Blog

September 26, 2021 – What Is Your Mountaintop?

I was taking some time today to think and reflect and I was thinking abou...

September 25, 2021 – The Reality of Mortgage Deficiency Actions in Florida

One of the common questions we get in our law practice is “If I agree to give up my property in foreclosure to the bank, do I still owe money on the mortgage?” This, of course, is an excellent question and should top of mind for anyone considering settling a mort...

September 19, 2021 – On Visiting New York City’s Fountain Pen Hospital

Most would not know this, but every post I write for this blog is ...

September 19, 2021 – When Will The Foreclosure Sale Be?

One question we get a lot in our practice is “If I get foreclosed on, how far out is the sale date?” I will give you the legal answer first and then I will give you the practical answer. Under Florida Statute 45.031(1)(a), the foreclosure sale cannot be less t...

September 17, 2021 – Reflections On National Recovery Month

September is National Recovery Month. Each September, I try to take a little time to reflect on my own recovery. I am at a café in New York City at the moment and felt compelled to write about it. When I first became a lawyer, I was required to attend an in-person c...

September 16, 2021 – Your Right to Redeem a Foreclosure Judgment.

So what happens if a foreclosure judgment is entered against you and you find the necessary funds, whether through a loan or otherwise, to pay it off? Under Florida law

September 13, 2021 – Read the Pooling and Servicing Agreement!

In some foreclosure cases, the bank will try to use a big document called a pooling and servicing agreement (“PSA”) to prove standing to foreclose on the note and mortgage. These agreements are often hundreds of pages and can be difficult to understand. If you ar...

September 12, 2021 – What is Lis Pendens?

When I sat for the Florida bar exam in February 2011, a gentleman sitting next to me piped up after the first session and asked “what the hell is a lis pendens? I wrote ‘action pending’ because I had no idea what that was.” Turns out, he was right! ...

August, 27, 2021 – What Happens When The Bank Does Not Have The Original Note But Wants To Foreclose?

It is well-settled under Florida law that a foreclosing bank must be in possession of the original note at the time the foreclosure case is filed and at the time of the final hearing, whether that be a summary judgment hearing or a trial.

August 22, 2021 – Your Right to Request Your Original Note

In order for the bank to win a foreclosure case, the bank must be in possession of the original promissory note at the time the foreclosure case is filed and at the time of the final hearing. See

August 19, 2021 – Why Should I Hire A Foreclosure Defense Lawyer?

Many homeowners in foreclosure assume that they have limited rights against a foreclosure because they fell behind on their mortgage payments.

July 29, 2021 – What’s the Deal with Paragraph Twenty-Two?

Paragraph twenty-two is definitely the most infamous paragraph in all of foreclosure litigation. But why? In most mortgages in Florida, paragraph twenty-two of the mortgage requires the lender to mail the homeowner a notice of default at least 30 calendar days before...

July 23, 2021 – Can I Recover My Attorney’s Fees If I Won My Foreclosure Case on Lack of Standing?

In the law, there is a principle called “standing.” What this means is that a Plaintiff (the party who files the suit) bears the burden of proving, as a threshold matter, that they have a sufficient stake in the outcome of the litigation to have legal standing to br...

July 23, 2021 – I Won My Foreclosure Case. Can I Recover My Attorney’s Fees?

The short answer is: most of the time, yes. The little-...

July 17, 2021 – Authentic Marketing: Actions Speak Louder Than Words

[et_pb_section admin_label="section"] [et_pb_row admin_label="row"] [et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_text admin_label="Text"]On Monday, we go live with our firm’s first television ad. I have never had much desire to go up on tv with an ad. We have decided to piv...

July 10, 2021 – I Had A Dream

When we hear the words “I had a dream,” many of us will quickly think of the history-making speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I wrote that title to get your attention, I’ll admit. But it is true. I did have a dream last night and I remembered it as soon as ...

July 10, 2021 – How MasterClass Changed My Life

About six months ago, I signed up for a subscription to MasterClass.com. The fee for the whole year was $180. I had heard of it before but didn’t really know anything about it. Looking for some self-improvement, I thought I�...

July 9, 2021 – Why I Love Running

I love running. I was a bit of a latecomer to the sport, but it has saved me in so many ways. I didn�...

July 4, 2021 – Lessons Learned From a Decade As a Lawyer

I recently celebrated my ten-year anniversary as a member of the Flo...

July 3, 2021 – A Balloon Full of Nightmares

We review a lot of mortgage loan documents in our law practice. One problem we see a lot is the infamous balloon.

July 1, 2021 – How Long Are Florida Judgments Good For?

At our law firm, we often receive questions ab...

June 30, 2021 – On Being A Litigator in Long-Term Recovery

When I ran for attorney general in the 2018 election, I came out publicly as someone in long-term addiction recovery. I made that decision because I felt it important to do my small part to end the stigma that comes along with addiction. Ho...

June 27, 2021 – My Little Writing Companion

My wife and I had a nice surprise show up at our door the other day, an adorable little kitten. We decided to name her Cosmo. Two young girls, who happen to live a few doors down from us, begged us to take her in. They found her all alone at the local park. She was s...

June 26, 2021 – Don’t Forget Your Title Search

In our practice, we regularly have clients with liens against their properties that they were not even aware of. It could be a paid-off judgment where the creditor forgot to record the satisfaction of mortgage, among countless other possibilities. A friend of mine sh...