If Nevada AG Says It’s Doc Fraud Why Doesn’t Florida Barbie?

January 15, 2012 By Steve Dibert Leave a Comment

Is signing foreclosure documents for others forgery?

Kimberly Miller, Palm Beach Post

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi

The Nevada attorney general calls signing another person’s name on documents used to repossess a home “forgery” and a “scheme.”

Michigan’s attorney general launched a criminal investigation that includes whether “falsified signatures” were used in foreclosure cases.

But Theresa Edwards and June Clarkson were forced to resign their jobs as foreclosure fraud investigators for the Florida Attorney General’s Office, in part, for referring to so-called “surrogate signing” as forgery.

According to a Florida Inspector General report that cleared Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office of wrongdoing in the firings, the duo repeatedly used the word “forgery” in a 2010 presentation that included documents from the Jacksonville-based Lender Processing Services. The company complained and drew the attention of economic crimes boss Richard Lawson.

Lawson says in the inspector general’s Jan. 6 report that surrogate signing as it relates to Lender Processing Services, also called LPS, is not forgery, which requires an intent to defraud. The practice was authorized by the company, more evidence, Lawson said, that no forgery occurred.

Homeowner advocates who support Edwards and Clarkson are now questioning portions of the 83-page report. They point to the LPS signature issue as an example of what they say is Florida’s resistance to go after foreclosure fraud.

Big paperwork processor

“Theresa Edwards and June Clarkson were fired for aggressively investigating these practices,” said Palm Beach County homeowner Lynn Szymoniak, who is in foreclosure. ” Are these practices really OK in the opinion of the chief financial officer and the attorney general?”

Inspector General Clears Florida Barbie’s Office In Lawyers’ Firing

January 7, 2012 By Steve Dibert 4 Comments

Investigation clears attorney general’s office in lawyers’ firing

Kimberly Miller, Palm Beach Beach

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office has been cleared of wrongdoing in the May ouster of two employees widely lauded for their foreclosure fraud investigations.

The state inspector general released an 84-page report Friday detailing its findings during a five-month review of the forced resignations of former Assistant Attorneys General Theresa Edwards and June Clarkson.

The report concludes that no laws or policies were violated in terminating Edwards and Clarkson, and that they were dismissed because of their “poor judgment and lack of independent investigation on high-profile foreclosure mill cases.”

The duo was responsible for a $2 million settlement reached last year with the foreclosure law firm of Marshall C. Watson in Fort Lauderdale and received high marks in evaluations from their direct supervisor.

But others in the attorney general’s office, including Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Staff Carlos Muniz, and Director of Economic Crimes Richard Lawson felt differently. Both were hired last year when Bondi took office and said Edwards and Clarkson were given the option to resign or be fired because of a “failure to improve after multiple warnings.”

The uproar that followed the dismissals, which included concerns that they were politically motivated, pushed Bondi in August to request the independent query by the inspector general of the Florida Department of Financial Services.

At least 10 people were interviewed and dozens of others named in the report, including Palm Beach County homeowner advocates Lisa Epstein and Lynn Szymoniak. Szymoniak was featured last year in a 60 Minutes report on foreclosure fraud.

In a Friday press release, Bondi emphasized other areas of the report that raised concerns about “disorganization,” “non-responsiveness” to public records requests, “factual errors” in public presentations, “incorrect legal theories” and “sloppy” work.

“The report confirms the terminations had nothing to do with politics or outside influence,” Bondi said. “Rather, it was about doing the right thing in defense of the people of Florida.”

Edwards said Friday she was not surprised by the report’s conclusion and questioned how impartial it could be when conducted by the inspector general of the Republican-led Department of Financial Services. The department is headed by Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater.

Filed Under: Florida, Mortgage News Tagged With: Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Florida attorneys, Florida Bankers Association, Florida Bar, Florida Barbie, Florida Foreclosure, florida foreclosure backlog, florida foreclosure fraud, florida foreclosure lawsuits, Florida foreclosure mills, Florida Foreclosure Process, florida foreclosures, Florida Supreme Court, foreclosure, foreclosure crisis, foreclosure defense, foreclosure help, foreclosure help florida, foreclosure rescue, foreclosures, help for florida homeowners, Housing Crisis, illegal florida foreclosures, illegal foreclosures, lender processing services, mfi-miami, Mortgage Crisis, mortgage fraud, mortgage help, mortgage servicers, mortgage servicing fraud, mortgage servicing investigation, mortgage servicing practices, mortgages, Pam Bondi, Progress Florida, Tea Party

Florida Supreme Court Admits Failure And Ends Foreclosure Mediation Program

December 20, 2011 By Steve Dibert 1 Comment

Jeff Ostrowski, Palm Beach Post

Florida’s foreclosure crisis lives on, but a statewide mediation program for troubled borrowers is dead.

Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles T. Canady issued an order Monday ending the effort to encourage lenders and borrowers to avoid foreclosure.

The program was a flop. Only 3.6 percent of cases referred to mediation statewide yielded a written agreement between the lender and homeowner. In Palm Beach County, which began its program in July 2010, a mere 1.6 percent of the 4,632 cases sent to mediation resulted in a written agreement.

Often, lenders couldn’t even reach borrowers to propose mediation. Of 78,076 cases referred to mediation statewide, lenders managed to get in touch with just 42 percent of borrowers.

“The court has reviewed the reports on the program and determined it cannot justify continuation of the program,” Canady wrote.

Lenders and borrowers can continue to haggle over loans already in the mediation program, but it will take on no new cases, he said.

Lenders blamed economic reality for the program’s failure. Home prices have plummeted and jobless rates have soared since the real estate bubble burst, creating financial obstacles that were just too great for many to overcome, said Anthony DiMarco, executive vice president of government affairs at the Florida Bankers Association.

“It was a well-intentioned program that just didn’t work,” DiMarco said. “If someone’s lost their job, a substantial part of their income, I don’t know how they can work that out.”

But foreclosure attorney Tom Ice of Royal Palm Beach said the program failed not because of a moribund economy but because of the way it was designed.

PB Post Says Florida Barbie Has Wrong Priorities

November 14, 2011 By Steve Dibert Leave a Comment

Bondi has wrong priority

Rhonda Swan for The Palm Beach Post Editorial Board

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s effort to play catch-up and clear her name following the revelation that her office fired two highly praised foreclosure fraud attorneys suggests that she is more concerned with her image than her job.

In July, The Post’s Kim Miller broke the story of the firings, which happened in May. On Tuesday, Ms. Miller reported on emails related to the firings. In one, Ms. Bondi responds to a statement detailing that June Clarkson and Theresa Edwards were fired because of “shoddy legal work” by saying, “I can finally go to sleep now and quit worrying about how these women will attempt to destroy me.”

In another email, Ms. Bondi wrote that she learned about the firings during a “two-minute phone call” and that she “did not even know the details, nor should I have needed to know.”

Therein lies the problem.

Ms. Bondi wants to be too far removed from the firings, which the attorneys have suggested were politically motivated after foreclosure attorneys complained that Ms. Clarkson and Ms. Edwards were too aggressive. Our translation: They were doing their jobs. As attorney general, Ms. Bondi should have wanted to know the details. It shouldn’t take media attention to pique her curiosity.

Jennifer Meale, Ms. Bondi’s communications director, said the attorney general was upset by what she called “false accusations” by the attorneys. “The attorney general,” Ms. Meale said, “wanted to make sure that the record was set straight.” She also pointed out that the agency has more than doubled the staff dedicated to foreclosure improprieties.

Ms. Bondi’s defensiveness is telling. She never has adequately explained how Ms. Clarkson and Ms. Edwards went so quickly from receiving strong performance reviews to doing “shoddy legal work.” Ms. Bondi had been on the job for just four months when the women were fired. Rather than worry “about how these women are going to destroy me,” Ms. Bondi, who always notes that she is a former prosecutor, ought to wonder why she still can’t present a credible case for the firings.

If Nevada AG Says It’s Doc Fraud Why Doesn’t Florida Barbie?

Is signing foreclosure documents for others forgery?

Inspector General Clears Florida Barbie’s Office In Lawyers’ Firing

Investigation clears attorney general’s office in lawyers’ firing

Florida Supreme Court Admits Failure And Ends Foreclosure Mediation Program

PB Post Says Florida Barbie Has Wrong Priorities

Translation

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