OUR PROCESS
The Legal Process:
The details and particulars for each case vary widely. We carefully review the court records to determine what funds may be available for recovery. Quite a bit of time is spent reviewing and understanding each individual case to determine who is entitled to recover funds and to verify if any lien holders other than the former property owner have filed a petition for distribution of Surplus Funds and if claims have been timely filed.
Determining Who is Entitled to Claim Funds:
We spend time verifying what entity, individual(s) or parties are entitled to claim surplus funds. We provided our file to an attorney or law firm to review and confirm our research.
Filing Motions for Distribution of Surplus Funds:
Most counties in Florida require the filing of a specific Motion to Distribute Surplus Funds and all of the motions filed for our clients are filed by an attorney on behalf of our clients. Once the Motion is filed, the collection process moves forward and we keep our clients updated on the status of their individual case.
Court Mandated Hearings:
In order to obtain an Order granting our clients the right to receive Surplus Funds (Overages), a hearing takes place before a Judge. The Judge will review all claims filed by lien holders to determine the veracity of the claim filed, the amounts sought as well as the timeliness of the filing. Lien holders have a very specific window of time to file a claim before their ability to file a claim is time barred. The former property owner is afforded additional time beyond the time provided to lien holders to file a claim but all claims must be filed within the time prescribed by governing statute and Florida law. To make it simple, claims must be filed by all parties within certain narrow parameters. If a claim is not timely filed, even if the claim being filed is correct and the filer is entitled to recover funds, if not filed within the correct time period, the Court will deny the claim. This is why it is so important to file claims in a timely manner.
Distribution of Funds Recovered:
Once funds have been received by the Law Firm handling the claim have cleared the law firm's attorney trust account, payments are sent to the client either by check (sent by UPS) or by wire transfer. All costs are paid by our company, not our client.