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Agoura Hills Attorney Accusing Attorney General Of Fraud

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — An Agoura Hills attorney Tuesday accused the state Attorney General of acting as "the pawn of America's most powerful banks" when she sued him as part of a crackdown on alleged mortgage fraud.

Attorney General Kamala Harris "grossly violated" attorney Mitchell J. Stein's civil rights by seizing his legal files and denying him the right legal counsel, Stein said in his lawsuit which was filed inLos Angelesfederal court.

The lawsuit also says the AG acted "under the cover of secrecy without any public airing of the facts, without proper court approval, and without allowing either plaintiffs or their counsel or any court a chance to respond."

Harris spokesman Shum Preston described Stein's suit as "frivolous."

Last month, Harris sued three law firms, four lawyers, including Stein, and 14 other companies and individuals who allegedly preyed on borrowers desperation to obtain mortgage relief.

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