Submitted by O. Max Gardner
O. Max Gardner III
Gardner & Gardner PLLC
PO Box 1000
Shelby NC 28151-1000
704.418.2628 (C)
704.487.0616 (O)
888.870.1647 (F)
704.475.0407 (S)
Next Boot Camp: May 20 to May 24, 2010
The Florida Times-Union
May 14, 2010
Florida AG investigating ‘bogus’ foreclosure records
Source URL: http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2010-05-14/story/state-investigating-bogus%E2%80%99-foreclosure-records
Florida’s attorney general is investigating whether Jacksonville-based Lender Processing Services and Fidelity National Financial were involved with forging real estate documents for foreclosure lawsuits.
The probe deals with a Lender Processing subsidiary that “seems to be creating and manufacturing ‘bogus assignments’ of mortgage,” according to a synopsis the Attorney General’s Office posted on its website.
Assignments are notices that a mortgage has been sold or transferred from a lender to someone else. Many lenders routinely sell or assign their mortgages to investors, who could be businesses, pension funds or individuals.
If a homeowner stops making mortgage payments, the investor can sue to take the home — a foreclosure.
But the investor has to have paperwork proving the original lender sold the mortgage. And many don’t.
Investigators suspect workers at a Lender Processing company called Docx LLC could have created paperwork that was “illegally executed, false and misleading,” said a statement posted on the Attorney General’s Office site.
“These documents are used in court cases as ‘real’ documents of assignment and presented to the court as so, when it actually appears that they are fabricated,” the statement said.
The state investigation is looking for civil infractions, not crimes.
Lawyers fighting foreclosures have questioned the authenticity of some assignment paperwork prepared by Docx.
Court files have given them some extra ammunition.
At least 10 times since 2008, Docx assignments have been filed in Florida courthouses naming the new owner of the mortgage only as “BOGUS ASSIGNEE FOR INTERVENING ASMTS [assignments],” court records show.
On at least three assignments, the initial owner of the mortgage is listed as “A BAD BENE” — seemingly, for a false beneficiary.
Those forms were filed in Duval, Nassau, Volusia, Lee, Orange, Pasco and St. Lucie counties.
It’s not clear how Fidelity National Financial, a Fortune 500 title insurance company, might fit into the state review.
Fidelity National Financial bought Alpharetta, Ga.-based Docx in 2005. But the next year, the company spun off many of its holdings into an independent company, Fidelity National Information Services, and no longer owns Docx. Fidelity National Information Services spun off Lender Processing as a separate company in 2008.
Fidelity National Financial Chief Compliance Officer Paul Perez declined to comment publicly.
Lender Processing Services spokeswoman Michelle Kersch was out of town Friday and didn’t respond to messages sent by e-mail and routed through an assistant. Company CEO Jeff Carbiener didn’t reply to an e-mailed message.
Like a deed, assignment forms carry notarized signatures of people listed as officers of the company transferring the mortgage to the new owner.
But a number of forms prepared through Docx carry signatures of the same people listed as officers of different companies. One signer was listed as a vice president at three different mortgage companies, based in different parts of the country, over a six-month period.
The attorney general’s investigation started in early April, shortly after news reports announced said federal prosecutors were reviewing records from an LPS subsidiary. LPS had reported that to shareholders in its annual report in February.
At the time, the company said it had “identified a business process that caused an error in the notarization of certain documents” used in foreclosures.
Jacksonville Area Legal Aid attorney April Charney said she began reporting cconcerns about Docx documents to the Attorney General’s Office in 2006 or 2007.
“I know they have been playing around with this for years,” she said.
steve.patterson@jacksonville.com,
(904) 359-4263 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (904) 359-4263 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Filed under: foreclosure |
@Foreclosure Fraud,
Can you tell me how to do this research??? I need to get this done in my state?
email me @
janicekautz@yahoo.com
So, let me tell you what is happening with me….the foreclosure mill went to foreclose….and we caught them with “fraud upon the courts.” The DOT was still sitting with WaMu when they filed Successor Trustee….even though there was NO Trustee. I knew that there was paperwork missing. Then, right before they went to sell, we were checking courthouse, they filed an Assignment from WaMu to the Trustee….Hello? Hopefully, we can get criminal charges against them for FRAUD!
MERS is never the mortgagee – they are never the creditor.
Authority to assign -or foreclose- must be under the PSA – no authority to MERS exists under PSA. A party may be a “holder” but not the mortgagee/creditor/lender. Legal Power of Attorney must exist – and it is never granted to MERS under PSAs.
With foreclosure – it is debt collection. Identity of creditor must be divulged. If MERS can find any authority to act on behalf of creditor – they still have to identify the creditor.
In court – one must possess not only legal standing – but also be the real party in interest – you need BOTH. MERS is never the real party in interest.
Very serious issue in bankruptcy as valid discharge and title are in question.
Connie, did Mers change their rules ?
FORECLOSURES
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (“MERS”) is a proper party that can lawfully foreclose as the mortgagee and note-holder of a mortgage loan. MERS Membership Rule 8 provides required guidelines that must be followed when MERS is the foreclosing entity. Please click here to access the Rules of Membership, and reference the Rule 8 requirements.
In mortgage foreclosure cases, the plaintiff has standing as the holder of the note and the mortgage. When MERS forecloses, MERS is the mortgagee and it is the holder of the note because a MERS officer will be in possession of the original note endorsed in blank, which makes MERS a holder of the bearer paper. MERS will not foreclose unless the note is endorsed in blank and held by MERS.
The MERS Legal Primer provides a sampling of cases that address the standing of MERS to foreclose its mortgages. These cases are not meant to be an exhaustive list involving MERS but are merely to serve as a primer for the legal arguments.
BANKRUPTCY
talking about MERS, did they change their rules ?
MERS may file Motions for Relief from Stay and Proofs of Claim related to mortgages that it holds. Each MERS member, through its duly appointed MERS officer(s), is responsible to ensure that pleadings on behalf of MERS in bankruptcy court properly describe MERS. The MERS officer(s) must also ensure that all necessary proof is attached to the pleadings to show MERS has standing at the time the pleading is filed. Please click here to reference MERS requirements.
http://www.mersinc.org/Foreclosures/index.aspx
California AG and the rest of the Nations AG”s should, return to MERSinc and investigate their vendors. DOCx,LPS, SIGNADOCS, just too name a few.
http://www.mersinc.org/files/filedownload.aspx?id=186&table=DownloadFile. This link would open a whole new can of worms. Each website NAME, and each company NAME will tell you how fraud is committed on the courts and against Homeowners. Each site will lead you to other links that would lead you to others and on and on.
Here is how this all started…
There is more to come… 🙂
The Whole Country is BOGUS – Fabricated Mortgage Assignments All Over the Country
4closureFraud.org
Thank you TNL and Matt Weidner
http://mattweidnerlaw.com/blog/2010/05/the-key-to-shutting-down-foreclosure-mills-attacking-their-questionable-assignments/
Lets get real. These firms are experts in concealing the real party in foreclosure actions. That is their job.
Quote – “If a homeowner stops making mortgage payments, the investor can sue to take the home — a foreclosure”
What investors are they talking about? Investors in securities? Afraid not. This is simple propaganda.
Investors in securities have no right to foreclosure. They only have a right to security cash flow payments – while the loan is current.
Further, servicers define an “investor” as someone other than security investor. Servicer defines an “investor” as the party BANK that funded the loan at origination. Remember, security investors are NEVER the creditor/funder at mortgage origination. TILA amendment verifies this.
Security investors who lose money sue the bank/security underwriter – and never the borrower.
This is not a criminal investigation by Florida AG??? It should be.
Florida is as bad as California.
LPS, work with Indymac /Onewest and MTC financialdba Trustee corp foreclosure mill in californi_cation, and now i hear Deutsche bank and Reo/ remax excalibre (isnt that funny) phoenix ! who instructed me to and i quote “call me so we can make arrangments for me to move out” well folks im here to tell ya ORAL ARGUMENT JUNE 28TH 11 AM.AZ DISTRICT COURT.im going whether theres a roof over my head or not. all these entities are in on the game and ive said it befor where did all the honest people go! they all know what they are doing here.
Youtube videos of related Lofton v Fidelity depositions and such http://www.google.com/search?q=lofton+v+fidelity+lps&hl=en&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7ADFA_en&prmd=v&source=univ&tbs=vid:1&tbo=u&ei=f1bwS8rNEcH48AbPwtD9Cg&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CC4QqwQwAw Scribd copy of ammended complaint http://www.scribd.com/doc/7607366/Lofton-v-LPS-FNIS-Assignment-of-Mortgage-Dispute