Florida lawyer David Stern ends foreclosure law practice

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A prominent Florida lawyer accused of mishandling many foreclosure cases in that state is shutting down his foreclosure law practice at the end of the month, a regulatory filing shows.

The decision by the lawyer, David Stern, was announced by DJSP Enterprises Inc, a company he once ran and which calls itself the main customer of the Law Offices of David J. Stern PA.

DJSP said it expects to receive no further referrals from Stern. The company, whose businesses have included processing, servicing and title operations, has already laid off much of its workforce.

A lawyer for Stern did not immediately respond to a request for a comment on Monday.

DJSP shares traded down 7 cents, or 29.2 percent, at 17 cents in morning trading on the Nasdaq, after falling as low as 15.5 cents. They traded as high as $13.65 last April.

Stern's firm is among several being investigated by the office of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi over whether documents they submitted in foreclosure cases were defective.

Major mortgage companies, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, stopped doing business with Stern.

Florida media last month said Stern was trying to sell some luxury assets, including homes and a yacht, worth millions of dollars. He resigned as chief executive of Plantation, Florida-based DJSP in November.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York, editing by Maureen Bavdek and John Wallace)