GAME OF DRONES
The drone revolution has finally entered the American psyche. In fact, in late-December, the Federal Aviation Administration revealed that they have chosen several sites in a number of states to test unmanned drones in order to integrate them into our national airspace. The climate has certainly changed and unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones - will be written by professional journalists, who offer a fresh perspective and an objective eye that will give you a well-rounded look at big topics. Our reporters L.A. Rivera, Amy Armstrong and Monica Link have chronicled a story dubbed, “Year Of The Drones,” which looks into the future of drones in America.
The drone revolution has finally entered the American psyche. In fact, in late-December, the Federal Aviation Administration revealed that they have chosen several sites in a number of states to test unmanned drones in order to integrate them into our national airspace. The climate has certainly changed and unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones - will be written by professional journalists, who offer a fresh perspective and an objective eye that will give you a well-rounded look at big topics. Our reporters L.A. Rivera, Amy Armstrong and Monica Link have chronicled a story dubbed, “Year Of The Drones,” which looks into the future of drones in America.
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y amy m. armstrong<br />
Real Estate<br />
Practiced with Conscience<br />
When Barbara Brown<br />
opened her law firm, Emery<br />
Law & Mediation,<br />
P.A. in Tampa, Florida<br />
in 2006, as an attorney specializing in<br />
real estate matters, she had no clue how<br />
fortuitous the timing would be or what<br />
a dramatic shift she would ultimately<br />
undergo professionally.<br />
It was one year before the 2007 start<br />
of the housing debacle and a year before<br />
the real estate industry saw high<br />
foreclosure rates coupled with plenty<br />
of legal action.<br />
Brown, formerly Barbara Brown-Emery,<br />
parlayed a strong track record representing<br />
the plaintiff side in real estate<br />
court into something she never expected<br />
– a crossover to the defense side.<br />
“When I opened my own firm, I had<br />
a number of referrals from previous<br />
clients,” Brown said. “Once the market<br />
went down in 2007 and 2008, the<br />
realtors we worked with began talking<br />
about clients in distressed situations<br />
such as foreclosure or pre-foreclosure<br />
and these realtors said to me, ‘Hey,<br />
can you help my clients out?’” Brown<br />
thought about it and realized that she<br />
could. “It was like the criminal prosecutor<br />
flipping to the criminal defense<br />
side,” she joked. “We started moving<br />
into defending foreclosures and working<br />
with clients on loss mitigation strategies.”<br />
Brown makes this transition<br />
sound easy, but in reality<br />
it came with an enormous<br />
change in mindset.<br />
The clients she now works<br />
with are in significant financial<br />
distress, riding an<br />
emotional rollercoaster as<br />
they go through the various<br />
not-so-pleasant and<br />
not-so-quick legal processes<br />
potentially resulting in homelessness.<br />
“I try to keep in the back of mind that<br />
these are not just financial, contractu-<br />
al or legal issues for my clients. These<br />
are emotional issues. They are staying<br />
up late at night worrying about these<br />
things. It takes a toll on their relationships,”<br />
she said. “It sounds corny, but<br />
the bottom line of our practice is helping<br />
people. We review their financial<br />
situation and try to provide solutions<br />
that are specifically geared to their goal<br />
– whether that means keeping their<br />
property through restructure or getting<br />
them in the best position possible for a<br />
short sale.”<br />
Brown’s firm offers expertise in the<br />
various areas of foreclosure. When<br />
she began the firm in 2006, it was just<br />
Brown and an assistant. Today, Emery<br />
Law supports its clients with a full time<br />
staff, including a short sale negotiator,<br />
a loan modification specialist, title processor<br />
and legal assistant, along with<br />
administrative staff to support all areas.<br />
Her greatest success is aptly represented<br />
by the case of a former bartender<br />
who had to retire from bartending<br />
for health reasons and fell behind on<br />
his mortgage payments while starting<br />
a new business. Brown helped him stay<br />
in his home as he started a new career.<br />
“We were able to keep him in his<br />
home for four years as he built his new<br />
business. We gave him the gift of time<br />
to get what he needed as far as income<br />
for the loan modification,” Brown said.<br />
“The suc- cess is that we allowed<br />
him to stay in his home while he<br />
moved on with his life.”<br />
This is a prime example of how to<br />
practice real estate law with a conscience,<br />
aptly highlighting the admirable<br />
goal of Brown and her firm – “Fighting<br />
for Justice, One Home at a Time.”<br />
Emery Law serves Tampa Florida<br />
12718 DuPont Circle<br />
Tampa, FL 33626<br />
813-289-8485<br />
www.foreclosureattorney-tampa.com<br />
THE SUIT MAGAZINE p.73
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