There is a Huge Shortage of Lawyers Trained in Foreclosure Complexities

In Miami, people are fighting foreclosure by their own forces

Yolanda Paschal has just graduated form Miami University’s School of law. The house in which she grew up in Miami is battling foreclosure. She and her parents are lucky they have another house to go to. But the incident has made Paschal sit up to the severity of the foreclosure crisis.

Florida has the highest foreclosure rate in the country – 17%. She said, “I’m part of this community. I can’t escape how deeply this is affecting not just my neighbors, but me as well.” Her plans are to open a business dealing with business legalities. Meanwhile she will use her legal expertise to educate many in South Florida who are in the same boat.

She will make use of $10,000 ‘Foreclosure Defense Fellowship’ that she got from the law school. This novel grant plan has recently launched eight law graduates in October to help the locals steer through one of law’s most complex labyrinths – the foreclosure maze.

Although the help of Paschal and her colleagues are welcome – considering the staggering size of the problem, it is just a drop in the ocean. There is a huge shortage of foreclosure lawyers available for house owners.

Dissimilar to other legal fields like bankruptcy, foreclosure has never been so far the subject of a full time practice. It has generally been managed by real estate lawyers or agencies dealing with legal aid. But with over 3 million properties in foreclosure in USA in 2008 the scene has changed. This year another 150,000 is apprehended in comparison to less than 25,000 only three years previously.

Recently there has been an increase in modifications but according to National Consumer Law Center, based in Boston, the servicers are finding it more profitable to foreclose. To add to the confusion 86% of those facing foreclosure in the worst affected areas did not have legal representation in 2008 according to Brennan Center for Justice of NYU School of Law.

It is anticipated that these figures will attract more lawyers to show interest in foreclosure law even if it is a specialty for a short period. It should be able to motivate more attorneys to enter this field.

In the worst hit counties like Miami-Dade the bar associations are rising to the occasion by organizing foreclosure defense sessions for the local lawyers. The apprehension is that without such steps more people will be crushed under foreclosure and this will ultimately delay economic recovery and clogging of courts with foreclosure cases.

Share and Enjoy: