If we're to restore the rule of law in foreclosure cases, it's going to take a lot more than the fall of Stern's firm, which is just one of several "foreclosure mills" in Florida. Others are under investigation. Maybe some of them will fall too. Maybe not.
Lee County, Fla., has become infamous for the "rocket docket" -- its system of speeding foreclosure cases through the courts. DailyFinance spoke with the Lee County Clerk who says the super-charged system was his idea.
An affidavit in a court case needs to include the documents that support its claims. Except for banks in Florida foreclosure cases. Despite the massive robo-signing scandal and evidence of errors in mortgage files, judges there still merely take the bank's word about what you owe.
No longer such a high-flyer, the David J. Stern law firm is now being investigated and sued in a class action. The impact on pending Florida foreclosures and what the firm's underlying conduct means for the future of the state's real estate market will be felt for years.
Judges in several states are emerging as defenders of due process and the rule of law when confronted with the banks' rampant use of false foreclosure paperwork. Alas, that's not so true in Florida, where a foreclosure can be heard in seconds.
Depositions by three employees of Nationwide Title Clearing describe a factory-like process that's awful to look at. Nationwide defends the system as a standard industry practice, but much of it defies common sense.