Real Estate & Property Law

Erin Brockovich Goes Back to Work on Hinkley, Where Residents Claim New Chromium Problems

An environmental contamination case that made paralegal Erin Brockovich famous, after she was portrayed by actress Julia Roberts in a Oscar-winning movie about the litigation, may not be over yet. Some residents around Hinkley, Calif., say they’re experiencing new problems with hexavalent chromium-tainted groundwater, after a contaminated plume spread beyond…

Nov 15, 2010 10:16 PM CST

100s, Maybe 1000s of Foreclosed Mass. Homeowners Find Out They’re Back in the Ballgame Again

Hundreds and maybe thousands of Massachusetts residents who thought they had lost their homes in foreclosure are now finding out otherwise. When title companies refuse to insure the property, because defective paperwork in the foreclosure case doesn’t make clear who owns the home, a number of lenders are opting to…

Nov 13, 2010 1:37 AM CST

Md. County Exec & Wife, Both Lawyers, Allegedly Hid $79K in Her Bra as Feds Listened

Once law school sweethearts, two married officials in Prince George County, Md., are now allegedly partners in crime. Today outgoing county executive Jack Johnson and his wife, Leslie Johnson, who has been elected to the county council, were arrested on federal charges of witness tampering and destruction of evidence and…

Nov 13, 2010 12:28 AM CST

Evictions Pile Up in Sheriff’s Office, Part of a ‘Populist Revolt’

More than 1,000 evictions have piled up in the office of Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart, and he’s in no hurry to get them moving. Last month, the sheriff for Chicago and its nearby suburbs declared that his office will not evict homeowners until lawyers for the mortgage companies personally…

Nov 12, 2010 3:10 PM CST

Vegas Lawyer Known for Cable Shows Arrested in ‘Bizarre Suicide Scheme’

A Las Vegas lawyer who appeared on two cable TV programs and wrote a real-estate advice column for the Las Vegas Review-Journal has been arrested in what the newspaper calls a “bizarre suicide scheme.” Lawyer Nancy Quon, 50, was taken by ambulance from the resort where she was living with…

Nov 12, 2010 12:51 PM CST

Real Estate Lawyer Pleads Guilty in Fraud Case Over Paid-Up Home Loans

Real estate lawyer and former state lawmaker Christopher Maselli is current on mortgage payments for some $1.7 million in financing for four homes he started purchasing during the real estate boom, his lawyer says. But because he allegedly falsified documentation to obtain the loans, including two tax returns and bank…

Nov 12, 2010 12:59 AM CST

Foreclosure-Rescue Lawyer Disbarred & Charged for Allegedly Faking $1M Court Settlement

A South Florida lawyer reportedly has been disbarred and is now facing criminal forgery charges for allegedly lying to a mortgage-rescue client and falsely claiming to have obtained a dismissal of the foreclosure case against him and a $1 million settlement. Frank Ingrassia, 51, who formerly worked with disgraced company…

Nov 11, 2010 10:33 PM CST

Deficit Panel’s ‘Starting Point’ Plan Seeks to Ax Mortgage Interest Deduction & Cut Social Security

In a “starting point” plan, a bipartisan presidential commission asked to come up with possible ways to deal with the federal deficit is proposing to slaughter a number of sacred cows, including the home mortgage interest deduction that now applies on income tax returns. A draft released today also calls…

Nov 10, 2010 10:10 PM CST

Thousands View YouTube Depos of Title Co. Workers Whose Output Supports Foreclosures

Depositions in civil cases aren’t ordinarily viewed as popular entertainment. But recent videos of the depositions of several Florida title company employees whose work supports foreclosure cases that have been posted on YouTube by the Forrest Law Firm are attracting thousands of viewers. Among them are excerpts from depositions of…

Nov 10, 2010 8:52 PM CST

Mortgage Broker Puts Adverse Possession to Test by Seizing Foreclosure Properties

A Florida mortgage broker is scheduled to go on trial for fraud in December for seizing and renting out foreclosure properties in a bid to obtain title through adverse possession. Mark Guerette and his company, Save Florida Homes Inc., have filed court claims on about 100 foreclosure properties he found…

Nov 9, 2010 1:38 PM CST

Fraud Indictment Accuses Lawyer of Hiding Superfund Status of Property

A New York State lawyer who represented both the buyer and seller in the sale of a paper mill has been indicted on federal fraud charges for alleged failure to disclose that the property was a Superfund cleanup site. Saratoga Springs lawyer John Hogan Jr., 75, faces seven fraud charges…

Nov 8, 2010 3:38 PM CST

Some Foreclosure Lawyers Charge Contingency Fees Secured by New Mortgages

Some Florida foreclosure lawyers are charging contingency fees and securing them with second mortgages on the homes they helped save from bank repossession. Among the law firms taking this tack is the Ticktin Law Group in Deerfield Beach, Fla., the New York Times reports. “It’s a new model, a new…

Nov 8, 2010 2:54 PM CST

Lawyer Indicted in Alleged Mortgage-Rescue Fraud

A Nevada lawyer has been indicted for allegedly operating a mortgage-rescue scam known as “Save Your House.” Instead of doing so, however, attorney Ramon Dy-Ragos and two partners are accused of charging up-front fees of $1,000 to $4,000 and telling borrowers to stop paying and cease contact with the bank.…

Nov 5, 2010 8:26 PM CDT

Stern’s Law Firm & Related Co. Cut Staff By 70% After Fannie and Freddie Pull Foreclosure Files

Updated: A South Florida law firm being investigated by the state attorney general over its mortgage foreclosure work has announced new layoffs today, after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pulled their files earlier this week. Following “substantial” layoffs today, David Stern’s law firm and a related company reportedly will have…

Nov 4, 2010 7:11 PM CDT

Former Law Firm MP and Ex-NJ State Sen. Arraigned in ‘Retainer’ Legislative Bribe Case

A former New Jersey state senator was arraigned today in prison garb along with the business-suited former managing partner of a law firm who is reportedly battling cancer and was barely able to walk into the federal court in Newark with the help of his attorney. Both pleaded not guilty…

Nov 3, 2010 5:07 PM CDT