Judge decides its work will go to staff
By DICK HOGAN • dhogan@news-press.com • January 28, 2011
The chief judge of Southwest Florida’s judicial circuit has dissolved the civilian advisory board that reviewed certification for private process servers.
Chief Judge G. Keith Cary issued an administrative order Wednesday saying that, from now on, court administrators will handle the work previously done by the 20th Circuit Certified Process Server Review Board.
The board formed three years ago when Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott decided to stop his certification program for the process servers, whose job is to find people and present them with court papers, such as a notice of a foreclosure lawsuit.
Under Florida law, sheriffs and chief circuit judges have the authority to set up a certification program.
Cary said he established the board because he didn’t have the staff to run the program at that time.
Process server Ernie Averill, who was chairman of the board, said he has no objection to the change.
“It’s a lot of work,” he said, and with 125 process servers to keep track of, “It’s the size now where a professional paid staff should do it.”
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Southwest Florida process server board dissolved
Showing posts with label florida process serving laws. Show all posts
Showing posts with label florida process serving laws. Show all posts
Friday, January 28, 2011
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Judge OK's class-action status for homeowner lawsuit against Florida law firm
By Christine Stapleton - Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2010
As many as 2,000 homeowners suing the law firm of self-proclaimed foreclosure king David J. Stern over excessive attorney fees and costs won a major victory today when an appeals court blessed the group's class-action status.
"We are very excited," said Louis M. Silber, the West Palm Beach attorney who filed the case in January 2007 — the first class-action lawsuit filed against Stern and his Plantation-based law firm stemming from foreclosure fraud accusations.
In a four-page opinion, the 4th District Court of Appeal upheld the findings of Circuit Judge Thomas H. Barkdull,, who decided the complaints and circumstances of the homeowners were so similar that they would best be handled in a class-action lawsuit.
Members of the class are homeowners who received letters from Stern's firm between Jan. 18, 2003 and Feb. 19 2009 offering to reinstate their loans with Wells Fargo by paying reinstatement charges.
Read the rest of the story:
Judge OK's class-action status for homeowner lawsuit against Florida law firm
Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2010
As many as 2,000 homeowners suing the law firm of self-proclaimed foreclosure king David J. Stern over excessive attorney fees and costs won a major victory today when an appeals court blessed the group's class-action status.
"We are very excited," said Louis M. Silber, the West Palm Beach attorney who filed the case in January 2007 — the first class-action lawsuit filed against Stern and his Plantation-based law firm stemming from foreclosure fraud accusations.
In a four-page opinion, the 4th District Court of Appeal upheld the findings of Circuit Judge Thomas H. Barkdull,, who decided the complaints and circumstances of the homeowners were so similar that they would best be handled in a class-action lawsuit.
Members of the class are homeowners who received letters from Stern's firm between Jan. 18, 2003 and Feb. 19 2009 offering to reinstate their loans with Wells Fargo by paying reinstatement charges.
Read the rest of the story:
Judge OK's class-action status for homeowner lawsuit against Florida law firm
Monday, December 27, 2010
Problems with foreclosure notices loom as next flaw in process
By Kimberly Miller - Palm Beach Post Staff Writer - Monday, Dec. 27, 2010
Improperly served foreclosure notices may be the mortgage industry's next roadblock to repossessing homes.
The Florida attorney general's office is investigating two of the state's largest companies that serve court summonses on homeowners, while at the same time judges are throwing out rulings based on faulty deliveries.
This month, appeals courts in Miami and Palm Beach County sided with homeowners in foreclosures where judges agreed their summonses were not appropriately served.
In the Miami case, the homeowner said she was recovering at her mother's home after surgery when the person serving her the summons swore he personally handed it to her at her residence.
But the server's own notes on the file showed he left the documents at the door after seeing curtains move and assuming someone was home. The homeowner later said she had no knowledge of the foreclosure until a final judgment was entered against her.
"Curtains may move because of the wind or curious cats, and not just because some prospective defendant is attempting to avoid service," the appeals decision noted.
Read the rest of the story:
Problems with foreclosure notices loom as next flaw in process
Improperly served foreclosure notices may be the mortgage industry's next roadblock to repossessing homes.
The Florida attorney general's office is investigating two of the state's largest companies that serve court summonses on homeowners, while at the same time judges are throwing out rulings based on faulty deliveries.
This month, appeals courts in Miami and Palm Beach County sided with homeowners in foreclosures where judges agreed their summonses were not appropriately served.
In the Miami case, the homeowner said she was recovering at her mother's home after surgery when the person serving her the summons swore he personally handed it to her at her residence.
But the server's own notes on the file showed he left the documents at the door after seeing curtains move and assuming someone was home. The homeowner later said she had no knowledge of the foreclosure until a final judgment was entered against her.
"Curtains may move because of the wind or curious cats, and not just because some prospective defendant is attempting to avoid service," the appeals decision noted.
Read the rest of the story:
Problems with foreclosure notices loom as next flaw in process
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
A little more protection for renters
By David Bauerlein - Jacksonville.com - Tuesday, Jul. 21, 2009
Two weeks after Brooks Mitchell moved into a condominium he leased on Jacksonville's Southside, he answered a knock on the door and was shocked to find a process server delivering legal papers.
A bank had just filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the condominium's owner. Mitchell had signed a one-year lease, but the potential for foreclosure meant he faced the possibility a bank would take ownership of the property halfway through the lease and evict him.
"It floored me," he said. "I felt burned. Nobody is looking out for the renter."
Mitchell got the legal notification in April, joining other renters who had learned they're not immune from the foreclosure crisis.
But a federal housing law signed by President Barack Obama in May gives him and other renters some protection when property-owners go into foreclosure. If a bank forecloses on any dwelling and wants the resident to leave, the bank must give at least 90 days notice. Moreover, if the tenant had a lease at the time of the foreclosure, the bank must honor the length of the lease.
Those provisions are much stronger than Florida law, which previously gave banks that took possession of property through foreclosure the right to order the removal of tenants in 24 hours. Renters who balked faced eviction notices.
Read the rest of the story:
A little more protection for renters
------------------------------
Two weeks after Brooks Mitchell moved into a condominium he leased on Jacksonville's Southside, he answered a knock on the door and was shocked to find a process server delivering legal papers.
A bank had just filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the condominium's owner. Mitchell had signed a one-year lease, but the potential for foreclosure meant he faced the possibility a bank would take ownership of the property halfway through the lease and evict him.
"It floored me," he said. "I felt burned. Nobody is looking out for the renter."
Mitchell got the legal notification in April, joining other renters who had learned they're not immune from the foreclosure crisis.
But a federal housing law signed by President Barack Obama in May gives him and other renters some protection when property-owners go into foreclosure. If a bank forecloses on any dwelling and wants the resident to leave, the bank must give at least 90 days notice. Moreover, if the tenant had a lease at the time of the foreclosure, the bank must honor the length of the lease.
Those provisions are much stronger than Florida law, which previously gave banks that took possession of property through foreclosure the right to order the removal of tenants in 24 hours. Renters who balked faced eviction notices.
Read the rest of the story:
A little more protection for renters
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Sunday, July 5, 2009
Service of Florida Lawsuit Outside Florida Must Follow Florida Laws
Blog - Florida Lawyer Jim Martin - A View from St. Petersburg
Florida courts generally obtain jurisdiction over a defendant when a summons and complaint is properly served on the defendant. When the defendant resides outside Florida, the process server is usually unfamiliar with Florida’s process service requirements. This often results in invalid service of process, which means the court lacks jurisdiction. In such cases, the defendant’s Florida attorney can file a motion to quash service and dismiss for lack of jurisdiction over the person.
For example, Florida Statutes Section 48.194(1) requires that service outside the State of Florida be made “in the same manner as service within this state by any officer authorized to serve process in the state where the person is served.”
Florida Statutes Section 48.031(5) states that service in Florida requires the person serving process to place on the copy served “the date and time of service and his or her identification number and initials for all service of process.”
Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.070(e) provides that “[t]he date and hour of service shall be endorsed on the original process and all copies of it by the person making the service.”
Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.070(e) provides that “a copy of the initial pleading shall be delivered to the party upon whom service is made.”
Read the rest of the story:
Service of Florida Lawsuit Outside Florida Must Follow Florida Laws
-------------------------------------
Florida courts generally obtain jurisdiction over a defendant when a summons and complaint is properly served on the defendant. When the defendant resides outside Florida, the process server is usually unfamiliar with Florida’s process service requirements. This often results in invalid service of process, which means the court lacks jurisdiction. In such cases, the defendant’s Florida attorney can file a motion to quash service and dismiss for lack of jurisdiction over the person.
For example, Florida Statutes Section 48.194(1) requires that service outside the State of Florida be made “in the same manner as service within this state by any officer authorized to serve process in the state where the person is served.”
Florida Statutes Section 48.031(5) states that service in Florida requires the person serving process to place on the copy served “the date and time of service and his or her identification number and initials for all service of process.”
Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.070(e) provides that “[t]he date and hour of service shall be endorsed on the original process and all copies of it by the person making the service.”
Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.070(e) provides that “a copy of the initial pleading shall be delivered to the party upon whom service is made.”
Read the rest of the story:
Service of Florida Lawsuit Outside Florida Must Follow Florida Laws
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