Shuster & Saben Defeats Nationstar Mortgage in Vero Beach Foreclosure Case and Recovers Attorney’s Fees.

 

Things did not look good for a Vero Beach resident when he drove to Melbourne to hire Shuster & Saben to defend his home.  Before Shuster & Saben was hired Nationstar had already obtained summary judgment against the homeowner.  All that was left in the case was for the Indian River Circuit Court to conduct a foreclosure sale which was scheduled to take a place about a month after the firm was hired.  When Shuster & Saben was first hired Nationstar was so confident in their position that they rejected a request made by attorney Shuster for a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure settlement.

After the firm was hired, Shuster & Saben moved to set the summary judgment aside based on promises made to the homeowner that his loan would be modified.  Before the hearing on the motion to cancel sale and vacate summary judgment took place, Nationstar’s original counsel Ben-Ezra Katz, P.A., withdrew the affidavit that had previously been filed in support of Nationstar’s motion for summary judgment.  Shortly thereafter Nationstar, Fannie Mae and numerous other lenders discharged the Ben-Ezra firmunder suspicious circumstances. 

Firm attorney Richard Shuster argued that if the affidavit used in support of summary judgment was withdrawn and was possibly fraudulent the Court should vacate the summary judgment previously entered against our client.  The Court agreed, canceled the foreclosure sale and vacated the summary judgment against our client. 

Shuster was not content just to stop the banks forward movement.  Once the summary judgment was vacated, it was time for the firm to go on the offensive.  Days later the firm sent discovery to Nationstar, the Ben Ezra Katz firm and Nationstar’s new counsel to find out what Nationstar knew about alleged misconduct by the Ben Ezra Katz firm and when and how they learned such information.  When Nationstar did not produce the documents requested or answer the firm’s interrogatories concerning the allegations of fraud, the firm obtained a Court order compelling Nationstar to provide the discovery within thirty days.  A few days before the thirty day deadline expired Nationstar dismissed their case to avoid answering the questions under oath.   Shuster & Saben then filed a  motion to make the Nationstar pay our client’s attorney’s fees.

The firm ultimately recovered $8,500.00 of attorney’s fees from Nationstar.  In the eight months since the case was dismissed Nationstar has not refilled.  Our client, on his way from Vero Beach to our Melbourne office passed many lawyers that change less for foreclosure defense than our firm.  He realized the high cost of a bad result necessitated hiring the best lawyer willing to take his case.  Now a significant portion of the fees our client paid will be reimbursed from attorney’s fees recovered from Nationstar.  

To view a redacted copy of Nationstar's dismissal of the foreclosure case click here. 

About Shuster & Saben:  Shuster & Saben’s Melbourne office is receiving more and more calls from sophisticated homeowners in Vero Beach, Orlando, and Daytona who are looking for lawyers that solve problems and win foreclosure cases rather than merely just trying to drag cases out.  Firm attorneys Richard Shuster ( Melbourne Office) and Thomas Willis ( Miami and Doral Offices) have been quoted in Time Magazine, Wall Street Journal, Daily Business Review, and appeared on National Television.