Real Estate & Property Law

Closing NY Foreclosure Firm Agrees to Pay $4M in Pact with State AG Regarding Paperwork Shortcuts

A New York mortgage foreclosure firm that is winding up its operations has agreed to pay $4 million to the state attorney general to settle claims that it took shortcuts with court paperwork. Half of the money to be paid by the Steven J. Baum law firm will go to…

Mar 22, 2012 7:21 PM CDT

What Happens to Your Facebook Page After Death? Nebraska Bill Gives Say-So to Estate Representative

A bill pending in Nebraska would make the state the second to give estate representatives the power to handle social media accounts after the death of state residents. The bill would treat Facebook, Twitter and email accounts as digital assets that would be managed by appointed representatives, according to the…

Mar 19, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

Lawyer Who Worked at Colo.‘s Biggest Foreclosure Firm Says Legal Process Is Based on ‘Blind Faith’

A lawyer who formerly worked at Colorado’s biggest foreclosure law firm says attorneys often filed foreclosure papers without ever seeing the original documents, probably resulting in foreclosure judgments in cases in which the plaintiff lenders actually had no legal right to the homes they obtained. Keith Gantenbein, 31, is expected…

Mar 13, 2012 5:55 PM CDT

Homeowner on ‘60 Minutes’ Foreclosure Program Will Get $18M Settlement in Whistle-Blower Case

A Florida homeowner and foreclosure fighter who was featured on a 60 Minutes program about the so-called robo-signing scandal concerning improperly attested documents is scheduled to get an $18 million settlement from a whistle-blower case. The money will come from a $95 million settlement between five of the nation’s biggest…

Mar 13, 2012 4:45 PM CDT

3 Attorneys Face Felony Charges Over What Calif. AG Calls a Law Firm Home-Loan Modification Scam

Three partners of a law firm based near Sacramento, Calif., were arrested today and and face felony charges on accusations that they were operating what the state attorney general describes as a law firm home-loan-modification scam. Gregory Flahive, 39, Cynthia Flahive, 41, and Mike Johnson, 42, who serves as managing…

Mar 8, 2012 11:33 PM CST

Suit Challenges Landlord’s Digital Payment Policy; Tenants See Elder Bias

A suit filed by four older residents of a Los Angeles apartment building challenges a new policy requiring tenants to pay rent online. Residents at the Woodlake Manor Apartment building obtained waivers from the policy after a tenants right group organized a mass protest, but some fear the waivers will…

Mar 7, 2012 1:49 PM CST

Supreme Court Takes ‘Harder Look’ at Cert Petition Challenging NY Rent Control

A former prosecutor is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to grant cert in a challenge to New York’s rent control regulations that has lost at the trial and appellate levels. James Harmon, who now runs a corporate investigations firm, is seeking to overturn the regulations in a Fifth Amendment suit…

Mar 6, 2012 11:30 AM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Pinterest Business Card Fishbowl; Legal Foundation of ‘Downton Abbey’

Pin and Win Carolyn Elefant—Washington, D.C., solo and Pinterest member—has invited My Shingle readers to ” ‘drop’ your business card into the MyShingle Online Fishbowl at Pinterest.” Those who participate by Thursday, March 15, will be entered into a raffle for one of two Amazon gift cards. Several of those…

Mar 2, 2012 2:30 PM CST

Washed Away: As Sea Levels Rise, Island Nations Look to the Law to Fend off Extinction

The Marshall Islands—two roughly parallel chains of low-lying coral atolls that stretch across 800 miles just north of the equator—have an intensely close relationship with the Pacific Ocean that surrounds them. The full implications of that relationship were apparent in a student’s question for John M. Silk, who was serving…

Mar 1, 2012 11:19 AM CST

Feds Warn of Marijuana Crackdown in Central California

Benjamin Wagner, the Eastern District of California U.S. attorney, indicated yesterday that a federal crackdown on large-scale marijuana operations there is imminent, and individuals who own the land risk federal prosecution, along with losing their properties. Wagner made the remarks at a Sacramento Press Club event, the Associated Press reports.…

Feb 29, 2012 9:00 PM CST

Lawyer Sues Nevada AG over Office Raid, Says Loan Modification Clients Await His Help

A Las Vegas lawyer has sued Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto in an effort to obtain files seized in a raid of his law offices. Lawyer Jonathan Goldsmith, who does business as Abogados Hispanos, filed “a bare-bones complaint” that contends there was no probable cause for the raid, Courthouse…

Feb 29, 2012 5:08 PM CST

US House Passes Bill to Overturn Kelo, Allow Suits for Misuse of Eminent Domain

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that restricts use of eminent domain and allows lawsuits for misuse of the procedure. The bill would in effect overturn the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision of Kelo v. City of New London, report the The Hill’s Floor Action Blog and…

Feb 29, 2012 12:32 PM CST

Lawyer Wins Fight Against Ticket Issued by Private Subdivision Cop, But Loses Legal Business

The citizen’s arrest made famous by The Andy Griffith Show has taken on a new form, as homeowners associations hire private guards to patrol subdivisions and apartment complexes. Former Chicago suburban prosecutor Ken Poris experienced the phenomenon when an officer in his LaSalle County, Ill., subdivision flashed the amber lights…

Feb 27, 2012 12:00 PM CST

ABA President Backs Obama’s Budget Request for Legal Services Corp.

ABA President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III is endorsing President Obama’s $402 million budget request for the Legal Services Corp. in fiscal 2013. The amount is $68 million less than the amount requested by the LSC, an agency that delivers civil legal help to low-income Americans, according to The BLT:…

Feb 24, 2012 11:30 AM CST

19 Current and Former Employees Sue, Calling Broward County Courthouse a ‘Sick’ Building

Contending that the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is infested with toxic mold and asbestos fibers, 19 current and former employees are suing. They are seeking not only financial compensation for alleged health problems caused by the “sick” building but medical monitoring and a safe work environment, according…

Feb 22, 2012 11:04 PM CST