STATE OF FLORIDA OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, DEPARTMENT OF LEGAL AFFAIRS IN THE MATTER OF: AG Case# Ll0-3-1025 INVESTIGATION OF Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, Respondents. I ASSURANCE OF VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE PURSUANT to the provisions of Chapter 501, Part II, Florida Statutes, Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, the Office Of The Attorney General, Department Of Legal Affairs, hereinafter referred to as the "Department", caused an investigation to be made into the business practices of Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A., Thomas W. Dvorak, Hollis Mandell, Daniel P. Minihan, Anthony James Florence and NDA Financial, LLC. Respondent, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A., is a Florida corporation created August 25, 2005, which previously conducted business in the State of Florida, with its principal place of business being 2740 East Oakland Park Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306. John P. Contini & Associates, P.A. previously represented this Respondent in this matter. Respondent, Thomas W. Dvorak, is an individual, currently residing at 3001 Coral Shores Drive, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306 and was previously represented by John P. Contini & Associates, P.A. in this matter but is now prose. Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak (hereafter "Respondents") are prepared to enter into this Assurance of Voluntary Compliance ( hereafter AAssurance") for the purpose of resolution of this matter with the Department. The remaining subjects of the present investigation, Hollis Mandell, Daniel P. Minihan, Anthony James Florence, NDA Financial, LLC are not participating in this Assurance. The Department, by and through the undersigned Assistant Attorney 1 ~ +Initials
General, and the undersigned Director of the Economic Crimes Division, being in agreement, accept this Assurance in termination of the investigation into the activities of Respondents, subject to the terms set out in the terms of this Assurance, pursuant to Section 501.207(6), Florida Statutes, and by virtue of the authority vested in the Department by said statute. I. STIPULATED FACTS 1.1 During the time frame beginning October 1, 2008 and thereafter, Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, engaged in the business of offering services to homeowners who defaulted under the terms of their home mortgages, were about to enter the foreclosure process, or were in foreclosure. Specifically, among other things, Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, offered, for an advance fee, to assist consumers with arranging an alternative payment plan with the homeowner=s lender for the purpose of avoiding foreclosure, or of obtaining refinancing, or modification, of their mortgages, short sales, or representation in foreclosure proceedings. 1.2 The Department has investigated allegations that Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, are not compliant with provisions of Florida Statute 501.1377 which prohibit collection of client payments prior to completion of foreclosure-related rescue services and which also include requirements for foreclosure-related rescue services written agreements. Additionally, there are allegations that the work done by the Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A., was actually coordinated and implemented by other subjects of this investigation, Anthony James Florence and Daniel P. Minihan, with these two individuals sharing a percentage of the income with attorney Thomas W. Dvorak. They, with his knowledge, and permission, obtained clients by internet postings and websites, as well as calls from a boiler room set up by Florence and Minihan with equipment they provided. The business primarily involved obtaining funds from homeowners desperate for relief from financial problems regarding their mortgages. Despite their payment of funds, and providing documents requested by the Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A., the homeowners were not provided the assistance they hired Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, to provide and there was no legitimate effort made to do so by the Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak. The business was designed 2 ~ =)i- Initials
/ a..ro 1 and run to make money off the homeowner consumers, ngt t6 prov1 "d e a 1 eg1tlmate.. service to consumers for a reasonable fee. 1.3 Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak and the Department desire to resolve all issues arising during the course of this investigation as to Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, Esq., P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak. 1.4 This Assurance is based upon the stipulated facts set forth in Paragraphs 1.1through1.3 above and the sworn statement of January 6, 2010 given by Thomas W. Dvorak to Assistant Attorney General Theresa Bland Edwards. The Department shall not be estopped from taking further action in this matter should the facts described herein, or in that sworn statement, later be proved to be incorrect in any material way, or the Assurance not be complied with in full by the Respondents, Thomas W. Dvorak and Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. 1.5 Thomas W. Dvorak has received a one year suspension from the practice of law as a result of the foregoing stipulated facts. II. TERMS 2.1 Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak have voluntarily ceased accepting new clients for Law Offices Of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak regarding any type of home rescue and modification or representation in foreclosures. They agree that they will no longer accept any new clients in this area of practice, or any transactions involving real estate. They will only be involved in assisting in the resolution of the remaining loan modification cases, or foreclosure defense cases of clients who retained the Law Offices Of Thomas W. Dvorak and refunding the fees paid by the clients listed in Exhibit "A". As of the date of this Assurance, the files formerly handled by the Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak have been delivered to attorney Bill Leonard by Thomas W. Dvorak, who is either completing the handling of the cases, or protecting the interests of the clients until they are able to obtain other counsel. A list of all client files of Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak delivered to attorney Bill Leonard are attached hereto as Exhibit "B". The amount of money paid by the clients listed in Exhibit "A" will be refunded to them 3-17 r-initials
by Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak within the next 180 days, with proof of payment being made by Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak to the Office of the Attorney General. In the event Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak have attempted but are unable to deliver payment to one of their clients, that obligation will be satisfied by delivery of that sum to the Office of the Attorney General, who will have complete discretion in deciding how those funds will be disbursed. Upon satisfaction of the financial requirements within the 180 day time period, the original executed Agreed Consent Final Judgment (a copy of which is attached here as Exhibit "C") will be delivered by the Assistant Attorney General to John Contini, legal counsel for Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak. 2.2 Respondents Law Offices of Thomas Dvorak, P.A., Thomas W. Dvorak, and their representatives, agents, employees, successors, assigns or any other person who acts under, by, through, or on behalf of Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak directly or indirectly, or through any corporate or other device, shall comply with the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, Chapter 501, Part II, Florida Statutes. 2.3 It is further agreed by the parties that RESPONDENTS, Law Offices Of Thomas Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, shall be responsible for making the substantive terms and conditions of this agreement known to the officers, employees, agents, representatives, or any other persons that are substantially affected by this Assurance and are involved in businesses, projects and activities of either Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak. The obligation imposed by this paragraph is continuing in nature and shall apply to new officers, employees, agents, representatives or any other persons who become engaged in business activities, including any future business activities in which either of Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. or Thomas W. Dvorak engage. 2.4 It is further agreed by the parties that neither of the RESPONDENTS, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. or Thomas W. Dvorak shall effect any change in the form of doing business, or the organizational identity of the existing._./' 4 rn%a1
business entity, create any new business entities, or obtain any ownership interest in any business entity as a method of avoiding the terms and conditions set forth in this Assurance. 2.5 Nothing in this Assurance shall be construed as a waiver of any private rights of any person or release of any private rights, causes of action, or remedies of any person against the Respondents. 2.6 Florida Statute 501.13 77, effective October 1, 2008, prohibits foreclosure-related rescue businesses, such as Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak from collecting payment from clients prior to the completion of foreclosure-related rescue services. Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak agree to refund clients identified in Exhibit "A", and consumers who file complaints with the ATTORNEY GENERAL over the 90 day period following the effective date of this Assurance in accordance with the following: III. STIPULATED PAYMENT 3.1 The parties agree that Respondent, Law Offices of Thomas Dvorak, Esq. and Thomas W. Dvorak shall pay $10,000.00 (TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS) to the State of Florida, Office of the Attorney General, Department of Legal Affairs, pursuant to Section 501.2105, Florida Statutes, in payment of all legal fees, costs and investigative fees regarding this investigation. Payment shall be made by cashier's check or other certified funds, made payable to Department of Legal Affairs Revolving Trust Fund. 3.2 In addition to the payment to clients outlined above, the Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak shall pay to the OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL the sum of$10,000.00, simultaneously with the submission of the Assurance, signed by Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak to the OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL for use by the OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL to provide restitution to clients of Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak who file claims with the office within 90 days following the effective date of this Assurance reflecting that Respondents were retained and paid prior to November 1, 2009 by that client. It will be completely in the 5
discretion of the OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL to determine the manner in which this restitution will be disbursed to the consumers and any funds unpaid following the 90 day period will be used by the OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL for future investigations. This payment is contingent upon Thomas W. Dvorak having paid all restitution set forth in his GUILTY PLEA FOR CONSENT JUDGMENT for complaints filed with the Supreme Court of Florida on or about June 24, 2010, otherwise the payment amount as outlined in section 3.2 shall be $137,686.64. 3.3 The Office of the Attorney General is waiving payment of any statutory penalties for violation of Florida Statute 501, Part II, of up to $10,000 per violation and $15, 000 per violation involving a senior citizen or handicapped person, by RESPONDENTS, Law Offices of Thomas Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak in consideration of the parties' entry into, and compliance with, this Assurance. 3.4 The original Assurance, bearing the notarized signatures of Thomas W. Dvorak, individually and as the President of the Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and their legal counsel, and the above-described payments will be delivered to the attention of: Fulvio Joseph Gentili, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Attorney General, Economic Crimes Division, 110 SE 6th Street, 10th Floor, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301simultaneously. IV. BUSINESS RECORDS 4.1 Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak agree to retain documents and other information reasonably sufficient to establish compliance with the provisions herein for the 5 years following the effective date of this Assurance, and shall provide reasonable access to such documents and information to the Department within 48 hours of request. 4.2 Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas Dvorak, P.A. or Thomas W. Dvorak will provide the Office of the Attorney General with a monthly status report, beginning 30 days following the effective date of this Assurance, reflecting the current status of the payments to clients until all financial obligations to clients have been satisfied. 6
V. FUTURE VIOLATIONS 5.1 In the event either of the Respondents violate this Assurance, by failure to make all restitution to consumers, as outlined above, Respondents agree to entry of an Agreed Consent Final Judgment against them, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit "C", which reflects copies of the signatures of the Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak and their counsel. The amount of the judgment against Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak jointly and severally will be for Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) and the original executed Agreed Consent Final Judgment, with signatures by Respondent Thomas W. Dvorak, individually, and as President of Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and counsel for Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak, will be held in trust by Assistant Attorney General Fulvio Joseph Gentili pending satisfaction of the financial requirements of this Assurance as to restitution to clients. In the event Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak fail to satisfy the financial requirements of this Assurance, counsel for Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak will be given written notice by certified mail of the failure to comply and given 5 days to comply. In the event of the failure of Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak to comply with the financial obligations of this Assurance during that 5 day period, the original of the Consent Final Judgment will be filed with the court, simultaneously with a Complaint reciting the terms of this Assurance, attaching a copy of the Assurance, alleging the breach of the Assurance by either, or both, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak attaching proof of notice to attorney, John Contini, along with the Consent Final Judgment and a letter to the assigned judge requesting entry of the Consent Final Judgment without hearing. This litigation may be commenced without service of process on the Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. or Thomas W. Dvorak once notice that the suit will be filed is sent to John Contini, with the notice of the violation. 5.2 In addition to above provisions, it is hereby agreed by the parties that any other failure to comply with the terms and conditions of this 7
Assurance is by statute prima facie evidence of a violation of Chapter 501, Part II, Florida Statutes, and will subject Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak to any and all civil penalties and sanctions authorized by law, including attorney's fees and costs. VI. CLOSURE OF INVESTIGATION 6.1 It is further agreed by the parties that upon the Attorney General's receipt of the agreed upon payments from RESPONDENTS Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak and confirmation of the payment of restitution to the consumers listed on Exhibit "A", attached to this Assurance, the Office of the Attorney General agrees to close its civil investigation into the activities of Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak as set forth above. The parties agree that this Assurance has been entered into based on the truthfulness of the information provided by Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak and the agreement of Thomas W. Dvorak to provide truthful testimony in any action brought by the Office of the Attorney General against the remaining subjects of this investigation. Mr. Dvorak agrees that he will appear on e-mail notice being provided to his counsel, John Contini, of any hearings in which his testimony is required. By his signature here, Mr. Dvorak authorizes Mr. Contini to receive service of process of any subpoena for his testimony regarding this investigation. VII. EFFECTIVE DATE OF ASSURANCE OF VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE 7.1 It is further agreed by the parties that the effective date of this Assurance shall be the date of its execution and delivery by all the parties, including each of the parties reflected by the signature lines below. Acceptance by the Office of the Attorney General shall be established by the signature of the Director of Economic Crimes. The receipt by the Office of the Attorney General of any monies pursuant to the Assurance does not constitute acceptance by the Director of Economic Crimes, and any monies received shall be returned to Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak at the addresses indicated below the signature lines of the Respondents Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak if this Assurance is 8
not accepted and executed by the Director of Economic Crimes. 7.2 It is further agreed that facsimile copies of signatures and notary seals may be accepted as original for the purposes of establishing the existence of this agreement. VIII. NOTICE TO PARTIES 8.1 Other than as indicated in 6.1 above, it is further agreed that future notice to the Office Of The Attorney General may be made by notice sent certified mail to the Office Of The Attorney General, ATTN: Fulvio Joseph Gentili, 110 SE 6th Street, 10th Floor, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 and to the Defendants in care of their legal counsel, John Contini, at the address listed below, unless either party notifies the other by certified mail of another address to which notices should be provided. IX. CONSTRUCTION OF AGREEMENT 9.1 It is further agreed that the parties jointly participated in the negotiation of the terms of this Assurance. No provision of this Assurance shall be construed for, or against, any party, on the grounds that one party had more control over establishing the terms of this Assurance, than another. In witness whereof, Respondents, Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A. and Thomas W. Dvorak have caused this Assurance to be executed in the county and state listed below, as of the date affixed thereon. By my signature I hereby affirm that I am acting in my capacity and within my authority as corporate representative of Law Offices of Thomas W. Dvorak, P.A., as well as in my individual capacity, and that by my signature I am binding myself and the business entity to the terms and conditions of this Assurance. 9
~ 7-74.-11 T~W~D~President of LAW OFFICES OF THOMAS W. DVORAK, P.A. 2740 E. Oakland Park Blvd, #200 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306 STATE OF FLORIDA) COUNTY OF BROW ARD) BEFORE ME, an officer duly authorized to take acknowledgments in the State of Florida, THOMAS W. DVORAK personally appeared, individually, and as President of LAW OFFICES OF THOMAS W. DVORAK, P.A. a Florida corporation. He acknowledged before me that he executed the foregoing instrument for the purposes therein stated. ~bscribed to before me this :;i I,i. day of.--~jl~(\=, 2011. I/. 1 -~-~9_; -r... cl.auoi.t.:jo'witi:is... ~ L. Nff't'. - '(,~. ""'""';,,, comm# 000678872 ~ :M~ : _..,., ' - : f ~~~~ Expires 8/26/2011 5 (print, type, or stamp commissioned Notary Public) E ~for:!\~" Florida Notary Assn., inc S ~am!'~!it!.1!~;.'.~~"''1'.. f'll ~"l'l",l ~...," -~riqes111 11 Personally known or Produced Identification ~ (check one) Type of Identification Produced: 6~'~r)( 0,.~ 1Jc.- 'f). lf t,, 1/d-"f l.:i Joseph G Assistant Attorney General 110 S.E. 6th Street, 9th Floor Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 (954) 712-4600 (954) 712-4658 facsimile 10 y Imtial
Fulvio.gentili@myfloridalegal.com Accep~d,is 2' ~~Y- of~'---""--''--+---' 2011. -~ // '"./ " - 11