The Federal Trade Commission has obtained a court order barring the owners of several Florida companies that operated under the guise of being law firms from offering mortgage loan modification and debt relief services.
The ban signed by U.S. District Court Judge Marcia Morales Howard resolves Federal Trade Commission charges that the three men — Edward Rennick 3rd, Michael Lanier and Rogelio "Roger" Robles — falsely told homeowners in financial distress that they would provide legal representation to prevent foreclosure or lower loan payments. The order also covers the entities the three were associated with.
Additionally, it was alleged that the men and their companies, which include Lanier Law LLC, Fortress Law Group, Redstone Law Group and Surety Law Group, would illegally charge customers thousands of dollars in advance, the FTC said in a news release Thursday.
A permanent injunction agreed to by Rennick, Surety Law Group and Redstone Law Group blocks them from selling secured and unsecured debt relief products or services, misrepresenting any financial products and services and violating the Do Not Call Registry rules. Additionally, the court levied an $8 million penalty, which will be suspended when the parties surrender frozen assets.
In addition, the court imposed an order with similar terms on Lanier, Robles and their companies. This separate order also stipulated a $13.5 million fine, representing the net revenues they earned from their allegedly fraudulent activities.
According to the FTC, the companies were operated as law firms through agreements with lawyers across the country, but those lawyers performed little to no actual legal work for customers. Meanwhile, the companies advertised that consumers had an 85% to 100% chance of getting a loan modification as they collected up to $4,000 in fees and sometimes another $300 monthly on an ongoing basis. They even allegedly told consumers to stop making mortgage payments while modifications were pending.
