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MMM-LF-06 (rev. 12/01/15) 

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT 

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA 

www.flsb.uscourts.gov 

In re: 

MICHAEL PETRUSHA Case No. 21-14169-AJC 

TRACEY PETRUSHA Chapter 13 

 

 Debtor(s) / 

ORDER GRANTING ATTORNEY-REPRESENTED DEBTOR’S VERIFIED “OUT OF 

TIME” MOTION FOR REFERRAL TO MORTGAGE MODIFICATION MEDIATION 

The Debtor filed the Attorney-Represented Debtor’s Verified “Out of Time” Motion 

for Referral to Mortgage Modification Mediation (“Out of Time Motion”) on January 31, 

2022 and served it on the Lender, Fay Servicing, LLC. in accordance with this Court’s 

Mortgage Modification Mediation Program Procedures (select one): 

X The 14-day response time provided by the mediation program procedures 

has expired, no one has filed, or served on the movant, a response to the motion, and 

this form of order was attached as an exhibit to the motion. 

____ The Lender has filed a Lender’s Consent to participate in MMM. 

A. Jay Cristol, Judge

United States Bankruptcy Court

_____________________________________________________________________________

ORDERED in the Southern District of Florida on February 22, 2022.

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____ The Debtor filed a “Certificate of Contested Matter” and the Court 

conducted a hearing on _____________. 

It is ORDERED as follows: 

1. The Motion is granted. 

2. The Debtor and Lender are required to participate in Mortgage Modification 

Mediation (“MMM”) in good faith. MMM shall be concluded not later than 

150 days from the date of the Order, unless extended by written consent on 

the portal, by stipulation of the parties or by court order. 

3. All communications and information exchanged during MMM are privileged 

and confidential as provided by Federal Rule of Evidence 408 and Chapter 

44 of the Florida Statutes, and shall be inadmissible in any subsequent 

proceeding. 

4. All written communication between the parties regarding the mediation must 

be sent through the approved Mortgage Modification Mediation Portal 

(“MMM Portal”) only, unless otherwise ordered by the Court. Any litigated 

matters incidental to the mediation shall be considered as separate matters 

and not subject to the portal communication requirement. 

5. The Lender (and Lender’s counsel, if any) shall register with the MMM 

Portal, unless already registered, within seven days after entry of this Order, 

and designate its single point of contact and outside legal counsel, if any. 

If the Lender fails to register, the Debtor may file a motion with the Court 

seeking sanctions against the Lender for Lender’s failure to register. 

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6. Lender’s counsel or representative shall have the authority (within the 

investor’s guidelines) to settle and will attend and continuously participate 

in all MMM conferences in this case. 

7. Debtor’s attorney shall, within seven days after the Debtor’s Notice of 

Selection of Mortgage Modification Mediator (or Notice of Clerk’s 

Designation of Mortgage Modification Mediator) is filed, or after confirming 

that the Lender is registered on the MMM Portal, whichever occurs later, 

remit to the MMM Portal the required non-refundable MMM Portal 

submission fee in the amount $40.00, and upload to the MMM Portal the 

following (collectively, the “Completed Package”): 

 (a) Debtor’s loan modification package (prepared using the Document 

 Preparation Software); 

 (b) A copy of this Order; and 

 (c) Any additional lender-specific information identified by Lender on the 

MMM Portal. 

8. The Lender shall, within seven days after Debtor’s delivery of the 

“Completed Package”, acknowledge receipt of Debtor’s information and 

advise Debtor of any additional or missing information required for Lender 

to proceed with its review. 

9. In the event the Lender requires additional or missing information to 

consider the Debtor’s requested mortgage modification options as specified 

in the Motion, the Lender shall so notify Debtor through the MMM Portal 

within seven days of Debtor’s submission (“Notice”). The Debtor shall 

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provide all additional documents through the MMM Portal within seven days 

of the Notice. 

10. The Lender shall timely underwrite the loan modification request. 

11. If the Lender transfers the loan, the Lender must provide a copy of the Order 

to the new holder of the loan (“Successor Lender”), and the Successor 

Lender will be obligated to comply with all terms of this Order. 

12. PROCESS FOR SELECTION OF MEDIATOR:

 (a) The parties shall have 14 days from the date of this Order to select 

a mediator. If the parties agree on the selection of a mediator, the 

Debtor shall file the MMM Local Form “ Debtor’s Notice of Selection 

of Mortgage Modification Mediator” (Check Box 1 and insert mediator 

name and contact information), serve a copy of the notice on all 

required parties, and file a Certificate of Service pursuant to Local 

Rule 2002-1(F). 

 (b) If the Lender fails to communicate with the Debtor within the 14 day 

period established for the mediator selection process, the Debtor 

shall, within seven days, independently select a mediator and file the 

MMM Local Form “Debtor’s Notice of Selection of Mortgage 

Modification Mediator” (Check Box 2 and insert mediator name and 

contact information), serve a copy of the notice on all required 

parties, and file a Certificate of Service pursuant to Local Rule 2002-

1(F). In this instance, it shall be deemed that the Lender has waived 

the right to challenge Debtor’s selection of a mediator. 

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 (c) If the parties attempt to reach agreement on the selection of a 

mediator, but fail to do so, the Debtor shall file the MMM Local Form 

“Debtor’s Notice of Selection of Mortgage Modification Mediator” 

(Check Box 3 indicate an impasse), serve a copy of the notice on all 

required parties, and file a Certificate of Service pursuant to Local 

Rule 2002-1(F). The clerk shall then randomly select a mediator from 

the clerk’s Mediation Register pursuant to Local Rule 9019-2(B)(3), 

without the necessity of a hearing. The clerk shall serve notice of the 

mediator selection on the required parties using the MMM Local 

Form “Notice of Clerk’s Designation of Mortgage Modification 

Mediator”. Local Rule 9019-2(B) shall apply to any challenge to the 

Clerk’s Designation of Mediator. 

 13. Debtor’s attorney shall assign the mediator as the mediator in this case on 

the MMM Portal within seven days after designation. 

 14. The mediator shall: 

 (a) be governed by the standards of professional conduct set forth in the 

Florida rules for certified and court-appointed mediators and shall 

have judicial immunity in the same manner and to the same extent 

as a judge; 

 (b) subject to paragraph 15 below, be compensated in the amount of 

$600.00 for preparation for MMM, execution of required documents, 

facilitation of document and information exchange between the 

parties, and participation in no more than two one-hour MMM 

conferences; and 

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 (c) be compensated at the rate set by this Court’s Local Rule 9019-2(6) 

for any MMM conferences that extend beyond the initial two onehour conferences. 

15. The mediator’s fee shall be paid equally by the parties as follows: 

(a) The Debtor shall pay a non-refundable fee in the amount of 

$300.00 directly to the mediator within seven days designation 

of the mediator; OR

 The Court finds that the Debtor qualifies for a mediator pro 

bono. The mediator shall notify the Court and the Debtor 

immediately by motion if the mediator is not willing to serve pro 

bono and state in the motion to be excused from pro bono

mediation, the reasons why the mediator seeks to be excused. 

(b) The Lender shall pay a non-refundable fee in the amount of $300.00 

directly to the mediator within seven days after designation of the 

mediator. 

(c) The mediator’s fee for MMM conferences that extend beyond two, 

one-hour conferences, shall be paid equally by the parties (unless 

the Debtor is receiving pro bono mediation, in which case the Lender 

shall pay its half) and is due and payable at the beginning of each 

successive MMM conference in accordance with the program 

procedures. 

16. The mediator shall log in to the MMM Portal within seven days after 

designation and use the MMM Portal to facilitate any additional exchange 

of information or documentation between Debtor and Lender in an effort to 

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perfect the documents needed for Lender to complete its analysis of 

Debtor’s mortgage modification options. 

17. If the mediator either fails to timely register or log in to the MMM Portal to 

begin to facilitate the MMM process, any party to the mediation may file a 

motion requesting that the mediator be removed from this case and, if 

applicable, be removed from the Clerk’s Mediation Register. 

18. MEDIATION CONFERENCE: 

 (a) The mediator shall schedule the initial MMM conference no later than 

seven days after determining that the Lender has received and 

reviewed all requested information. In the event the mediator cannot 

determine that the Lender has received all the requested information, 

the mediator shall schedule the initial MMM conference within 90 

days of this Order. The initial MMM conference shall not exceed one 

hour. The mediator shall report the scheduling of all MMM 

conferences on the MMM Portal. 

 (b) The Lender and Lender’s representative may participate in the MMM 

conference by telephone. 

 (c) The Debtor and any co-obligors/co-borrowers or other third party 

may participate in the MMM conference by telephone provided they 

are physically present with Debtor’s attorney and present 

identification to Debtor’s attorney counsel during all MMM 

conferences. 

 (d) Debtor shall provide a foreign language interpreter, if necessary, at 

the Debtor’s own expense. 

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 (e) All parties attending the MMM conference must be ready, willing and 

able to sign a binding settlement agreement at the MMM conference 

and have the ability to scan, send and receive documents by 

facsimile, email or other electronic means at the time of the MMM 

conference. 

19. In the event the parties are unable to reach an agreement and require an 

additional MMM conference, the mediator shall schedule a final MMM 

conference no later than 30 days thereafter. The final MMM conference 

shall not exceed one hour. 

20. In the event the parties reach a final resolution or, if no agreement has been 

reached, the mediator shall report the results of the MMM on the MMM 

Portal not later than seven days after the conclusion of the final MMM 

conference. The mediator shall also complete and file with the Court, either 

conventionally or via CM/ECF, the MMM Local Form “Final Report of 

Mortgage Modification Mediator”, within two business days following entry 

of the final report data on the MMM Portal. 

21. If applicable, Debtor’s attorney shall file the MMM Local Form “Ex Parte 

Motion to Approve Mortgage Modification Mediation Agreement with 

Lender”, no later than 14 days following the filing of the Final Report and 

upload the MMM Local Form “Order Granting Motion to Approve Mortgage 

Modification Mediation Agreement with Lender” to the Court’s E-Orders 

program. The parties shall also seek any necessary Court approval and 

formalize any required legal documents in a timely fashion thereafter. 

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22. The automatic stay is modified to the extent necessary to facilitate MMM 

pursuant to this Order. 

 23. [For chapter 7 debtors] Notwithstanding that the Debtor may be eligible for 

entry of a discharge before the MMM process is completed, the Court 

shall delay issuance of the discharge until either an agreement is reached 

or the parties reach impasse as reflected in the Local Form "Final Report 

of Mortgage Modification Mediator".

24. Any of the deadlines imposed by this Order may be extended by order of 

the Court. 

25. If any parties or counsel fail to comply with the terms of this Order, the Court 

will consider a motion to vacate the Order and may also impose sanctions. 

26. The Debtor’s attorney shall serve a copy of this Order on all parties to the 

mediation, immediately upon receipt. Service shall be by regular U.S. Mail, 

electronic service, or email, if the party’s email address is known. 

### 

Submitted by and copy to: 

Timothy S. Kingcade, Esq. 

1370 Coral Way 

Miami, FL 33145 

(305) 285-9100 

scanner@miamibankruptcy.com 

The party submitting the order shall serve a copy of the signed order on all required 

parties and file with the court a certificate of service conforming with Local Rule 

2002-1(F). 

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