Linda S. Finley

A shareholder in the Firm's Atlanta office and co-chair of the Mortgage Industry Service Team, Ms. Finley has tried more than 300 jury trials to verdict and concentrates her practice in business litigation involving the mortgage lending and servicing industries and litigation regarding real estate issues. Ms. Finley has experience in:

• Lender liability defense
• Mortgage fraud civil prosecution and defense
• Mortgage lending and servicing issues including foreclosure, bankruptcy, defense of wrongful foreclosure and defense of predatory lending charges
• QC/QA training and review
• Real estate title clearance and litigation

Ms. Finley serves as a court appointed Special Master for purposes of adjudicating litigated real estate title issues. She is a frequent speaker regarding mortgage lending and servicing issues, and is called upon by clients as well as by law enforcement and prosecution offices to provide training on various topics including mortgage fraud investigation and prevention, quality control and loss mitigation.

Recent Representative Matters

• Lead counsel in large scale mortgage fraud matter involving more than 250 loans.
• Lead counsel in defense of mortgage related issues such as RESPA, TILA and defense of charges of predatory lending.
• Lead counsel in defense of lawsuits brought alleging wrongful foreclosure.
• Lead counsel in Class Action suit against lender which alleged improper application of mortgage fees in bankruptcy claim.

Publications & Speaking Engagements

• "The Shoe Is On The Other Foot — Fraud Investigations Against Lenders For Document Fraud," Panelist, Mortgage Bankers Association National Fraud Issues Conference (March 29, 2011)
• "Survey of Georgia Real Property Law," Mercer Law Review, 2002 – 2011
• "Blame Enough for All - The Role of the Consumer, Lender and GSE's in the Mortgage Industry Crisis," West First Focus™ Subprime Reform Actions of the Federal Reserve, September 2008
• "Subprime in the Prime Time," Institute of Continuing Legal Education, 2008 Real Property Foreclosure Seminar, April 2008
• "Mortgage Fraud: Legislation & Remedies," Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition's Annual Seminar, April 2008
• "Consumers Were the Real Victims of Georgia's Predatory-Lending Law," The Subprime Crisis: A Thomson West Special Report, April 2008
• "Who, What, Where, When and How Much?, Investigating Mortgage Fraud and Preservation of Evidence," Mortgage Fraud Blog Seminar, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 2007
• "Trials and Tribulations," Georgia Commercial Real Estate Seminar on Foreclosures, Workouts and Related Litigation Matters, Atlanta, Georgia, November 2007
• "Here's a Subprime Primer," LegalTimes, September 24, 2007
• "Avoid the "F" Words – Fraud and Forgery That Is!" Institute of Continuing Legal Education, Annual Real Property Law Winter Symposium, 2007
• "Introduction to Mortgage Fraud: From Start to a Successful Finish," American Conference Institute, Las Vegas, Nevada, 2006
• "Mortgage Fraud Recovery: Civil or Criminal?" Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Annual Conference, 2006
• "Beware of the Land Shark! Don’t Get Bitten by Mortgage Fraud," Institute of Continuing Legal Education, Real Property Law Institute, 2006
• "Confirmation of Real Estate Foreclosure - Practical Practice Tips," Institute of Continuing Legal Education, Real Property Foreclosure Seminar, 2006
• "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Title Examination, but Were Afraid to Ask," Legal Issues for Georgia Professional Surveyors, 2006
• "Preventing and Addressing Mortgage Fraud," Mortgage Banker's Association of Jacksonville, Florida, 2005
• "Beware of Land Sharks - Preventing Mortgage Fraud," Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Annual Conference, 2005
• "Land Shark - Don’t Feel the Bite of Mortgage Fraud," SmartBusiness Magazine, 2005
• "Mortgage Fraud and Georgia," presented to the Georgia Senate Banking Committee and the Georgia House of Representatives Banking Committee, 2005
• "Predatory Lending - What is it?" Fannie Mae, 2002

Professional Honors & Activities

• Listed in Georgia Super Lawyers since 2009, listed as one of the top 50 female attorneys in Georgia
• Named to Georgia Trend Legal Elite in the area of Bankruptcy/Creditors' Rights, 2009 – 2011
• Member – American and Atlanta Bar Associations
• Board Member – Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, 2006 – 2008
• Fellow – American College of Mortgage Attorneys
• AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Admissions

• Georgia, 1982
• Florida, 1986
• U.S. District Court for the Northern, Middle and Southern Districts of Georgia
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Northern and Middle Districts of Florida
• U.S. Supreme Court

Education

• Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law, J.D., 1981
• Mercer University, B.A., 1978