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Anne Arundel County Jury Finds Mortgage Broker Committed Unfair and Deceptive Lending Practices

In the largest known jury award in a Maryland mortgage fraud case in Anne Arundel County history today, Annapolis mortgage broker Brian Blonder was found to have committed unfair and deceptive practices in arranging two toxic, mortgage loans for long-time resident Dennis F. Hollidayoke, now age 78. The six-member jury of the Anne Arundel County found that Blonder violated the Maryland Consumer Protection Act, Maryland Finder's Fee Act, and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act in providing Mr. Hollidayoke with two loans within six month of each other, during the real estate boom. Mr. Hollidayoke was awarded the sum of $342,103.40 in damages, not including attorney fees and costs owed to Hollidayoke, to be awarded at a later date.

"The evidence showed that Blonder arranged two payment option arm mortgages for Mr. Hollidayoke which were not suitable for his circumstances," explained Hollidayoke's attorney, and Of Counsel to Civil Justice, Phillip Robinson. "In addition, the inflated fees charged by Blonder violated state and federal law. As a result of these loans, Mr. Hollidayoke has essentially lost his home of more than 45 years to foreclosure."

Robert Strupp, Systemic Investigations Manager at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, provided important expert testimony related to the sustainability of the payment option arm mortgages for homeowners similar to Mr. Hollidayoke. He also provided testimony related to the status of Blonder's affiliated settlement business. "If any of the other settlement service providers involved in Mr. Holllidayoke's transaction had been truly independent and neutral, these tragic transactions would not have likely occurred because no bono fide real estate professional would allow a vulnerable senior to be preyed upon like Mr. Hollidayoke was in this instance," said Strupp.

"This has been a nightmare for me," said Hollidayoke. "Hopefully, now I can move forward and get my life back. I certainly hope no one else ever has to live through what I have lived through."

For additional information related to this case, please contact Leigh Maddox, Executive Director of Civil Justice at (410)706-0174 or cjn@civiljusticenetwork.org.

Criminal Practices in District Court - CLE Offering on May 23, 2012

Civil Justice's latest CLE offering, "Criminal Practices in District Court", will be held on Wednesday, May 23rd, 4p.m. at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. This introductory-level class, presented by Christopher Flohr, Esq. is intended to introduce attorneys to the basics of criminal and traffic defense in District Court. Topics to be covered include: Commissioner and Bail Review hearings, Client Interviews, Investigation, Discovery, District Court trial practices, Plea Bargaining, Sentencing and De Novo Appeals.

For additional information, or to register for this class, please click here.

Mission

Civil Justice, Inc is a Maryland non-profit corporation formed for the purpose of increasing the delivery of legal services to clients of low and moderate income while promoting a statewide network of solo, small firm and community based lawyers who share a common commitment to increasing access to justice through traditional and non-traditional means.

The Latest from our Blog

Director of CJ's CAPP Program, Rebecca Coleman, contributes to OSI's Audacious Ideas Blog: Rebecca Coleman, Director of the Credit Abuse Project (CAPP) and a 2010 Open Society Institute Baltimore County fellow has contributed to the Open Society Institute Audacious Ideas blog. Her article, entitled "Make Creditors Prove They are Entitled to Collect a Debt" can be viewed here. Audacious Ideas is a blog that was created to stimulate ideas and discussion about solutions to difficult problems in Baltimore.

CJ Member Peter Holland has published an article titled "The One Hundred Billion Dollar Problem in Small Claims Court: Robo Signing and Lack of Proof in Debt Buyer Cases".: CJ Member Peter Holland has published an article titled “The One Hundred Billion Dollar Problem in Small Claims Court: Robo-Signing and Lack of Proof in Debt Buyer Cases.” Below is the abstract. ABSTRACT Recent years have seen the rise of a new industry which has clogged the dockets of small claims courts throughout the country. It is known as the "debt buyer" industry. Members of this $100 billion per year industry exist for no reason other than to purchase consumer debt which others have already deemed uncollectable, and then try to succeed in collecting where others have failed. Debt buyers pay pennies on the dollar for this charged off debt, and then seek to collect, through hundreds of thousands of lawsuits, the full face value of the debt. The emergence and vitality of this industry presents several legal, ethical and economic issues which merit exploration, study and scholarly debate. This article focuses on the problem of robo-signing and the lack of proof in debt buyer cases. Althou

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