C. Florida Judge Rescinds $49K Contempt Fine On Foreclosure Mill; Says Firm's Purged Itself Of Citation With Substantial Compliance w/ Court Order

In Manatee, Florida, the Bradenton Herald reports:

• A local judge has rescinded a widely publicized $49,000 fine against a foreclosure law firm for missing court hearings, court records show. Smith, Hiatt & Diaz P.A.” has substantially complied” with court requirements and “is not subject to any fine for failure to comply,” Manatee County Circuit Judge Janette Dunnigan said in lifting her contempt finding.

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• Dunnigan made national news in early September, when she fined the firm for “deliberate, willful and flagrant” civil contempt of court in a foreclosure case. She was upset with the firm, which represented the bank in the case, for setting court hearings and either missing them or not properly canceling them in a timely manner.

• The firm, which blamed the missed hearings on a glitch in its internal case-management system while it was being updated, called the contempt finding and fine excessive and improper. But critics of so-called “foreclosure mills,” or law firms that handle large numbers of such cases, hailed Dunnigan’s reprimand as a blow against those firms’ practices.

• Dunnigan later amended her order to give Smith, Hiatt & Diaz the chance to purge the contempt and fine if it met certain conditions. The firm did, but is appealing the original contempt order to the Second District Court of Appeals in Lakeland. The firm contends Dunnigan improperly referred to unrelated cases in holding it in contempt.

For the story, see Foreclosure firm’s fine lifted.