Officials from several states are pulling court documents bearing the name of the now infamous robo-signer Linda Green following a 60 Minutes exposé on foreclosure fraud that featured a Palm Beach County homeowner.
In Michigan, Massachusetts and North Carolina registers of deeds have combed through filings looking for Green, documenting irregularities in signatures and forwarding their findings to law enforcement, federal regulators and attorneys general.
In Palm Beach County, a spokeswoman for Clerk of Court Sharon Bock said the Linda Green issue does not fall under "our purview to investigate or take action."
"The clerk does not have authority under the statute to question the validity of a signature on a document presented for recording," said spokeswoman Julie Nicholas.
"It is the role of the home¬owners and/or attorneys representing homeowners to raise any legal issues that they believe may assist a home¬owner in a foreclosure case."
Palm Beach Gardens home¬owner Lynn Szymoniak was featured on 60 Minutes on April 3 after uncovering the Linda Green issue in researching her foreclosure.
Green, a former employee of a now-defunct document processing company, signed papers as vice president of at least 14 banks and mortgage companies.
Green's co-workers also acknowledged in interviews with 60 Minutes that they were paid $10 an hour to sign Green's name.
Because her signatures appear on assignments of mortgage and satisfactions of mortgage, homeowners could have trouble getting clear title to a property.
"The problem is the home¬owner has a burden of perhaps paying an attorney to correct the title; there is stress, aggravation," said John O'Brien, register of deeds for the Southern Essex District in Massachusetts.
"I don't have the legal ability to prosecute, but I have the responsibility to represent my constituents and report something that looks fraudulent."
Jeff Thigpen, register of deeds in North Carolina's Guilford County, went so far as to list the names of home¬owners whose documents were signed by Green online.
Thigpen said he has so far found 1,949 Green documents with 15 variations of signatures.
"It's really a disaster and the one thing I've been saying is I don't know the scope of this," said Bill Bullard Jr., register of deeds in Oakland County, Mich., who is also searching for Green's name.
"I'm suspecting there are hundreds of thousands of forged signatures around the country, maybe more."
Green's defunct employer, Docx LLC, was a subsidiary of Jacksonville-based Lender Process Services Inc.
In Michigan, Massachusetts and North Carolina registers of deeds have combed through filings looking for Green, documenting irregularities in signatures and forwarding their findings to law enforcement, federal regulators and attorneys general.
In Palm Beach County, a spokeswoman for Clerk of Court Sharon Bock said the Linda Green issue does not fall under "our purview to investigate or take action."
"The clerk does not have authority under the statute to question the validity of a signature on a document presented for recording," said spokeswoman Julie Nicholas.
"It is the role of the home¬owners and/or attorneys representing homeowners to raise any legal issues that they believe may assist a home¬owner in a foreclosure case."
Palm Beach Gardens home¬owner Lynn Szymoniak was featured on 60 Minutes on April 3 after uncovering the Linda Green issue in researching her foreclosure.
Green, a former employee of a now-defunct document processing company, signed papers as vice president of at least 14 banks and mortgage companies.
Green's co-workers also acknowledged in interviews with 60 Minutes that they were paid $10 an hour to sign Green's name.
Because her signatures appear on assignments of mortgage and satisfactions of mortgage, homeowners could have trouble getting clear title to a property.
"The problem is the home¬owner has a burden of perhaps paying an attorney to correct the title; there is stress, aggravation," said John O'Brien, register of deeds for the Southern Essex District in Massachusetts.
"I don't have the legal ability to prosecute, but I have the responsibility to represent my constituents and report something that looks fraudulent."
Jeff Thigpen, register of deeds in North Carolina's Guilford County, went so far as to list the names of home¬owners whose documents were signed by Green online.
Thigpen said he has so far found 1,949 Green documents with 15 variations of signatures.
"It's really a disaster and the one thing I've been saying is I don't know the scope of this," said Bill Bullard Jr., register of deeds in Oakland County, Mich., who is also searching for Green's name.
"I'm suspecting there are hundreds of thousands of forged signatures around the country, maybe more."
Green's defunct employer, Docx LLC, was a subsidiary of Jacksonville-based Lender Process Services Inc.
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