Will Schneiderman bring down the banks the same way the Feds nabbed Al Capone?

Big Foreclosure Settlement Still Not Really, Truly, Finally Done

And here we go again. Last month I wondered when we were going to see the documentation behind the ‘$25 billion’ mortgage settlement. Despite the massive action this settlement is now supposedly leading to, there didn’t seem to be a huge rush to get the deal finalized.

The same day I posted my blog it was reported that prosecutors would likely be filing the documents in the courts by the end of the month.

Well February has come and gone, and it appears we’re no closer to seeing the final settlement document. March has started more like a lamb then a lion.

Just as it did when it went up last month, the government’s settlement website still says coming soon where the document should be.

HUD secretary Shaun Donovan told the Senate Housing Committee Tuesday that they shouldn’t worry, that there were just a few i’s to be dotted and a few t’s to be crossed.

Uh huh. Isn’t that what they said the last time? Until the settlement is signed, sealed and delivered, there will still be lingering doubt about it’s language.

Schneiderman Could Focus on REMICs

We’re still seeing just how Eric Schneiderman’s RMBS working group will come together. Today it was reported that Congressman Brad Miller will not become it’s staff director, as the group is seeking an “experienced prosecutor for the job”.

But Chris Whalen of HousingWire offered his idea on how Schneiderman will go after the banks, and as I have also speculated, he believes its tax fraud that could ultimately bring them down.

Whalen thinks it’s his role as New York Attorney General, rather than his position as head of the working group, where Schneiderman will do the most damage. Long before President Obama brought him onto the national stage, Schneiderman has been one of the most aggressive AGs against the banks.

His inquiry as New York Attorney General provides him plenty of ammunition, and focuses on the creation of residential mortgage backed securities among other issues. All of which carry far greater legal and tax consequences than any of the foreclosure abuses the banks have been punished for to date.

Just remember, that’s how the feds got Al Capone!

Judge Maxine Coen Lando dies

We have to end this round-up on a sad note, as we say goodbye to a good judge and friend to the cause, Judge Maxine Coen-Lando.

Maxine was taken too soon at the age of 61 Wednesday after a long battle with cancer. Last year I applauded Lando after she gave one hell of a dressing down to foreclosure mill’s attorneys for being unprepared during a hearing and then dismissed the case outright.

Lando was not afraid to tell the truth and do her job. She stood up for right and was ahead of her time in identifying the true culprits in the foreclosure crisis.

Lando sat on the bench for over 20 years and continued to work until very recently. One of the last hearings she presided over was attended by none other than foreclosure mill attorney David Stern.

Rest In Peace Judge, and thanks for getting in the trenches with us.

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Pondering Shays’ Rebellion and Florida Foreclosure Laws

You may be reading stories about our Fort Lauderdale law office’s commitment to foreclosure defense. I wanted to take a moment to explain why we’re so dedicated to defending homeowners struggling through the judicial system.

Do you remember Shays’ Rebellion? Some call it the “last battle of the American Revolution.”

Revolutionary War Captain Daniel Shays helped organize an insurrection against the Massachusetts government in 1787. Unfair laws, high property taxes, poll taxes and unjust court procedures made life worse than before America’s independence from the United Kingdom. While government officials had excessive salaries, those in debt were jailed.

Long story short, the rebellion in the face of this financial and economic crisis led the government to reevaluate the Articles of Confederation and was the impetus to the Constitutional Convention. The result was a new and stronger government under the United States Constitution.

I don’t expect an armed uprising during Florida’s foreclosure crisis, but I do expect homeowners to get upset when they discover that, in many cases, Florida lenders are foreclosing on them without any proof of loan ownership. Some banks are violating homeowners’ Constitutional rights in terms of due process by failing to produce these documents – a legal requirement of foreclosure.

Our internal investigations show this happens more than we’d like to think. So we’re up in arms, so to speak, for homeowners. We want to ensure that homeowners are fairly represented in a court of law and that due process is followed. The bottom line: if the bank can’t prove ownership, they can’t foreclose.

See my recent news about Florida foreclosure law: http://www.oppenheimlaw.com/