Residential Real Estate, Election & Politics Law, Commercial Law & Contracts

Condominium And Homeowners Bills Enacted By The 2013 Florida Legislature

by Martin Schwartz | Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod LLP on 5/14/2013

HB 73- Omnibus Legislation - This bill containing 74 pages is a "stripped down" version of a bill which passed the House last year but failed to obtain Senate approval. It contains a potpourri of changes to the...more

Illinois House Considers Bill to Allow “Bonding Off” of Mechanics Liens

by Timothy Patenode, Jennifer Ryan | Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP on 4/12/2013

Lenders in Illinois might want to take note of pending Illinois House Bill 2804. The bill would amend the Mechanics Lien Act, so as to allow “bonding off” of mechanic liens for the first time in Illinois. Nearly every state...more

The Canadian Federal Budget and Financial Institutions

by Kashif Zaman | Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on 4/10/2013

The recently published federal budget (titled “Canada’s Economic Action Plan 2013”) included high level guidance regarding the Government’s priorities for the regulation of financial institutions, services and markets. The...more

Democratic Lawmakers Push Regulators For Independent Foreclosure Review Details

by BuckleySandler LLP on 4/3/2013

On March 25, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD) sent a letter to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry challenging the regulators’ response...more

Mortgage Forgiveness Act Extended

by Michele Bowman | Lawyers.com on 1/8/2013

As part of the law passed as a last minute escape of the so-called fiscal cliff, Congress extended the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act to the great relief of homeowners who’ve suffered foreclosure....more

A Christmas Wish: Fix Dodd-Frank (Just a Little)

by Rick Jones | Dechert LLP on 12/24/2012

The election’s over and elections matter we’re told, albeit most of the denizens of Washington seem to have remained in their seats. The fiscal cliff awaits. We wait, with various levels of trepidation, for a workable...more

Weekly Brief: BoA Sued; SCOTUS Shortlists; Fund Fights Argentina [Video]

by Bloomberg Law on 10/25/2012

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg Law) -- Bloomberg Law's Lee Pacchia runs through the week's most important legal news. Bank of America was sued by the federal government for over $1 billion in damages on claims that the bank defrauded...more

Cherryland and Peaches: State Politicians' Efforts to Protect Bad Boys Garner Mixed Results

by Dechert LLP on 4/27/2012

A few weeks ago Crunched Credit previewed a (now enacted) bit of Michigan legislation entitled the “Nonrecourse Mortgage Loan Act”, which, in fewer than 800 words, seeks to ringfence recourse guarantors’ assets from attack in...more

Stormchaser Legislation and Mechanic’s Liens

by Davis Brown Law Firm on 4/17/2012

April 17 marks the end of legislators’ per diem, but session will continue beyond that date as budget and property tax negotiations continue. Progress has been made however, with most budget bills being assigned to conference...more

For Investors There May Be a Brighter Side to the “Robo Settlement”

by Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod LLP on 3/27/2012

Further to Phil Stein’s post on Friday, as we continue to parse through the political rhetoric, the fine print of the settlement agreement, and the hoards of misinformation promulgated by the press, we do not believe that...more

Florida Foreclosure Process Moving Out of the Courts If Governor Scott's Plan Okayed by Florida Legislature: Misses the Bigger...

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 10/11/2011

Right now, the State of Florida is one of many states requiring lenders seeking to foreclose on a property for nonpayment of a mortgage note to do so via a formal legal process. A lawsuit must be filed. An official order...more

Thoughtful Refinancing or Lipstick on a Pig?

by Dechert LLP on 9/30/2011

A few weeks ago the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a white paper entitled “An Evaluation of Large-Scale Mortgage Refinancing Programs,” analyzing the potential impact of a so-called stylized refinancing program...more

Big News for Florida Finance with Gretchen Morgenson's NYT Expose: Obama Admin Wants to Block Individual State Investigations Into...

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 8/24/2011

On Tuesday, Pultizer-Prize winning journalist Gretchen Morgenson's article "Attorney General of N.Y. Is Said to Face Pressure on Bank Foreclosure Deal," was published in the New York Times and the next day, the New York Times...more

Congress To Investigate Allegations of Continued Robosigning by Big Banks - Not Good News for Florida Economy

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 7/21/2011

Tuesday's news of a Reuters expose that robosigning (and other forms of faulty and flawed foreclosure procedures) is still happening not only went viral among the financial and real estate industries, it has caught the...more

Widespread Criticism Leads to Vote to End Last Remaining Obama Housing Program

by Fonfrias Law Group LLC. on 6/9/2011

The Home Affordable Modification Program, HAMP, a home loan modification program to avoid foreclosure, once touted as key to helping millions of homeowners who were "underwater" due to plummeting home values, suffered a loss...more

The New and Improved California Residential Property Disclosure Form: A Harbinger of More Significant Reforms in Replacement Cost...

by Barger & Wolen on 10/11/2010

Introduced by Assembly Member Ted Gaines (R), AB 2022 revamps California’s Residential Property Disclosure Form (current page 3; new page 10) and the accompanied California Residential Property Insurance Bill of Rights...more