A Typical Day in Motions Court.

No. 520

Judge Wettick schedules arbitration case motions at 10:00 on Friday and it so happened that my motion was listed next to last. Since I couldn’t leave, I decided to sit in the front where I could at least listen to what was going on. Here’s a non-scientific sample of the kind of stuff that comes up at motions:

– Several late appeals from magistrate’s award. You have 30 days to appeal from the award of a Magisterial District Judge. If you do, either be on time or have a very good reason why you were late. The Great Snowmageddon of 2010 might do it (provided your timing was right). Other snow jobs, however, will probably not work. None of the reasons offered at motions that day had a snowball’s chance in Hell of convincing the Judge to permit the appeal nunc pro tunc. [out of time]

– Several lay people failed to attach a contract or other writing upon which the case was based to their complaint. Lawyers forget to do it too. But when they receive PO’s in the mail, they usually file an amended complaint forthwith, avoiding public embarrassment at motions court.

– One lawyer, suing on a credit card balance, didn’t attach enough documentation to the complaint. After a few pointed questions by the judge, he and the opposing counsel went to the back of the room and worked it out.

– One baffled layman used the short form complaint to file a claim over $3,000.00. He has 20 days to figure out what he is supposed to do. I think he left without a clue.

– Another unrepresented person had tried to open a default judgment on a credit card case, but too late.

– Then, the lawyer who handles the most credit card collections cases in town took the floor and proceeded to win a long list of motions where the opposing party did not appear.

– There were a few landlords and a number of tenants. Since most were not there on the same case, they won by default. They included a landlord and a lawyer getting orders to collect rents in escrow after tenants had moved out or been evicted. I was the lawyer.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Mind over Clutter.

No. 519

I just finished participating in a CMU study called “Mind Muscle”, the purpose of which is to determine whether mental function can be improved in a measurable way by participation in games. These were not just any games, of course. They were specifically designed to help develop short term memory, hand-eye coordination and the like.

I think I did experience benefits from the program. But the most important thing I learned was the value concentration. Contrary to the buzz about multitasking, neurological research indicates that the perception that the human mind can attend to two matters simultaneously is merely an illusion. The brain can switch back and forth among two or more competing perceptions so rapidly that we believe we are attending to both in the same thought. However, there is always something lost in in the switch — time. Time to observe and react to each new perception. Time to remember what came before. Time to put two and two together. Cognition and memory run slower when they are forced to switch and switch back, over and over.

Did you ever marvel at the experience of “getting in the zone?” Its great! Work gets done. The best work gets done when you focus the most.

If you doubt that, try playing a computer game while someone engages you in a conversation. Every time you change your focus from the game to the words, your mind drops the game and you lose time while you are picking it back up. You hesitate while you remember where you were. Time is lost. Then, with the next distraction, you do it again. Just see if you can come close to your best score when a single distraction intervenes. Most likely you won’t do much better than half — and that for only a momentary diversion. Imagine what your efficiency must be like in your usual environment rich in distractions. That’s right — you customarily perform at only a small fraction of your best.

In addition, you must be well-rested. No chance setting any scoring records when you are falling asleep. I found this to be true over and over. Better to take a nap and come back refreshed. Or if you feel stiff and fatigued, take a walk.

Deadlines help you focus amazingly. The brief you haven’t been able to get started comes together like magic when there is little time left. I have heard it reported many times that lawyers who switch from working long hours to quitting at five discover to their amazement that their earnings increase. Why? The daily deadline creates focus, which aids concentration, which produces more work.

Even after this phenomenon is explained, its still amazing. So lets get focused and stop multitasking!

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Letters from Kijabe.

No. 518

I have added a new item to the blogroll — Letters from Kijabe. Our long-time friend, Susan Ferson and her husband Leland Albright, are living their dream. They are performing pediatric neurosurgery in a small hospital in Kijabe, Kenya. In their blog, you can follow the daily trials and tribulations of the attempt by these two Americans to bring the benefits of 21st century surgery to the furthest corner of the third world.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Maz Forever!

No. 517

For those of you who don’t live in Western Pennsylvania, an interesting story has developed here. Fifty years ago this week, the Pittsburgh Pirates won the 1960 World Series by defeating the heavily favored New York Yankees in the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game when second baseman Bill Mazeroski hit a towing home run over the scoreboard. In this town, we’ve all seen the grainy film of the pitch, the hit, the sight of the ball clearing the scoreboard and Maz dancing around the bases while the crowd surged onto the field.

But for decades, that’s all we saw. In that era, nobody kept the film. It was a live broadcast and nobody had a film of the game. At least until now.

Bing Crosby, a minority owner of the Pirates, left the country because he was sure that he would jinx the Pirates by watching the game. He ordered a film of the game to be made for him to watch later. Amazingly, that film turned up recently in Crosby’s basement. It is the only copy of what many call the “greatest World Series Game of all times” known to be in existence.

So Pittsburghers, whose baseball team just set the all time record for consecutive last place seasons, are going to the World Series this year. The 1960 World Series, that is.

Which brings me to an observation about Pittsburgh and its sports teams. Some national sports publication, can’t remember the name, recently declared Pittsburgh to be the No. 1 sports town in America. While the award-givers were undoubtedly thinking of fan support for the current winning football and hockey teams, it might be observed that its easy to support a winner. Pittsburgh supported a perennial loser in baseball for two decades and, before it came alive in 1959, for the better part of five decades before that. They did the same thing for the Steelers during the decades before they started winning championships in the 70’s.

In fact, if anybody ever made a study of attendance records for last place major league teams, Pittsburghwould probably win hands down. Such loyalty speaks of a shared sense of community that can’t be found in any other large city in America. That’s something to cheer about.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Lead Paint Remediation: Sign Up anyway.

No. 516

The EPA adopted regulations that required repair work in, among other buildings, residential rental properties, that required all but very very small renovation jobs to be conducted by contractors with special training and certification. This requirement was effective on April 22, 2010 but there were not very many certified contractors at that time. So the EPA announced that it would not enforce the regulation, provided the contractor signed up for training by September 30 and completed training by the end of the year. Well, September 30 has passed, but it is still possible to obtain the training by December 31. So do it. CCAC has three classes this fall — all daym on Oct 22, Nov 22 and Dec 17. Call Marge Curtin at 412-788-7386.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

President Vetos Notary Bill Because of Foreclosure Issues

No. 515

President Obama will veto a bill that was recently adopted unanimously in the Senate because it has implications for the ongoing robosigning controversy. DSNews.com reports that the President will pocket veto the Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act because it may interfere with the process of determining whether foreclosure documents were properly verified. The bill, which was intended to aid interstate commerce by requiring recognition of notarization in other states, was passed before the controversy over robosigning emerged.

This action underscores the sensitivity of the mortgage foreclosure documentation controversy. While there have yet been no drastic consequences, the issue continues to simmer with new developments almost every day.

Pennsylvania no longer requires court pleadings to be notarized. However, mortgages, assignments and other documents recorded with a recorder of deeds are notarized, making the issue of improper verifications a live one, even in Pennsylvania. For example, a notary at a law office may have notarized scores of assignments signed by servicing company officers located in other states. Although such matters can be corrected, judges have occasionally issued severe sanctions for such misconduct. Title insurers may refuse to insure cases where prior records reveal questionable documentation. See several related stories below.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Fannie Mae May Be Reluctant to Purchase Mortgages Involving Resale of Foreclosure Properties

No. 514

The New York Times reports that Fannie Mae may be nervous about purchasing mortgages that have recently been through judicial foreclosure. The Times specifically mentions only one property in Florida, but the mere hint that Fannie may not purchase some foreclosure mortgages may be enough to cause lenders to exercise extreme caution when financing or refinancing such properties. Until this problem is definitively addressed, thousands of sales throughout the country could be in jeopardy. This is true even in states like California and Texas where nonjudicial foreclosures are authorized.

A judicial foreclosure is one that involves the courts. The foreclosing party must file a complaint and obtain a judgment. In some states, notably Ohio, foreclosures regularly come before judges before entry of judgment. This has exposed numerous documentation problems. Foreclosing parties have been unable to produce promissory notes or other documents demanded by judges reviewing their filings. In Pennsylvania, a judicial process is followed but the overwhelming majority of foreclosures are uncontested, leading to default judgment without any review by a judge. Non-judicial states generally permit a trustee to conduct a sale of the property without filing a complaint in court. However, Bankruptcy judges have been increasingly critical of certain lender practices in both judicial and nonjudicial states, contributing to the uncertainty over whether foreclosure sale procedures may be found deficient after the fact.

Until now, reports of irregularities in foreclosure procedures have been vague. The allegation of “robo-signers” rapidly signing verifications without reviewing the facts has been the principal charge to emerge. Such practices have been commented upon in court cases from time to time and J P Morgan Chase, GMAC and Bank of America have suspended judicial state foreclosures while initiating internal investigations. Of course, these companies set up and administered the process which they are now investigating, so they may be simply buying time while planning their next strategic move to avoid or reduce liability.

In Pennsylvania, sheriff sales are presumed to be valid after the delivery of the sheriff’s deed. But a lack of constitutional due process, particularly lack of proper notice or failure to follow mandated procedures, could be raised after the sheriff’s deed is delivered. This could cause title insurers to scrutinize the record of foreclosures and perhaps demand indemnity from the foreclosing lender before issuing a title insurance policy. Under their lending policies, required by bank regulators, lending institutions generally cannot make a real estate loan without obtaining title insurance. These developments have the potential to create a serious crisis for foreclosing lenders, since selling the collateral is how lenders recoup losses and stay in business.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Old Republic Announces That It Will Not Insure Properties Foreclosed by J P Morgan Chase and GMAC.

No. 513

Aha! Now it is starting to make sense. It seemed a little strange that J P Morgan Chase and GMAC had halted foreclosures in judicial foreclosure states pending an investigation of practices that they must have known have been going on for years. Well, now we are starting to see why.

Reading the advance sheets around the country, Title Insurance company Old Republic has announced that it will not insure properties that have been foreclosed by JPM-C and GMAC because the foreclosures may be called into question after the fact.

It is not too hard to recognize that Old Republic must have been in conference with the lenders prior to the announcement of the internal investigation. And so, Morgan and GMAC announced their investigation before the news about Old Republic broke — damage control.

In related news, Bank of America, who also has joined the internal investigation trend, announced that it was discontinuing the Countrywide brand. The times, they are a changin’.

And since this news broke, look for the others — Fidelity National, Stewart, First American, the whole gang — to weigh in on the subject.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Lead Paint: EPA Contractor Certification Required.

No. 512

If you are a landlord, you need to be aware that since April 2010 the EPA has required that you may only hire a contractor who has obtained an EPA certification to do repairs on properties built before 1978 that may be occupied by children. Of course, you can do the work yourself without a certification and you can do a very small repair (the regs specify this in detail), but by and large you must ask any contractor you hire to work on a pre-1978 building for proof of certification. The fine for non-compliance is $37,500.00 per occurrence.

There are a handful of training organizations that have been doing land office business providing pre-certification classes. Recently, the Community College of Allegheny County has joined this group. Training classes will be held at the CCAC/West Hills Center in Oakdale on October 22, November 22 and December 17. The cost is $249.00, which CCAC says is significantly cheaper than other programs. The classes will run fron 7:30 AM to 5 PM each day and class space is limited to 25. Contact Marge Curtin at 412-788-7386.

Category: Uncategorized

AVVO Answer of the Week: Statutory Dating

No. 511

Here’s an AVVO Answer that will bring a smile to your face, unless, of course you’ve been wondering the same thing.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

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Welcome

CLIFF TUTTLE has been a Pennsylvania lawyer for over 45 years and (inter alia) is a real estate litigator and legal writer. The posts in this blog are intended to provide general information about legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus. However, this information does not constitute legal advice and there is no lawyer-client relationship created when you read this blog. You are encouraged to leave comments but be aware that posted comments can be read by others. If you wish to contact me in privacy, please use the Contact Form located immediately below this message. I will reply promptly and in strict confidence.

Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus.

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Categories

A Typical Day in Motions Court.

Mind over Clutter.

Letters from Kijabe.

Maz Forever!

Lead Paint Remediation: Sign Up anyway.

President Vetos Notary Bill Because of Foreclosure Issues

Fannie Mae May Be Reluctant to Purchase Mortgages Involving Resale of Foreclosure Properties

Old Republic Announces That It Will Not Insure Properties Foreclosed by J P Morgan Chase and GMAC.

Lead Paint: EPA Contractor Certification Required.

AVVO Answer of the Week: Statutory Dating

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