Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation | The Plaintiff
The RMFM Program is the Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Program that has been ordered by the Florida Supreme Court in Administrative Order 09-54, and our local Second Judicial Circuit Court Administrative Order 10-05. This program mandates that all homestead foreclosure lawsuits filed be sent to mediation prior to any final order being issued.
Visit the Tallahassee Lenders Consortium for information regarding safe and affordable housing. Below you will find a list of our offices most frequently asked questions that will assist you, the attorney, in this process.
Please click the box to the left to open the answers:
What are the requirements for FORM A in your circuit?Please note the Second Judicial Circuit requires that all residential foreclosures must have a FORM A filed with the Clerk and the RMFM Program Manager within 1 day of filing the suit with the Clerk of Court.
The Form A information should include:
- Borrower's Name
- Borrower's Property Address
- Borrower's Last Known Mailing Address
- Borrower's Telephone, if any
- Loan Number
- Plaintiff's Representative with contact information (email, telephone, fax, and address)
Please provide all of this information along with the check in one package, not separate emails.
Who is considered the Plaintiff's Representative?The Plaintiff's Representative is not the Plaintiff's attorney. It is the Lender's Representative who will appear at mediation with the authority to settle. Do not list Plaintiff's Attorney's contact information as the Lender's Representative.
What is the Notice from the Court?This is the notice explaining the RMFM Program to the Borrower/Defendant issued by the Chief Judge that must be served with each summons and complaint. The Clerks have executed copies of this notice and you may also print them off on our foreclosure page.
What is the amount and when should we pay for the RMFM Program?If the residential mortgage foreclosure is a homestead, you are required to forward a check payable to the Tallahassee Bar Association in the amount of $675 with your FORM A within one day of filing suit to:
RMFM Program Manager
Tallahassee Bar Association, Inc.
Leon County Courthouse
301 S. Monroe Street, Suite 108
Tallahassee, FL 32301
Do not wait for the case number from the clerk before sending your FORM A and check to the RMFM Program Manager.
We don't receive the Case Numbers immediately, how should this be handled?It is very important that our office receive the case number as well. Forward this number as soon as you receive it to the Program Manager noting the case style, case number, and county. (We are tracking cases by primary borrower name and case number.)
What if the Borrower/Defendant is not located or does not wish to participate in the RMFM Program?Should the Borrower not wish to participate or can't be located, TBA will refund the $675 less the mediation fee and financial counseling fee after the borrower has opted out or the 60 day period described in AO 10-05 has expired.
The order refers to a "web-enabled platform." Will we entering information via the internet?www.rmfmp.com is the "web-enabled platform" described in both the Supreme Court Administrative Order and this circuit's administrative order. Plaintiffs and Plaintiffs' counsel and Defense counsel should all register to view cases in this circuit on the "web-enabled platform" at www.rmfmp.com. You will be able to monitor your cases' status and upload disclosures as well as download the Borrower's financial disclosures when the mediation is scheduled.
Will we entering information via the internet?You will not be allowed to enter information through the New Case Wizard, the RMFM Program Manager will do so.
Who should be using the "web enabled platform"?Lenders/Plaintiffs, Plaintiffs' Attorneys, Borrowers' Attorneys are required to register to use this platform on the Tallahassee site at www.rmfmp.com if you are involved in any cases in this circuit. The purpose of the platform is to allow the conveyance of sensitive information in a secure setting. You will need to download Microsoft Silverlight in order to access this platform.
How should we communicate with the Program Manager?The Program Manager can be emailed at rmfm@tallahasseebar.org and would like to have each firm's point of contact to create a listserve in order to send out any notifications for the program. You may also reach Marianne Bryant at (850) 656-1687 or at the Tallahassee Bar Association, Inc., Leon County Courthouse, 301 S. Monroe Street, Suite 108, Tallahassee, FL 32308.
Disclosures:
Please serve a Notice of Compliance or Plaintiff's Response to Borrower's Request for Disclosures and upload same to the www.rmfmp.com site. Each document can be no more than 3 mb. Please label "PD - Payment History," "PD - Appraisal," "PD - Note," etc.. , so that everyone viewing will understand these are Plaintiff's Disclosures and what is included in the document.
Borrower's disclosures will be uploaded on the www.rmfmp.com site upon completion of financial counseling and be available at that time.
Scheduling of Financial Counseling and Mediation:
Upon receipt of the Borrower's Request to Participate in the RMFM Program, the Program Manager will assign a Financial Counselor to the borrower and change the status to "Assign Counselor" on the www.rmfmp.com website. The financial counseling appointment will be conducted within approximately 10-14 days and when the appointment is scheduled the status will then change to "Counseling".
Upon the status change of "Counseling Complete" the Program Manager will schedule mediation in approximately 3-4 weeks and the status will change to "Assign Mediator" or "Mediation Scheduled" - so Plaintiffs and Counselors will be able to monitor the status of their cases.
RMFM Program Manager serves and files Notices of Mediation.
