Foreclosure lawyer probes left up to Florida Bar

The Florida Bar’s investigations into foreclosure fraud by its members jumped 63 percent in the past year, but no disciplinary actions against attorneys have been levied since complaints began to mount in the fall of 2010.

The responsibility to hold lawyers accountable for foreclosure misconduct now rests solely with the Florida Bar after the state attorney general’s investigation into high-volume foreclosure law firms collapsed this week.

Since March of last year, the number of foreclosure fraud investigations of attorneys by the Bar grew from 222 cases to 362. During the same time period, about 130 cases were closed with no findings of fault. There are 229 pending cases.

Despite the lack of punitive action, Arne Vanstrum, associate director of lawyer regulation for the Florida Bar, said the regulatory group is taking the investigations seriously. And while the attorney general’s probe focused on illegal activity, the Bar’s review also includes scrutiny of ethical violations, he said.

“We’re putting a lot of resources into this,” Vanstrum said Friday, a day after Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi announced an unfavorable court ruling that effectively shut down her foreclosure mill investigations. “These cases are unique in that it’s very widespread, not just in Florida but nationwide.”

Rest here…

Florida is fooked…

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4closureFraud.org