just how powerful the foreclosure mills and the banks are in the state. They’re angry because Florida’s courts are attempting to do just what our founding forefathers intended that they do….protect us all from overreaching corporations and their supreme influence.
Proof that No Citizen is Safe While The Florida Legislature is in Session..
Author: Matthew D. Weidner, Esq.
The Florida Legislature is in session and the banking and mortgage industries are hard at work trying to paper over the lies and the dire consequences that they have created. Consumers and citizens are grossly outgunned and the banks and their teams of lawyers and lobbyists are working feverishly to overtake us. Senate Bill 1072 695.28 Validity of recorded electronic documents.— 445 (1) A document that is otherwise entitled to be recorded 446 and that was or is submitted to the clerk of the court or county 447 recorder by electronic means and accepted for recordation is 448 deemed validly recorded and provides notice to all persons 449 notwithstanding: 450 (a) That the document was received and accepted for 451 recordation before the Department of State adopted standards 452 implementing s. 695.27; or 453 (b) Any defects in, deviations from, or the inability to 454 demonstrate strict compliance with any statute, rule, or 455 procedure to submit or record an electronic document in effect 456 at the time the electronic document was submitted for recording. And its companion on the house side Next a bill on the expansion of senior judges
Pinellas County, Florida’s Sixth Judicial Circuit- Old School in the Fraudclosure Fight.
Author: Matthew D. Weidner, Esq.
As questions over servicers and ownership of notes and mortgages have now made their way into the public discourse, I’ve been looking backwards, deconstructing these arguments and tracing the roots of the arguments and the very real questions which are being debated around the world and the admissions which are now part of the Congressional record.
Some of the earliest serious questioning of the issues now raised in our world centers of economic powers actually occurred right here in Pinellas County. As these issues continue to bubble and froth and the toxic pot of title stew continues to boil, I predict that we will eventually circle back and ask the question….
“What if we had listened to the good judge and stopped all of this in 2005?”
It really is interesting to read the article…a nice historical perspective….
CASE(S) DISMISSED- We Have a Responsibility to Help Our Judges!
Author: Matthew D. Weidner, Esq.
Across this state, our judges–both elected and retired, who are now presiding over foreclosure cases are dealing with enormous pressure to clear the dockets. They’re receiving it from our own Supreme Court and especially from the legislature that holds the court’s purse strings.
This pressure, especially from the legislative branch is an unprecedented and improper intrusion onto our judicial branch and the long term implications of this pressure are very disturbing. Having said that, there is a real problem in our courts caused by these foreclosure cases that are stalled, forgotten, stagnant.
What is missing from most of this debate over clogged up and bogged down courtrooms is the fact that the clog and bog is caused not because our judges or their staff are not doing their job or because pro se defendants or defense attorneys are delaying the process.
I BELIEVE THE GREATEST SOURCE OF DELAY IN THESE CASES IS THE FORECLOSURE MILLS AND LENDERS EITHER AFFIRMATIVELY DECIDING NOT TO PURSUE THE CASES EITHER BECAUSE THE LACK THE EVIDENCE OR AUTHORITY TO PURSUE THE CASES OR BECAUSE THE ALLEGED PLAINTIFF DOES NOT WANT TO PROCEED WITH THE CASES.
Many of our judges are intently focused on trying to fulfill the mandates to clear the docket by granting summary judgment, what we need to be doing, and what we need to encourage our judges to consider that the other alternative to clearing the foreclosure docket is to dismiss those cases that do not meet the requirements to proceed for any number of reasons, because they do not meet the basic evidentiary or pleading burdens, because the cases have languished, because the documents or evidence submitted are facially questionable or for any number or other legitimate reasons to dismiss these cases.
A key factor to consider in all this discussion is the fact that literally millions of dollars in taxpayer revenue is being spent by judges, judicial assistance, clerk of court staff checking and double checking the files and work of the foreclosure mills. The work of these mills and “attorneys” has proven time and time again to be substandard, illegitimate, sloppy and frankly not worthy of consideration by our courts.
AS A TAXPAYER AND A STRONG PROPONENT OF OUR COURTS AND JUDGES, I RESENT THAT MY TAXPAYER DOLLARS IS BEING USED TO DOUBLE AND TRIPLE CHECK THE WORK OF MILLIONAIRE FORECLOSURE MILLS- IF I WERE A JUDGE A FIRM WOULD GET ABOUT SIX TRIES TO GET THEIR WORK CORRECT AND ACCURATE, THEN IF THEY COULDN’T DO IT CORRECTLY, THE FILES WOULD BE DISMISSED.
The firms of course would be free to re-file, paying the new filing fee which would properly fund the work that goes into processing a file. Now doing this once or twice for each firm would certainly encourage accuracy, timeliness and respect for all the good work the judiciary does.
Importantly, these millionaire foreclosure mills and the lying lenders that have created such chaos in our courtrooms will be forced to bear some small fraction of the costs they have burdened our judges and courtrooms with.
Another key fact that supports this important new strategy is that refiling these cases will force the millionaire foreclosure mills to get their documents correct and will give our judges the time they need to review the cases properly!
For all these other cases, let’s do our part to move the cases along and move for dismissals…..see examples of how I’m doing this below and keep up the good fight!
