| Case Digest |
Respondent pled guilty to the crime of making false statements to a financial institution in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1014. On approximately fifteen occasions, Respondent, as a settlement agent, deceived lenders by signing a HUD-1 Settlement Statement that falsely stated that she had received from the buyers monies for down payments at settlement. Respondent knew that the sellers were the source of the down payments and that the lenders would not have approved the loans under these circumstances.
In mitigation, Respondent had no record of discipline, cooperated in the criminal investigation and in the disciplinary matter, and expressed remorse for her misconduct.
A majority of the Disciplinary Board recommended a suspension of two years. Five members dissented and recommended a suspension of thirty-months, so that Respondent’s suspension would roughly coincide with her term of probation. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, without opinion, imposed a suspension of thirty-months
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