Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues. This blog will consist of information describing the various forms of Home Equity Theft and links to news reports & other informational sources from throughout the country about the victims of Home Equity Theft and what government authorities and others are doing about it.
Saturday, February 13, 2016
Defendant City Refuses To Cave In To Possible 'Shakedown' By Developer Who Invoked Fair Housing Act In Bringing Lawsuit Seeking $1+ Million In Damages Over Building Permit Denial; Judge To Litigants: If You Don't Settle This Matter Between Yourselves, I'm Booting The Case!
In Macedonia, Ohio, the Nordonia Hills News-Leader reports:
A federal judge has stated she intends to dismiss a complaint filed in 2013 against the city over a property dispute, while parties in the case have until next week to decide whether they want to meet to mediate their differences with a court magistrate before she makes her decision final.
In a Feb. 10 "memorandum opinion and order," Judge Sara Lioi, of the U.S. Court for the Northern District of Ohio, ruled plaintiff Farnhurst LLC has failed to prove any of its federal claims "that brought this fundamentally local dispute to federal court." Farnhurst is a partnership between brothers Frank and Jorge Pla, according to court records.
Without enumerating them, Lioi said the Farnhurst complaint contains state and local issues the court is not required to decide, adding parties in the case have until Feb. 16 to tell the court if they agree to mediation. If the two sides don't agree to mediation, "the court will enter final judgement," and dismiss the case in the city's favor.
The complaint involves a 2.3 acre vacant property at the southeast corner of Timber Ridge Drive and Shepard Road, just south of Route 82 in the Parkview Estates subdivision, owned by Farnhurst.
The complaint alleges the city and former and current city officials, in denying a building permit requested by Farnhurst to build two homes on the property abused their authority in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act and equal protection guarantees under the U.S. Constitution. The complaint included a demand for unspecified compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages.
CBC News: Betrayal of Trust (A CBC investigation reveals how lawyers across Canada have misappropriated and mishandled clients money, to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, or sometimes even charging vulnerable people top dollar for shoddy services)
Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets
The New York Times: The Housing Trap (In the wake of the housing crisis, low-income families have turned to seller financing to buy homes but these deals can be a money trap)
Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System
The NY Times: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice(Part 1 in series examining how clauses buried in tens of millions of contracts have deprived Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: their day in court)
Foreclosure Mills' Abysmal Record In Complying With New NYS Foreclosure Requirements
Justice Deceived: How Large Foreclosure Firms Subvert State Regulations Protecting Homeowners
MFY Legal Services Report On Questionable Practices By Process Servers In Debt Collection Cases
Justice Disserved: A Preliminary Analysis of the Exceptionally
Low Appearance Rate by Defendants in Lawsuits Filed in the Civil Court of the City of New York
Mortgage Mess Redux: Robo-Signers Return (A Reuters investigation finds that many banks are still employing the controversial foreclosure practices that sparked a major outcry last year)
CNN Video: As Foreclosures Mount, Florida Court Turns To 'Rocket Docket'
The Wall Street Journal: A Florida Court's 'Rocket Docket' Blasts Through Foreclosure Cases (2 Questions, 15 Seconds, 45 Days to Get Out; 'What's to Talk About?' Says a Judge)
"Produce The Note" Strategy When Dealing With Missing Promissory Notes In Foreclosure Actions
ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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