The Attorney's Complete Guide to Curing Title Defects

Agenda / Content Covered

1. Chain of Title Issues and Public Records Errors
   10:00 — 10:30, James Randall
   1. Exclusion of Proper Parties on Documents
   2. Misspelled Names and Name Variances
   3. Missing, Inadequate, or Inaccurate Deeds and Legal Descriptions
   4. Execution Issues
   5. Improperly Recorded Documents
   6. Improper Cross-Referencing of Defective Deed and Corrective Deed
2. Illegal Deeds, Forgery, and Fraud
   10:30 — 11:15, James Randall
   1. Illegal Deeds, Unauthorized Transfers
   2. Forged and Fabricated Deeds
   3. Forged or Ineffective Satisfactions and Releases
   4. False Impersonation of Owner
3. Undiscovered Wills, Missing Heirs, and Other Estate Issues
   11:30 — 12:00, Susan McKnight
   1. Undiscovered, Misinterpreted, Contested Wills
   2. Missing or Unknown Heirs
   3. Unprobated Estate Interests
   4. Invalid or Expired Powers of Attorney
   5. Life Estates Reserved
   6. Other Estate Issues
4. Delinquent Taxes, Mechanics' Liens, Judgment Liens, and Other Unpaid Debts
   12:00 — 12:45, Stephen Hladik
   1. Mortgage Liens and Mortgage-Related Defects
   2. Tax Liens
   3. Mechanics' Liens
   4. Judgment Liens
   5. Liens for Past-Due Child or Spousal Support
   6. Other Liens
5. Foreclosures, Bankruptcies, and the Title Problems They Can Leave Behind
   1:15 — 2:00, Michael O'Donnell
6. Troubleshooting Boundary, Survey, and Encroachment Issues
   2:00 — 2:45, Roy Shannon
   1. Conflicting or Unclear Legal Descriptions and Surveys
   2. Legal Description, Survey, and Official Plat Errors
   3. Improvements and Encroachments
   4. Acquiescence and Adverse Possession
   5. Undisclosed Boundary, Party Wall, or Setback Agreements
   6. Fluctuating Boundaries Due to Water and Watercourses
   7. Railroad and Mineral Rights
   8. Violation of Subdivision Mapping, Zoning Ordinances, CC&Rs
7. Easements, Access Issues, Restrictions, and Conditions
   3:00 — 4:00, Roy Shannon
   1. Easements Creating Risk of Disputes, Building Restrictions
   2. Indefinite and Unclear Easements
   3. Discrepancies Between Physical Location, Dimensions, etc. and Easement of Record
   4. Unknown Easements and Claimed Prescriptive Rights
   5. Ownership and Rights in Roads or Ways
   6. Missing Easements, Lack of Access
8. Legal Ethics
   4:00 — 5:00, Alfred Schneble
   1. Competence And Diligence
   2. Avoiding Conflicts Of Interest
   3. Disclosure Of Defects
   4. Confidentiality
   5. Attorney's Fees

Accreditation Details:

Stephen M Hladik is a partner in the North Wales law firm of Hladik, Onorato & Federman, LLP, where he focuses his practice in the areas of mortgage law, bankruptcy law and real estate law. A former deputy attorney general in charge of the Harrisburg office of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Consumer Protection, Mr. Hladik brings a broad range of experience to his mortgage foreclosure, bankruptcy, tax sale, and UDAAP legal practice. He gained significant expertise in lending law enforcement in the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection, handling UDAP, FDCPA, RESPA, and TILA cases. Prior to joining Hladik, Onorato & Federman, LLP, Mr. Hladik was the Pennsylvania managing attorney for one of the nation's largest creditor's rights firms, practicing mortgage foreclosure and bankruptcy law. He routinely teaches continuing legal education courses on mortgage law, bankruptcy law, title law, real estate tax sale law, FDCPA and CFPB regulations, and related lending law compliance issues. Mr. Hladik also serves the mortgage servicing industry as the vice chairman of the Advisory Council of the Legal League 100. He participates on various committees of the ALFN. Mr. Hladik is a member of the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, New Jersey State, and American bar associations; and various sections and committees within these organizations. He has spoken for the Pennsylvania Bar Association and conducts continuing legal education courses on tax sale law, foreclosure, title, bankruptcy law, and professional responsibility. He earned his B.A. degree from Pennsylvania State University and his J.D. degree, with honors, from Widener University School of Law.

Susan McKnight is vice president, New Mexico state counsel, and agency consultant for WFG National Title Insurance Company. Ms. McKnight graduated from the University of New Mexico and received her law degree, cum laude, from California Western School of Law in San Diego. She is admitted to practice law in California and New Mexico. Her title insurance experience includes investigation and litigation of title insurance claims in San Diego, serving as in-house litigation, claims, and underwriting counsel for Fidelity National Title, First American Title, Chicago Title, and WFG National Title Insurance Company. Ms. McKnight has taught numerous continuing legal education courses for both the State bars of California and New Mexico; and the New Mexico Real Estate Commission. She has also taught a wide variety of courses for licensing credit for title insurance agents and their employees. Ms. McKnight is a member of the State Bar of California and State Bar of New Mexico. She is also a former underwriter director of the New Mexico Land Title Association.

Michael R O'Donnell is a partner with Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland & Perretti LLP, where his main area of practice is litigation, with emphasis in title insurance, financial institutions, loan work-outs, and lender liability. Mr. O'Donnell has been named among the top commercial litigation lawyers in New Jersey in Best Lawyers in America®, a peer review of US lawyers. Law & Politics magazine named him one of New Jersey's "Super Lawyers." He is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York, and before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Mr. O'Donnell earned his B.A. degree from the University of Notre Dame and his J.D. degree from the University of Virginia.

James J Randall is a shareholder in the Monett law firm of Randall, Masri & Randall, PC. Mr. Randall has practiced law for nearly 50 years. His practice focuses on litigation, medical/legal issues, business transactions, and estate planning. Mr. Randall is a former bankruptcy examiner for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. He has lectured to attorneys, CPAs, insurance adjusters, and medical personnel. Mr. Randall earned his AB degree from Rockhurst College and his J.D. degree from St. Louis University. He is a member of The Missouri Bar and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court of Missouri and Arkansas.

 

Alfred W.M. Schneble III is an attorney in Dayton, Ohio. His practice areas include personal injury, medical and legal malpractice, wrongful death, and civil rights. Mr. Schneble has served as an expert witness in federal and state cases on the reasonableness of attorney’s fees, as well as ethics/professional negligence. He is a member of the Dayton, Cincinnati, and Ohio State bar associations; and The Florida Bar. Mr. Schneble serves as an adjunct professor of law for the University of Cincinnati College of Law. He is licensed to practice in all courts in the states of Ohio and Florida, as well as before the local U.S. district and bankruptcy courts, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and the U.S. Tax Court in Washington, D.C. Mr. Schneble earned his B.S. degree from Marquette University and J.D. degree from Ohio Northern University.

Roy R. Shannon is a partner in the law firm of Shannon Mullins & Wright LLP. His primary areas of practice include real estate transactions and litigation, and land use, as well as business transactions and litigation. Mr. Shannon represents litigation clients in mediations and arbitrations, as well as in state and federal courts. He represents his land use clients before boards of zoning appeals, planning commissions and boards of supervisors/city councils throughout Northern Virginia, including Arlington County, Fairfax County, the city of Alexandria, and the town of Vienna. Mr. Shannon is a member of the Alexandria and Federal bar associations, the District of Columbia and Virginia State bars, and the Attorney’s Roundtable for the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors. He has been a member of the Alexandria Community Services Board since 2009 and is currently serving as its chair. Mr. Shannon earned his undergraduate degree in finance from Catholic University and his J.D. degree from George Mason University School of Law.