Office
3111 Stirling Road
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33312

2901 S.W. 149th Ave., Suite 140
Miramar, FL 33027
Tel: 954-985-4102
Fax: 954-987-5940

Practice Group
	Litigation
	Community Association Litigation
Areas of Emphasis
	Collection
	Foreclosures
	Insurance Defense

Lourdes E. Ferrer
lferrer@becker-poliakoff.com

Professional Experience
Ms. Ferrer is the Managing Attorney for the firm’s high volume assessment collection and foreclosure office serving the entire Southeast Florida area from Monroe County up to and including the Palm Beach and Treasure Coast areas.  She serves primarily in the litigation and community association practice groups.  She has extensive trial experience in many areas of the law, including labor and employment law litigation, insurance defense with an emphasis on Chapter 440 claims and contract disputes.   Prior to joining Becker & Poliakoff, Ms. Ferrer represented numerous Fortune 500 companies throughout the entire State of Florida, securing multiple favorable defense rulings involving employer liability, causation, reservation of rights and insurance fraud issues.

Ms. Ferrer primarily focuses in representing condominium, cooperatives and homeowner associations in the area of collections, foreclosures, including breach of contract, replevin and eviction proceedings.  She manages over 50 of the firm’s professional staff and attorneys, exclusively dedicated to the aggressive representation and handling of our client’s collections and foreclosure matters.  Ms. Ferrer has been instrumental in the development and expansion of its collection department, opening an additional office for the firm, located in Miramar, Florida.  This new collections and foreclosure center represents the firm’s commitment to its’ clients,  by centralizing the collection and foreclosure process, allowing the lawyers and professional staff to work together on common issues typically faced by many associations in the heavily litigious South Florida legal market.

In an effort to combat today’s complex and protracted foreclosure practice,  Ms. Ferrer has lead the group of attorneys by developing more aggressive strategies to combat the delays plaguing the current mortgage foreclosure industry.    Additionally, Ms. Ferrer provides in depth analysis to the firm’s clients, providing both legal and business strategies, custom tailored to the individual particulars of a given case, resulting in less delays and aggressive collection of owed assessments.

Notable Client Accomplishments
Ms. Ferrer successfully defended her clients in White v. Bass Pro Outdoor World and Travelers Insurance Company, where the First District Court of Appeal affirmed the lower court’s defense judgment denying any and all benefits otherwise afforded under the Florida Workers’ Compensation Chapter.  In reaching this decision, the appellate court’s Chief Judge held that the lower court’s judge was not required to provide a reason for rejecting the opinion of the plaintiff’s authorized treating physician, other than to state that the provider’s opinion was not sufficiently persuasive.  This decision provided the defense bar with further clarification and leverage when defending on causation issues, since the case outlines the importance of a claimant’s credibility, notwithstanding the specific language found in Florida Statute Section 440.09 regarding the requirement that major contributing cause must be demonstrated by medical evidence only.

Activities & Memberships
Ms. Ferrer previously served for many years on the Board of Trustees for the “Friends of 440 Scholarship Fund”, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization whose membership is comprised of attorneys, doctors, insurance adjusters, Judges of Compensation Claims, claims administrators, rehabilitation providers and others whose primary employment is connected within Florida’s Workers’ Compensation system in an effort to raise scholarship funds to aid students who lack the economic ability to continue their education beyond high school or to further their college education. 

Ms. Ferrer has also served as a frequent lecturer on numerous panels involving insurance defense claims handling.  She has also been a guest speaker for the Florida Latin Builders Association, and frequently provides lectures to community associations on various topics.  Ms. Ferrer is well versed in all aspects of lending litigation including  but not limited to, Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Truth in Lending Act (TILA), Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) and the Home Ownership Equity Protection Act (HOEPA).

Bar Admissions
State of Florida, 2001

Court Admissions
Federal District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Education
J.D., St. Thomas University School of Law; Law Review and Moot Court Board.
B.S., Florida International University