Phillips P. O'Shaughnessy Legal Malpractice Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Legal Malpractice Claims From Foreclosures – Failure to Document in the Mortgage Industry

Mortgage troubles may morph into malpractice claims on behalf of the foreclosing bank. Legal Malpractice happens when an attorney fails to render competent professional service to a client, and such neglect  results in damages to the client.  “Show me the note” is a common phrase these days.  Recently, homeowners facing foreclosure have made a traditional demand of the mortgage holder – show me the mortgage and note to demonstrate that you are, in fact, the holder of my indebtedness.

In Miami-Dade County, the trial court recently dismissed a foreclosure case because the plaintiff bank could not produce the note.  If this ruling gains traction, the problem could become widespread in that many mortgages were transferred from the original lender, through Fannie Mae, into the banking system, securitized, and sold to pools of investors. If the attorneys handling the transaction for these various parties failed to obtain and properly record the originals of the notes and mortgages, they may face claims of legal malpractice if they cannot show the court the note. Legal Malpractice lawyers in West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Broward County and South Florida can assist clients with problems with “failure to document cases”.