By AP/KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Tens of thousands of Missouri homeowners could benefit from a series of lawsuits.
At issue is the legality of document preparation fees. The suits allege lending institutions cannot charge borrowers a legal fee for preparing mortgage documents if they don't use a lawyer.
A firm in Clayton won $1.2 million judgment last week against Midwest Bankcentre, which plans to appeal. An attorney for Midwest says Missouri's law on practicing law does not apply in this case.
Other institutions, though, also face similar lawsuits.