Firm Saves Another Homeowner

Shuster & Saben has saved yet another Miami Homeowner from Foreclosure. On July 31, 2009, our firm appeared on behalf of a South Florida homeowner who had failed to serve an answer to the lender Deutche Banks’ complaint for foreclosure. Prior to our firm being retained the lender obtained a default against our client and an order granting the lender’s motion for summary judgment. By the time our firm was retained the Court had already entered a final judgment of foreclosure and set a sale date.

Our client advised that she was unaware of the foreclosure action against her until she consulted a Realtor about a short sale of the property only to find out from the Realtor that the Court had entered an final judgment of foreclosure and had set a judicial sale date for mid August. Immediately after our firm was hired we prepared a verified (notarized) affidavit to quash service of process. The affidavit set forth the testimony of the homeowner that she was never served. After the lender’s counsel, David Stern, P.A. failed to refute our client’s affidavit with record evidence., the Court granted our motion to quash service, vacated the summary judgment and canceled the judicial sale. The lender will now have to start the case over again from the beginning by properly serving the homeowner. This time our client will have an aggressive legal defense. As of the today, our client has still yet to be served.

Shuster & Saben obtains Dismissal of Foreclosure Action

For Immediate Release:
The law firm of Shuster & Saben has obtained the dismissal of a foreclosure lawsuit filed against the firm’s Brevard County client. The Plaintiff / Lender filed suit against our client in an attempt of take their Cocoa, Florida investment property. In the subject action, after the lender drastically raised our client’s interest rate (to well over 8% A.P.R.), our client was unable to continue to afford to make monthly mortgage payments. Our client had financed the property with an A.R.M. (Adjustable Rate Mortgage) that was linked to the LIBOR index, and faced an increase in their interest rate after their initial rate expired. Despite the fact that interest rates declined from 2007 to 2009, the lender still raised the client’s interest rate to a point that it was no longer affordable. Several months after the client stopped making mortgage payments the lender filed a Notice of Lis Pendens and a Complaint for Foreclosure in the Brevard County Circuit Court.

The client consulted with several other Space Coast attorneys before choosing Shuster & Saben to defend the foreclosure action. After Shuster & Saben filed its notice of appearance and voluminous discovery requests the lender decided to dismiss the case and cancel the lis pendens. Counsel for the lender advised that the lender has decided to write off the loan. To view the actual Notice of Dismissal click here.

Shuster & Saben Wins Emergency Motion to Stay Foreclosure Sale

For Immediate Release:
Shuster & Saben wins Emergency Motion to Stay Foreclosure, and obtains Court order cancelling judical sale.

September 17, 2009, could have been a very bad day for Shuster & Saben client M.L.* When M.L came to our firm on August 11, 2009, she had already lost her case because a default was entered against her after she failed to file an answer to a complaint for foreclosure filed by MidFirst Bank. Our client had received numerous calls from the loan servicer who had told her that she did not need to attend a Court hearing because she had been approved for loan modification. Relying of what she was told by the servicer M.L. did not answer the compliant or attend a motion for summary judgment. M.L. realized she had a serious problem that required immediate legal action when she received an Court order scheduling her home to be judicially auctioned on September 17, 2009.

After Shuster & Saben was hired on August 11, 2009, the firm filed a Verified Emergency Motion to Stay Foreclosure Sale and Request for Mediation. In support of the motion M.L.’s affidavit was filed that set forth that she was employed and was attempting in good faith to reach a loan modification with MidFirst bank. The affidavit also set forth that M.L. did not file an Answer based upon representations of the servicer that the foreclosure could be worked out by loan modification.

On September 15, 2009, just two days before the scheduled sale the Court held a hearing on the Emergency Motion to Stay Foreclosure. Thomas Willis, from the law firm of Shuster & Saben presented the firm’s argument on behalf of the homeowner and George Zamora of the law firm Kass, Shuler, Solomon, Spector, Foyle & Singer, P.A. presented the bank's argument. Circuit Court Judge Marc Schumacher granted the Emergency Motion and entered an order cancelling the foreclosure sale and deferring the parties to mediation.

To Review the Court's Order Click Here

* M.L. is a real client. To protect her identify and privacy one of her initials has been changed our client's name has been redacted from the linked order.

Shuster & Saben, LLC, Foreclosure Defense
Miami: (305) 576-8688
Fort Lauderdale: (954) 423-0052
Palm Beach (877) 511-STAY
Stuart: (877) 511-STAY
Melbourne: (321) 549-STAY
www.attorneyforeclosuredefense.com

To See Thomas Willis' Spanish Foreclose Blog Click Here

New Melbourne, Florida Consultation Location

For Immediate Release:
Shuster & Saben, LLC announces a new available for consultation location in Melbourne, Florida. Space Coast homeowners facings foreclosure can meet with an attorney of the law firm of Shuster & Saben, LLC at 100 Rialto Place, Suite 700, Melbourne, FL 32901. We are available for consultation at this location by appointment only.




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Shuster & Saben, LLC is law firm of five attorneys with offices in Miami and in Plantation / Fort Lauderdale. This Fall Shuster & Saben will open a third office in Satellite Beach, Florida and will continue to be available by appointment only at 100 Rialto Place, Suite 700 in Melbourne. Shuster & Saben, LLC defends homeowners in foreclosure. Lawyers in our firm have been featured in or quoted by Time Magazine, Univision, and the Daily Business Review. Shuster & Saben offers free consultation with an attorney and defends homeowners in foreclosure for $495.00 per month on loans under $500,000. When the firm defends a homeowners primary residence
Melbourne Phone: (321) 549-STAY or Toll Free: 877-511-STAY.

For More Information about Shuster & Saben, LLC, please see our website www.attorneyforeclosuredefense.com

Court Discovers 15,000 unserved foreclosures

On the cover of today’s Daily Business Review is an article which reports that Miami-Dade chief administrative judge, Jennifer D. Bailey has discovered that there are 15,000 foreclosure cases filed in 2009 in which the lender has not served the defendant homeowner. Service of Process is the act of having a process server or sheriff physically hand deliver a copy of the lawsuit to the Defendant (in foreclosure cases the primary defendant is the homeowner). A plaintiff (in foreclosure cases the lender) has 120 days to serve the Defendant. If the Plaintiff serves the Defendant after 120 days without getting an extension of time, in advance, from the Court, the service of process is invalid and the case is subject to dismissal.

We recommend that if a homeowner is served with a foreclosure complaint the homeowner check the Court docket to determine when the case was filed and check to see if service was completed within 120 days.

Shuster and Saben is a five attorney litigation law firm that defends homeowners in foreclose and seek monetary damages for victims of predatory lending and other mortgage law violations. We are available for free consultation at our offices in Miami and Plantation and have freelance paralegals to meet with homeowners in Lee, Collier, and Brevard county. Homeowners with questions can reach our foreclosure defense department at foreclosuredefenselaw@gmail.com

Florida Default Law Group Sued for violation of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

A Class Action lawsuit for alleged violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act has been filed against the Florida Default Law Group, P.L. in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

The class action was filed by attorney James E Kallaher, of the Law Office of Bohdan Neswiacheny of Orange Park, Florida. At issue in the lawsuit is the practice of the Florida Default Law Group to send letters to consumers who were behind on their mortgages in envelopes upon which a return address bearing the words “Florida Default Law Group, P.L." was printed.

The purpose of the The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is to insure that debt collectors refrain from using abusive debt collection practices. The specific statute alleged to be violated is 15 USC 1692(f)(8) which prohibits:

“Using any language or symbol, other than the debt collector’s address, on any envelope when communicating with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram, except that a debt collector may use his business name if such name does not indicate that he is in the debt collection business.”

The lawsuit, in our opinion correctly asserts that the business name “Florida Default Law Group” is a business name that indicates the company is in the debt collection business.

Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, any individual who has been a victim of a violation of the act is entitled to both their actual damages and such additional damages as awarded by the Court not to exceed $1,000.00.

Our law firm is in the process of filing individual law suits for clients the firm is defending in foreclosure actions in Dade and Broward County. These actions will be filed on as individual cases in county court. We anticipate that our first law suits will be filed later this week. A copy of the class action complaint is available on-line at http://thetruthaboutloanmodification.wordpress.com/files/2009/09/florida-default-class-action-complaint.pdf

Any consumer who has questions about whether their rights have been violated may contact our firm at foreclosuredefenselaw@gmail.com

Consumers who believe that the Florida Default Law Group has were sent an envelope with the words “Florida Default Law Group” on the envelope should be aware that any lawsuit brought to recover damages under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act must be filed within ONE YEAR of the alleged violation.


For more information about Shuster & Saben, LLC
please see our website.