Ohio Chief Justice Calls For Pro Bono Legal Assistance For Homeowners Facing Foreclosure

In Ohio, a post on the Cleveland Plain Dealer blog reports:

• Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer wants lawyers in the state to provide free assistance to people on the brink of losing their homes. He has called on attorneys to help homeowners facing foreclosure to negotiate deals with lenders to stem the crisis that is threatening the nation's economy as well as the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of people. The push follows a series of meetings Moyer held Thursday and earlier this week with state and county officials and representatives from legal aid organizations. Attorney General Marc Dann, who attended one of the meetings, is lending Moyer his support.

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• Many people scoff at efforts to help those caught up in the foreclosure mess, criticizing those who took out loans they cannot repay. But Dann said the crisis threatens entire communities. Foreclosed homes often sit empty, leading to lower values for nearby homes and increasing neighborhood crime rates. It also diminishes the amount of property taxes available for such public services as road improvements and law enforcement.

For more, see Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer asks lawyers to aid in Ohio foreclosure cases.

For follow-up post, see 200+ Ohio Attorneys Step Up In Response To State Chief Justice Call For Volunteers.

Go here for stories on how homeowners are using the Federal Truth In Lending Act to undo toxic mortgage refinances.

Editor's Note:

As was shown on the ABC News' Nightline program last Friday night, attorneys representing homeowners facing foreclosure need not do it "for free", but rather, can do it on a "contingency fee" basis. (In such an arrangement, the attorney's fee is limited to whatever money is recovered, whether by settlement or judgment - including statutorily mandated, court ordered attorney fee awards - from the mortgage company for violating, in this context, one or more of a slew of consumer protection statutes. Such an arrangement costs the homeowner facing foreclosure nothing out of pocket.). Nightline featured, among others, North Carolina attorney Max Gardner, who practices consumer bankruptcy litigation and, according to his website, takes on consumer bankruptcy clients on a contingency fee basis.

For a BusinessWeek feature story on consumer bankruptcy attorney Max Gardner, see Bankruptcy Boot Camp (How one man is training an army of lawyers to fight predatory lenders):

• "[G]ardner's model advocates scouring for violations [of applicable law] that occur during the lending process and while the borrower is in bankruptcy protection."

For an earlier post on attorneys obtaining court-ordered legal fee awards in pro bono cases, see NY Lawyers Land Legal Fee Of $1 Million In Pro Bono Case.

For more on last Friday night's Nightline program, see:

• ABC News' Nightline On Alleged Mortgage Servicing Company Ripoffs,
• 'Playing the Odds' (Lawyer Max Gardner Says Some Mortgage Servicers May Be Taking Homeowners for a Ride).