AG suit targets Calif. mortgage attorneys

The state Attorney General’s Office has filed a lawsuit against a group of California lawyers, alleging they bilked at least 23 New Mexico families out of tens of thousands of dollars.

The lawyers charge upfront fees of $5,000 or more, plus a monthly payment, with a promise to get the homeowner’s mortgage adjusted through a lawsuit scheme, according to an AG’s news release. The AG contends the defendants have filed dozens such suits in California courts but that none has been successful.

The lawsuit alleges the scheme is “merely a front for charging upfront fees for mortgage modification services, a practice prohibited by federal law and by the New Mexico Mortgage Foreclosure Consultant Fraud Prevention Act.”