Foreclosure attorney withdraws from PB forum

Tom Ice
Tom Ice

In an incident that underscores the ongoing tension between foreclosure defense lawyers and judges in Palm Beach County, a prominent Royal Palm Beach attorney pulled his sponsorship from an upcoming foreclosure forum in response to objections from judges over the event.

Attorney Tom Ice withdrew the $3,200 he had pledged to next Friday’s “Foreclosures: a view from the bench” forum organized by the Daily Business Review in West Palm Beach, the Palm Beach Post reported. Ice wanted out of the forum after finding out that certain judges had issues with attorneys serving as moderators and wanted questions shared with panelists in advance. Five Palm Beach Circuit judges are expected to participate as panelists.

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The Review frequently hosts such events, but this is the first forum to be held in Palm Beach County. Publisher Chris Mobley told the Post this is the first time the use of attorneys as moderators has faced resistance from panel participants.

Foreclosure defense attorneys and judges have squabbled in the past year over the efforts to reduce the lingering backlog of pending foreclosure cases. [Palm Beach Post]Eric Kalis