Fannie, Freddie Take Loan Files From Florida Law Firm

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have terminated their relationships with a top Florida foreclosure law firm and began taking possession of loan files on Monday afternoon from the firm, which processes evictions on behalf of the mortgage-finance giants.

Fannie and Freddie had previously suspended all foreclosures that had been referred to the law offices of David J. Stern in Plantation, Fla., a suburb of Fort Lauderdale.Freddie Mac took the rare step of removing loan files after an internal review raised "concerns about some of the practices at the Stern firm," a Freddie spokeswoman said.

"We have begun taking possessions of all files on Freddie Mac mortgages simply to protect our interest in those loans as well as those of the borrowers," the Freddie spokeswoman said. A Fannie spokeswoman declined to elaborate.

Fannie and Freddie said they will move those files to other law firms in the state but that they hadn't yet identified where they would be redistributed. The firms said they had notified Florida's attorney general about the decision to remove the files and that the Stern firm had cooperated with the action.A lawyer for Mr. Stern didn't immediately respond to inquiries.

The Stern law firm has been at the center of allegations by the Florida Attorney General's Office of improper foreclosure practices. The office has released depositions of former law-firm employees who have alleged that the firm forged notarized documents and that employees signed files without reviewing them in an effort to speed through foreclosure filings.

Fannie and Freddie both provide lists of approved law firms to mortgage servicers that handle defaulted loans on behalf of the companies. Fannie said last week it was in the process of adding as many nine law firms to its legal network in Florida, doubling the current number of approved firms.

Freddie has as many as 10,000 foreclosures being handled by the Stern firm, according to people familiar with the matter.

(source:wsj.com)

Florida overcomes another slow start beat Tennessee

Florida beat Tennessee,

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee. — Florida had a pair of huge interceptions and a fake punt to bail out a struggling offense and beat Tennessee for the sixth straight season, 31-17, Saturday before 102,455 at Neyland Stadium.

Florida (3-0) went up 10-3 on a 44-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis to open the second half — finishing off a 10-play, 53-yard drive. Tennessee (1-2) quickly tied it, however, with a 49-yard pass from Matt Simms to Denarius Moore with 8:59 left in the third quarter.

But on fourth-and-6, Omarius Hines took the snap on a fake punt and raced straight up the middle 36 yards to the Tennessee 25. It was the first time UF had faked a punt since the Arkansas game in October of 2008.

A 14-yard pass from John Brantley to Carl Moore on third-and-8 moved the ball to the 9. On third-and-goal, Brantley hit Frankie Hammond Jr. for the score with 4:31 left in the third quarter.

UF cornerback Jeremy Brown then intercepted Simms' pass and returned it to the Vols' 29 with 2:39 left. Hines' 13-yard reception got it to the 9, which eventually led to a 5-yard score by Mike Gillislee to make it 24-10.

GAME REPORT: Florida 31, Tennessee 17

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Simms made thirgs interesting with a 35-yard TD throw to Justin Hunter on fourth down to cut the margin to seven points with 11:24 left in the game. The score came after an officials' review that overturned a fumble near midfield by Jeff Demps to give the Vols the ball.

But the Gators' offense responded with one of its most impressive drives all season, going 60 yards in nine plays and eating up over five minutes of the remaining time. Deonte Thompson and Moore had clutch receptions of 24 and 12 yards. Demps picked up 16 yards to the UT 8, gained two more yards on first-and-goal and Trey Burton scored on a 2-yard run from the shot gun to push the lead back out to 31-17 with 6:15 remaining in the contest.

Matt Elam recovered a Tennessee fumble on the Vols' next drive to sent fans pouring out of the Neyland.

For the third game in a row, Florida struggled on offense in the first half with just 94 yards total offense but managed to get a 7-3 lead.

Tennessee took the opening lead on a 49-yard field by Daniel Lincoln, tying his career high, with 1:17 to go in the opening quarter. The score was set up by a failed attempt by Florida on fourth-and-1 at the UT 43, when Gillislee was stuffed for no gain to give the Vols the ball near midfield.

Short passes and runs moved the ball to the Gators' 32, where Lincoln converted to make it 3-0. A botched snap by UF center Mike Pouncey killed Florida's opening possession, failed fourth down killed the second drive but the Gators finally got some points in the fourth attempt.

Demps' 43-yard kickoff and a 15-yard face mask penalty gave the Gators the ball at the Tennessee 42. Brantley's 16-yard pass to Thompson moved the ball to the Vols' 27 and a second throw to Demps netted 11 more yards. But the biggest catch, an 8-yarder, came by freshman Robert Clark on third-and-2 from the UT 12.

Gillislee scored his second TD of the year from two yards out to make it 7-3, which is how the half ended.

Florida linebacker Jon Bostic killed a great scoring chance for Tennessee midway through the second quarter when he intercepted Simms' pass in the end zone on third-and-goal from the UF 3. The Gators' two interceptions give them a total of 10 for the season.

Florida had 20 interceptions in the entire 2009 season. Tennessee had just 11 first downs and the running game, expected to be a factor, could only account for 31 yards on 22 rushes.

(souece:usatoday.com)