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Fair Debt Collection Representation
Know your rights! Stop creditors from harassing you and your family.
Prime Legal Network and our network attorneys provide legal representation and advice to consumers dealing with unscrupulous debt collection agencies. We understand during hard economic times some of the most responsible individuals and/home/wq4ln37pt1n2/public_htmlor families are dealing with layoffs, inflated mortgage payment, high credit card interest rates and as a result become behind on payments due. And many other people, while struggling to get finances in order, are now dealing with scavenger debt collectors who want their money NOW!
Take a deep breath because you have rights too! If a bill collector calls you about unpaid debt and demands payment, make sure you protect your rights. Third-party debt collections agencies, as well as, their debt collection attorney are governed by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and this act protects you, the consumer.
In many cases, debt collectors do not follow the laws put in place to protect consumer rights against illegal debt collection tactics. Illegal debt collection tactics include but are not limited to misrepresentation of agency (saying they are the original creditor when in fact they are not), failure to provide documentation and paperwork to validate you own the debt when asked, and abusive and harassing phone calls demanding payment. When a third party collections agency fails to abide by these laws, they may be liable to you for damages caused by their illegal tactics.
If you believe you are being harassed by a debt collector or feel they have broken the laws under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act in anyway, contact us now at 888-702-0001.
We are here to protect your rights from scavenger debt collectors and bring the illegal collection industry tactics to justice.
Lawsuit Defense
Understand the fundamentals of lawsuit defense and the options available.
Have you been served or threatened to be served with a lawsuit or arbitration proceedings in connection with a credit card, medical, cell phone or other consumer debt?
Creditors have the burden of proof. That means that their records must justify the award they seek. If their records are insufficient and they cannot prove some or all of the allegations that they make, you may successfully defend against their lawsuits. Creditor lawsuits are seldom challenged and consumers are saddled with default judgments. Judgments severely affect one's credit rating, which causes consumers to pay higher interest rates on their loans and higher insurance premiums on their homes and vehicles. Employers read credit reports before hiring and judgments can severely impact one's chances of being hired.
Our network attorneys represent consumers who are forced into these kinds of proceedings, including arbitrations with the National Arbitration Forum (NAF). We can help you avoid the detrimental effects of these type of actions. Contact us to learn more.
Bankruptcy
Understanding the ins and outs of bankruptcy, our network Attorneys will help you determine if bankruptcy is right for you.
Filing Bankruptcy is a difficult decision to make. In 2008 over 1 million Americans filed personal bankruptcy in order to improve their financial situation. Bankruptcy can help you delay or even prevent foreclosure of your home, stop debt collector harassment and get a fresh financial start.
Many people turn to a bankruptcy attorney for help. Bankruptcy lawyers can help explain bankruptcy law and ensure that the bankruptcy process goes as smoothly as possible. Our attorney network can help you understand the complete details of bankruptcy; however a few general concepts follow:
Chapter 7
If you file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, all your debts will be discharged (wiped out) by court order, with the exception of some taxes, some student loans, and alimony or child support as well as some other exceptions to discharge. If you want to keep your home or car, you will have to continue to make payments on your home mortgage and your car loan. Typically, people who file for bankruptcy will wipe out all of their unsecured debts but continue to make payments on their secured debts. This means that credit card debts, bank loans, utility bills, business debts, medical bills, even bad checks are discharged in a Chapter 7 and you get to keep your home and your car.
Normally, when you file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, you will not lose any property or personal possessions. Bankruptcy laws, both State and Federal, allow you to claim certain property exempt from creditors and debt collectors.
Chapter 13
A Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is completely different from a Chapter 7. Instead of having your debts immediately discharged, you commit to a repayment plan that may be between three to five years, depending on your income level. Your debts may be paid in full or you may pay only pennies on the dollar. At the end of your payment plan, the remaining balances on your debts are discharged, except your mortgage, student loans, child support, and some other exceptions. This means that you may be able discharge the remaining balance on your credit cards and other unsecured debts, even if you have only paid a small fraction of the balance owed. Typically, most Chapter 13 cases are partial payment cases. In a Chapter 13, you may be able to keep all of your property and personal possessions, regardless of whether you qualify for any exemptions.
A Chapter 13 Bankruptcy may work for you if:
- You are behind on house or car payments, and you do not want to lose your home or car, but you need time to catch up on payments;
- You have valuable property, and you would lose that property if you filed a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy;
- You have filed a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy within the last 8 years;
- You have tax obligations, child support, student loans, or other non-dischargeable debt in a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy; or
- You have a cosigner on a personal debt that is not a part of the bankruptcy.
How does the Bankruptcy process work?
We will put you in touch with one of our network attorneys, and they will ask you to complete a bankruptcy intake form. This form will contain detailed information regarding your assets, expenses, income and debts. This will allow the attorney to analyze your case to determine which chapter of bankruptcy is right for you. Then, you will be required to take an approved credit counseling course, which will cost you about $30. The United States Trustee's Office maintains a list of approved credit counseling courses. Once you have completed the credit counseling course, you must print off the certificate of completion. The certificate is good for 180 days from the date of completion. Then you will need to get five to seven months worth of bank statements from all bank or investment accounts that are currently open or have been open during the last seven months. This includes all accounts where your name is listed as a joint account holder or custodian. If you are self-employed you will need the last 12 months of bank statements.
You also need seven months of pay stubs from any place where you have worked at during the last seven months and any other income related documents like unemployment checks or Social Security checks. Additionally, you must get your last two years of income tax returns. You must also provide a list of all of your personal assets. This includes, but is not limited to, retirement accounts, boats, household goods and automobiles.
Then, if you decide to file the case, our network attorneys will prepare your bankruptcy petition for filing with the United States Bankruptcy Court. A bankruptcy petition will include a list of your monthly income, expenses, your property and possessions, and names and addresses of your creditors.
After the bankruptcy petition is prepared, you must review the petition, sign it, and file the bankruptcy petition with the Bankruptcy Court. Once the bankruptcy petition is filed, that same day, the court will issue an automatic stay which prevents creditors and abusive and harassing debt collectors from contacting you or trying to collect debts under any circumstances.
About four to five weeks after the case is filed, there will be a meeting of the creditors at the U.S. Courthouse. This is a mandatory meeting that you and your attorney must attend. You must bring your driver's license and Social Security card. At the meeting, the bankruptcy trustee will ask you to verify that all the information in the court papers is correct. Within a few days after this meeting, you must complete a financial management course and return the certificate of completion to our office. Once our office receives the certificate of completion, we will file the certificate with the court.
In a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy the court will usually issue a discharge after about ninety days. If you have filed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy the court normally confirms the plan within a few weeks. After the plan is confirmed, you must make monthly payments to the trustee for the three to five years, depending upon the length of your Chapter 13 Bankruptcy plan. At the end of the repayment plan, the court grants a discharge of your debts.
Part of managing debt effectively includes knowing exactly what debt is and what the different types of debt are. This knowledge can help you to effectively defend against and negotiate with creditors, explore options for getting out of possible trouble, and refinance or consolidate various debt when the time comes.
- Understanding Debt