I had my back up against a wall going into a summary judgment hearing yesterday because my client had been convinced by the lender that he should ignore me and stop working with his attorney to try and protect his case. The lender assured him that they would work things out so he didn’t need to respond to my letters and emails.
He finally came to me just before the hearing and I was scrambling to put together my defense when local Foreclosure Fraud Fighter Mark Stopa sent me an email reminding me that these foreclosure mills cannot rely upon affidavits of attorneys fees to establish those fees, the expert testifying to those fees must be in court in person. I attach the case law on both that issue and the other issues I was prepared to argue below:
Thankfully we didn’t even get that far in this hearing because in this circuit, the judges are very serious about devoting adequate time to argue summary judment when the issues are contested. I hear these horror stories about Rocket Dockets elsewhere and it just blows my mind because I have only had one Summary Judgment hearing where I felt like I was not being given adequate time or my arguments not being seriously considered. I reported that defeat, but I am most pleased to report that I had that reversed on rehearing. The care taken by the judges in this circuit shows that highest level of judicial discretion that we should expect in every hearing, in every courtroom across the state.
Anyway, much thanks to Mark Stopa for sharing his good work. Mark is a tenacious and very good attorney who is not at all willing to back down from a big fight...I encourage you to visit his website here.
Finally, let me again encourage each of you to visit Dan Gelber’s campaign page, and particularly look here at his issues section for detailed information about mortgage fraud and fights.
We can make a difference in this race, but every single one of you needs to sign up, sign on and make your voice heard in this campaign. When you are frustrated, overwhelmed and feel helpless, channel that energy into something that might actually be useful, like volunteering for his campaign or at least sharing your concerns on his Facebook page here.
