In early 2008, Cheryl Ann Montero, a California mortgage broker, held a series of free seminars in the clubhouse of the Lone Tree Golf Course in Contra Costa County, a suburban area near San Francisco. The attendees, homeowners facing foreclosure, were desperate for a rescue from their woes. Using a PowerPoint presentation, Montero delivered one. She said her firm, Freedom Financial Solutions, could pressure lenders to stop foreclosures by challenging the legality of loan agreements, according to court records.