Florida Trial Judges Continue Getting Hammered In Foreclosure Cases As Appeals Court Reverses Another Screw-Up

In another, short and sweet, one paragraph ruling, a Florida appeals court, this time for the 4th appellate district, reversed a ruling, favorable to a foreclosing lender, of a state trial judge. This time, it's Broward County Circuit Court Judge Ronald J. Rothschild who apparently has yet to receive the memo about the assembly line foreclosure mill law firms flooding the courts with sloppy filings. Notable in this case is that foreclosure mill law firm David Stern, P.A. was also listed as a party in this appeal.

• We reverse the circuit court’s final summary judgment of foreclosure against Stelian Lazuran (the “defendant”). Citimortgage’s complaint alleged that all conditions precedent to the mortgage note’s acceleration had been fulfilled, and Citimortgage’s affidavit in support of its motion for summary judgment stated “[t]hat each and every allegation in the Complaint is true.” Such a conclusory allegation is insufficient to refute the defendant’s affirmative defense that Citimortgage failed to provide him with notice of the acceleration pursuant to the procedures specified in paragraph 22 of the mortgage. Therefore, reversal is required. See Frost v. Regions Bank, 15 So. 3d 905, 906-07 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009) (“Because the bank did not meet its burden to refute the Frosts’ lack of notice and opportunity to cure defense, the bank is not entitled to final final summary judgment of foreclosure.”).
  
  Reversed.

For the ruling, see Lazuran v. Citimortgage, Inc, David Stern, P.A. et al., No. 4D09-1340 (Fla. 4th DCA June 9, 2010).

Representing the appellant/homeowner was Mitchell Sens of Law Office of Mitchell Sens, P.A., Plantation, Florida.