A financial services company that overcharged Minnesotans for equity transactions over a period of five years is being compelled by the Minnesota Department of Commerce to pay restitution of more than $242,000 to thousands of customers.

A Manhattan-based real estate attorney was charged on May 28 for stealing approximately $700,000 from three of her clients after being retained as a seller’s attorney in three separate real estate closings last year.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has reached a settlement with Florida-based real estate company MV Realty, its CEO and its chief operating officer, which terminates the company’s liens, compels it to refund fees and voids existing agreements with homeowners. MV Realty must also pay more than $1.3 million in restitution and nearly $1.2 million in civil penalties.

The National Flood Insurance Program may see its scope and role in federal disaster response and prevention efforts reduced under a new set of recommendations from Federal Emergency Management Agency leadership.

After winning their respective primaries for the office of Texas attorney general (AG), Republican Mayes Middleton and Democrat Nathan Johnson are set to face off in the November general election while AG Ken Paxton secured the Republican nomination for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat.

A new bill recently signed into law in Maryland will commence efforts by the state to evaluate the potential applications of blockchain technology in real estate documentation, including land titles and lease agreements.

A bill introduced in Tennessee previously referred to as the “Tennessee Real Estate Consumer Fraud Protection Act,” which proposed to implement new safeguards on real estate transactions taking place in the state, has been amended and signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee.

A bank founder from Tampa, Fla., was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his involvement in a bribery and fraud scheme that bankrupted various insurance companies, leaving many policyholders with unpaid claims.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a lawsuit to stop the wrongful foreclosure of a home involved in an equity stripping scheme. The defendants in the suit are accused of orchestrating a fake foreclosure that would prevent the attorney general from returning a disputed property to its rightful owner.