New Law Means Higher Fees in Civil Court

Below is a recent article from Bay News 9 regarding laws that have been passed that will mean higher fees in civil court cases for Florida residents.

PINELLAS COUNTY (Bay News 9) -- A law that was recently enacted means Florida residents will find themselves paying more whenever they go to civil court.

Senate Bill 1718 contained provisions to increase filing fees on civil and probate cases, but those who may feel the biggest impact of the fees are people who are filing for foreclosure.

Foreclosure filings used to cost a flat rate of $295. Now the fee will be anywhere from $395 to $1,900. The new fee will depend on the property value.

Christina Taylor and Sheila Brettnacher risk losing five properties to foreclosure, so they sought help from attorney Charles Gallagher. Gallagher urged the women to file suit before the July 1 deadline to avoid the increased fee.

"I think it's terrible," Taylor said. "The people who really need representation the most are the ones who won't be able to afford it."

The fee for filing civil cases will increase by $100, while the probate filing fee will increase by $115. Fees for cross-claims and counter-claims are also going up.

Gallagher said he thinks the fees will have an impact on the courts.

"I think it's going to have a chilling effect on the use of the courts," he said. "The courts are probably going to be less busy than they have been in the past."

At the same time, he sees why lawmakers made this decision. Higher fees mean more money for the state.

"There's a huge, huge problem with funding the court systems in Florida and court systems have always had under-funding by the Legislature," Gallagher said. "This was meant by the governor as well as the Legislature to go ahead and arrest that problem and mitigate some of the spending problems and financing problems of the courts."

People are not able to afford the filing fees can have them waived. They will have to show proof of income, assets and debts in order to do so.

"Top Tampa Bay-Area Law Firm and Major Real Estate Group Form Partnership to Help Clients with Mortgage Difficulties"

Below is a recent press release from The Visions Group regarding our firms recent partnership with Prudential Tropical Realty.

Tampa Bay, Florida – Yesner & Boss, one of Central Florida’s top real estate law firms, has signed an agreement to represent clients of 15 area offices of Prudential Tropical Realty in a wide range of financial problems afflicting residential property owners.

Under the agreement, Yesner & Boss, P.L. (http://www.yesnerboss.com/) will become corporate counsel for offices of Prudential Tropical located all over the Tampa Bay area, including St. Petersburg, Temple Terrace, Brandon and the Pinellas Beaches. The real estate offices will refer their clients who need help with foreclosure defense, short-sale negotiations, asset protection and strategies, and consumer protection.

“The goal of Yesner & Boss and Prudential Tropical (http://www.prutropical.com/) is the same, to help property owners stay in their homes and work their way out of mortgage difficulties to which the current market is subjecting a lot of people,” said Christopher Boss, a partner in the law firm.

Prudential Tropical Realty is a locally owned company that opened its first office 50 years ago. It now has offices throughout Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando Counties.

“In combining our skills and experience with the success history of Yesner & Boss, we have created a team of specialists for our clients, elevating the quality of service we can offer to Tampa Bay area homeowners,” said Rob Hilliker, vice president of sales and marketing for Prudential Tropical.

While foreclosure rates are dropping nationally – many believe this is because the majority of troubled mortgages already have foreclosure filings against them – Florida has nearly 60,000 residential properties in foreclosure, which ranks the state either second or third, depending on which real estate tracking company is keeping score. Within Florida, the Tampa Bay region is one of the mostly heavily beset by foreclosures and short sales.

“While there are signs of life flickering in the residential real estate market, it is a long way from flourishing,” said Boss. “And improvement will not be significant until foreclosures return to normal numbers and the backlog of foreclosed properties is cleared. There is, unfortunately, still a lot of work to be done out there.”

For more information regarding this article call the Offices of Yesner & Boss, P.L. at (727) 471-0039 or Jean Heller of The Visions Group at (727) 424-4349.