A law firm active in Henderson and Las Vegas is suing the state over rules requiring licensing of non-attorney employees working on mortgage loan modifications. Cogburn Law Offices LLC filed suit last week in Clark County District Court against the Department of Business and Industry, Division of Mortgage Lending. Court records indicate the law firm won a temporary restraining order against the division on Friday. District Judge Valorie Vega also set a Friday hearing on Cogburn's request for a preliminary injunction, which would extend the restraining order while the issue is litigated. The lawsuit was filed by attorney Terry Coffing of the firm Marquis & Aurbach. Coffing said Monday that Cogburn Law Offices has not received any notification of enforcement action against it by the Mortgage Lending Division and that the restraining order should preserve the status quo until Friday's hearing. Coffing said the State Bar of Nevada, which regulates the legal industry, has expressed concern over the rules and he hopes the bar intervenes in the case on Cogburn's side. He said Jamie Cogburn, co-founder of the law firm, supports regulation of the loan modification industry to ensure consumers are not harmed by scam artists. But the division's rules are too broad, including provisions attempting to regulate the practice of law, Coffing said.
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