In the Spotlight
Professor and Alumnus Provide Help to Homeowner in Mortgage/Foreclosure Case
Making the news recently, Seton Hall Law Professor Linda Fisher and alumnus Joshua Denbeaux '94, helped a homeowner who was denied a previously agreed upon modification from her mortgage lender during foreclosure mediation. The borrower made all payments in compliance with her part of the agreement, but the lender insisted on additional concessions.
“The Supreme Court reversed the lower courts -- which had agreed with the lender -- holding that the settlement agreement was final and permanent and the lender could not unilaterally change the terms,” says Professor Linda Fisher, whose work in the Center for Social Justice focuses representing consumers in foreclosure and mortgage fraud cases.
The modification was pursuant to the state’s Residential Mortgage Foreclose Mediation Program, which offered a process for homeowners and lenders to provide for payment terms that would avoid foreclosures.
Professor Fisher summarized: “While New Jersey continues to suffer from a massive wave of foreclosures, the Supreme Court has decided that borrowers must still be treated according to the law, not the whims of the lender.”