Retired Maine Attorney Attracts Spotlight For Work In GMAC Robo-Signer Case

The AmLaw Daily recently interviewed Maine attorney Thomas Cox, one of the attorneys whose deposition of GMAC robo-signer Jeffrey Stephan resulted in a Maine court overthrowing an earlier foreclosure judgment against Cox's client (and thereby forcing GMAC to go to trial on their foreclosure action and sticking them with the tab with some of the fees Cox would have charged his client had he been being paid - note that Cox is handling the case pro bono(1) - see Court Order, FNMA v. Bradbury, et al.), and was one of the keys to triggering the recent brouhaha on faulty foreclosures.

Asked what it feels like finding himself roped into the middle of such a crazy story, Cox responds:

• I'd like to go back into the previous pattern where for most of my career I ducked the press. I'm looking forward to going back into that mode real soon, but it seemed like this was a story worth keeping out there.

For the interview, see The Lawyer Who Put the Brakes on Rubber Stampers and Robo-Signers.

See also From a Maine House, a National Foreclosure Freeze for the recent front page story in The New York Times featuring Mr. Cox and his work on this case.

(1) On the entitlement of prevailing party attorney's fees to an attorney representing a client on a pro bono basis, state court Judge Keith A. Powers noted in footnote 4 of the Court Order:

• That Defendant's counsel is entitled to an award of attorney's fees is not affected by the fact that he labored in this case on a pro bono basis. Cf., Foster v. Mydas Assoc., Inc., 943 F.2d 139, 144 n.7 (1st Cir. 1991) (noting that civil rights attorneys who work pro bono and prevail are usually awarded attorney's fees under civil rights statutes).

It's worth noting that, in footnote 7 of the Foster case, the 1st Circuit made this observation on a losing party's attempt to dodge having to pay statutorily allowed prevailing party attorney's fees simply because the prevailing party's attorney took the case pro bono (ie. for free):

• [T]he characterization of the lawyers' efforts as "pro bono" lacks the moral fiber that appellants and the amici ascribe to it.