Just because someone is a lawyer doesn't mean he or she is knowledgeable in the area of consumer law. If you are going after a credit bureau, original creditor… If you are going after a credit bureau, original creditor, or collection agency, you need to talk…
If someone sells you stock by misrepresenting its value, that is investment fraud. A lawyer who practices consumer protection can help advocate for your rights in civil lawsuits or disputes to ensure that businesses are adhering to regulations. If you think you’ve been the target of fraud—or if you’ve been accused of committing fraud—a consumer protection lawyer can help you.
Consumer protection laws are designed to ensure consumers are treated fairly by businesses and protected against fraud and scams. If someone uses your credit card without your knowledge or consent, that is credit card fraud. If someone sells you stock by misrepresenting its value, that is investment fraud.
If you believe you have been the target of fraud or if you have been accused of fraud, a fraud attorney can clear your name and return you to good standing. A lawyer who has experience with fraud can help you through a wide range of cases, from unintentionally filing a false tax return to someone stealing your credit card.
A litigation attorney with experience in business law and transnational law. There may not be an exact pigeon whole for this type of attorney for this specific type of case.
I wholeheartedly second the comments of my colleague Mark Tischhauser.#N#First, if you are suing a bank, you do not want a criminal attorney and you probably do not want a foreclosure attorney. Instead, you want a commercial litigation attorney who has experience litigating against banks.
If you've been sued by a creditor for the collection of a debt, you may decide to hire an attorney to represent you in the lawsuit. If you want help defending against a collection lawsuit, below are some things to think about, including how to find a good lawyer to represent you, how much you'll pay in lawyer's fees, what to expect when you first meet with an attorney, and making sure you sign a retainer agreement.
If you decide to hire the attorney to defend the collection suit, be sure that you sign a retainer agreement. The retainer agreement is a contract that governs your employment relationship with the attorney and should spell out at a minimum the details of the fee arrangement you negotiated.
How an attorney charges for services can have a big effect on the cost. Most attorneys will charge for their services in one of three ways: 1 A flat fee, no matter how much time it takes or how the suit is resolved. 2 By the hour, often with a cap to ensure that you do not pay the attorney more than the lawsuit is worth 3 By the result. Usually this fee is based on how much the attorney saves you in the long run. For instance, an attorney may agree to a fee of one third of the difference between the amount of the debt and the settlement amount. If you are sued for $10,000, and settle for $4,000, the attorney will get one third of the difference, or $2,000.
To find out if your state has any restrictions on debt collection practices during this national emergency, check your state's official website and look for orders related to the pandemic. The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) website is also a good source of information on consumer matters, including debt collection limitations during the coronavirus outbreak.
By the hour, often with a cap to ensure that you do not pay the attorney more than the lawsuit is worth
Once you've been served with a collection suit, you must act quickly. Depending on the rules for court cases in your state , you might have as few as five days to respond. The summons attached to the complaint will tell you the deadline for your response. If you don't respond, the court could enter a judgment against you. (Learn more about receiving and responding to a collection lawsuit .)
The attorney should also discuss the fee with you, how the attorney charges, what amount will be charged, how you'll be billed, and when the attorney will expect payment. The attorney should explain any additional costs, like court fees and expenses you'll be responsible for, like copy costs, postage, and other charges.
Some actions of a creditor that substantiate a law suit are: failure to validate a debt; calls you at work or very late at night; erroneous reporting of your credit history; and, refusing to note partial payments on your credit. Most of the time the creditors don’t bother showing up, and why would they?
Do not ever file for the state maximum for loss, always file it for a smaller amount. To file a claim, just go to the county courthouse and get the appropriate forms. Make sure to follow all the legal steps for filing this claim, including notifying the other party. Every state has different forms but they are all pretty self explanatory. Generally, there will be a section where you will insert your claim, make sure to ALWAYS include: REMOVAL OF DEROGATORY DEBT from all three credit bureaus; TransUnion, Experian and Equifax along with a dollar amount. This is super important. Without this you don’t really gain anything.
If they don’t show up you automatically win and receive a judgment of removal you can send to the (3) credit bureaus. By law the credit bureaus will now have to remove the debt from your credit report, whether it’s valid or not. Also, see the HIPPA section below for medical debt. Get proof (most of the time you don’t need it) ...
Now if they don’t show up, you automatically win and the courts will give you your judgment (what you asked for). HIPPA laws are very strict. If you validated your debt and the collection agency provided a list of your debt from the hospital or doctor they violated your HIPPA rights.
Winning a HIPPA case is super easy and most of the time they won’t show because they know they broke the law. Just remember, suing a collection company or creditor is easy and you don’t need an expensive attorney. The cost to benefit is usually exponential.
Once your claim is submitted you may have to notify the creditor or collection company. This is the easy part. Don’t bother tracking them down too much, a lot of collection companies change addresses often. And it’s in your advantage if they never receive it.
Just remember, suing a collection company or creditor is easy and you don’t need an expensive attorney. The cost to benefit is usually exponential. If you have a debt that’s hurting your score by 50 points or more and they keep validating this is honestly your last hope. I’ve seen cases over $10,000 that the creditor nor collection agency never showed and the debt was relieved, it can be that easy. Sure it’s more work for you but to have an extra 50 points on your credit or better interest rate on your car or home it’s worth it. Never give up fighting!
You are facing a collection lawyer representing the creditor — a lawyer who does this all day long. So it is natural to at least consider hiring an attorney to represent you.
The upside is if you hire a lawyer who you feel comfortable with and who you have confidence in his or her abilities, this can bring you great peace of mind. And presumably you are hiring someone who you think will give you a better chance of success than handling the lawsuit in court on your own.
File bankruptcy (very rarely the best choice) Fight the lawsuit on your own (don’t hire a lawyer) Settle the lawsuit on your own (either in a lump sum payment or in monthly payments) Hire a lawyer to fight the lawsuit for you. Hire a lawyer to settle the lawsuit for you.
If sued in small claims or district court — it is 14 days. If sued in circuit court, it is 30 days. Our purpose here is to help you gain knowledge AND take action. Without action, knowledge is worthless.
Instead of fighting it, you can settle the lawsuit. Either in a lump sum (one time payment) or paying on a monthly basis. The advantage is there is no attorney fee and when you are done paying, the case should be over. Again this is not a perfect solution but for many folks this can be an excellent choice.
The creditor/plaintiff will get a default judgment against you.
Usually when we do this, our fee to settle is contingent on us actually settling the case so you only spend money if we can settle it.
The party that can be held liable in a credit dispute situation depends on the circumstances and the facts of each particular situation. The Federal Credit Billing Act (FCBA) provides guidelines for what the creditor is required to do and the rights of the consumer when there is a dispute on a credit card bill.
Credit disputes can arise if there is any disagreement between the lender and the borrower. This can happen for a number of reasons. For instance, a dispute might arise if the borrower is unable or unwilling to keep up with the loan payments.
Credit disputes can lead to lawsuits between the lender and borrower. Remedies for the lender may include a lien being placed on the borrower’s property. The property may then be transferred to the lender, or sold with the profits going towards missed payments.
Overspending, also referred to as maxing out a credit card, which results in debt;
For example, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a federal law which protects consumers from credit reporting agencies.
If a consumer does not agree with the creditor’s findings, they have 10 days from the receipt of the written explanation to write to the creditor and inform them the consumer is not going to pay. If the consumer chooses not to pay, the creditor has the right to begin collection proceedings.
This Act is not automatic and requires the consumer to write their creditor at the address for billing inquiries within 60 days of receiving the first bill that contains the errors. The consumer must describe the error sufficiently so that the creditor will be informed and have a fair chance to resolve the issue.