Thank You, Senior Judges

As June, 2015 winds down, we start a time of transition in Florida foreclosure courts.  Effective July 1, 2015, the Florida legislature is no longer appropriating special funding towards foreclosure cases in Florida courtrooms.  This means, in many counties, the end of senior judges adjudicating foreclosure cases.  Procedures will vary from county to county, but elected circuit judges will now adjudicate foreclosure cases in many, if not most, instances.

Though many consumer advocates have lamented the senior judge system, associating senior judges with pejorative terms like “rocket docket,” I’ve had many good experiences with senior judges over the years.  In fact, many if not most of the 926 dismissals (and counting!) that I’ve obtained in foreclosure cases have been from senior judges.  So, before many of these senior judges retire from foreclosure cases, never to return to the bench, I wanted to take a moment to thank a few of them whose paths I crossed over this time.

This is not an exhaustive list (I’m sure I inadvertently omitted a few), and yes, every one of these judges ruled against me at various times, some of them many times.   But my note of appreciation isn’t about winning or losing any particular case, it’s about the feeling I had with each such judge that he/she was trying to rule fairly in my cases and follow the law, not just push me through the system because I was representing homeowners who hadn’t paid their mortgage.

Perhaps most of all, these judges all tolerated ME.  As some will tell you, that’s sometimes no simple task.   

Without further ado …

Hon. Donald Evans, Tampa:   Thorough.  Patient.  Attentive.  The first to ever go with me on Fla. Stat. 559.715 – and the snowball began!  Yet even when I lost, I never once felt like it was a result of bias.  Happy Retirement, judge.  I’ll miss seeing you on the bench.

Hon. Perry Little, Tampa:  With his calm, patient demeanor, it’s hard not to leave his courtroom a nicer guy.  (Gasp, yes, even me, judge.)

Hon. Sandra Taylor, Tampa:  So kind, and a great poker face.  One day, judge, after this is all over, you’ll have to tell me how much that Correa decision impacted your rulings on my cases.

Hon. Judy Biebel, Tampa:  Covered hearings in Palm Beach, too, and laughed at how the banks were scared of her because she was from Tampa.

Hon. Raul Palomino, Tampa:  Any judge I can move to disqualify one day, then argue four hearings the next day like nothing happened … my kind of judge.

Hon. Christine Vogel, Tampa:  Never once felt like I got treated unfairly, whether I lost (most Par. 22s) or won (many 559.715s).

Hon. Frank Gomez, Tampa:  Openly admitted he doesn’t like my defensive MSJs but still granted them where he thought the law required it.  What I’ll always remember, though, was how, whenever a morning docket started, we’d make eye contact and, without a word exchanged, both of us would just start laughing.  The fun was about to begin!

Hon. J. Rogers Padgett, Tampa:  I loved hearing his stories of how, years ago, nobody would dare defend foreclosure cases – there were no defenses (at least, that’s what everyone thought) … and admitted, as things got started in 2009, that’s what he still thought … but as the arguments evolved, so did his rulings.  Loved that.  Loved the consistency, too.  If I had 6 hearings in a row, it didn’t matter if I won all 6 or lost all 6 – he was going to follow his interpretation of the law.

Hon. David Demers, St. Petersburg:  In an age of robo-testimony at trial (yes, I said it, robo-testimony), this judge’s perspective on what it takes to lay a predicate was SO refreshing.  Keep teaching law students what a “predicate” means, judge.  And yes, I agree, the evidence code isn’t different for foreclosure cases.

Hon. W. Douglas Baird, St. Petersburg:  If I can say in open court that I liked you better when you went with me on 559.715, then I guess I can say it here, too. 

Hon. Ray E. Ulmer, St. Petersburg:  I got pretty good, over the years, at predicting how a judge would rule on a particular hearing.  Judge Ulmer, though … his poker face was second to none.

Hon. Marion Fleming, St. Petersburg:  I lost a few I thought I should have won, but when you let my trial go until 6:30 pm and then ask about my Dad (who had been hospitalized), you’re OK in my book!

Hon. Carven Angel, Ocala:  A connoisseur of the paragraph 22 defect where the letter required additional, unspecified payments after the date of the letter to cure the subject default.  I’ll always believe we were right on this one, judge, and nobody has yet to tell us otherwise. 

Hon. Daniel B, Merritt, Sr., Brooksville:  Willing to rule contrary to how some of his colleagues in Hernando rule (which might seem common, but an element of “groupthink” definitely permeated the rulings in these cases to some degree).  I’ll always respect that.

Hon. Hugh Starnes, Fort Myers:  I didn’t get to Fort Myers too often, but it was often enough to feel like I got a fair shake – no matter what others may be saying on the internet.

Hon. James Thompson, Fort Myers:  A tough nut to crack on some of my pet arguments, but when you go with me on FHA and find “right to bring a court action” language is insufficient in the Par. 22 context, I know you’re trying to follow the law.  That’s all we ask.

Hon. Cecilia Wilhite, Bartow:  You respect me enough to refer a lawyer to me for a job … the feeling was mutual, judge.

Hon. John Adams, Orlando:  A scholar of the law, I enjoyed the banter we had about defense issues like 559.715.  Your encouragement was not unnoticed, judge.

Hon. Emerson Thompson, Orlando:  You have case law to support that argument?  You better!  Love, love, love!  Oh, and forcing the bank rep to actually have some legitimate training to lay the predicate for the business records exception to the hearsay rule … such a breath of fresh air.

Hon. Theotis Bronson, Orlando.  Interesting take on 559.715.  Enjoyed the debates.

Hon. Charles M. Holcomb, Viera:  Wish I could have gotten over there more.  We’d have had some fun, for sure!

Hon. Nancy Donnellon, Sarasota:  No explanation needed.  Without saying a word, I’m glad we understand each other now.

If you’re reading this and disagree with my assessment of any particular judge, please bear in mind … it’s not about one ruling in one case.  After all, every case has a winner and a loser.  It’s about an overall impression developed over a long period of time, many cases, and many hearings.  Plus, working to earn the respect of these judges has been a long (and ongoing) process.  Trust me, that matters.

Thank you again, judges.  I’ll miss you all. 

Mark Stopa

www.stayinmyhome.com

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