FDCPA

Disabled Vet: Debt Collector Said ‘You Should Have Died’

By |October 17th, 2012|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Michael Collier, a disabled Army veteran, and his wife, Kim, recently sued Gurstel Chargo, P.A., a Minnesota-based law firm and debt collector, in Arizona for violations of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) as well as for other claims based on the law firm’s attempt to collect a debt. The Colliers claim that the law firm is illegally holding their money and one of its legal assistant’s told Michael that he should have died among many other things. In their lawsuit, the Collier’s are claiming damages under the FDCPA, punitive damages along with other items. […]

The CFPB’s First Fourteen Months

By |September 14th, 2012|

By: Jeffrey B. Lapin

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), has now been in existence for fourteen (14) months. It was created as part of the 2010 Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. So far, the CFPB has been praised by consumer advocates and criticized by businesses. […]

Website Update: Consumer Financial Definitions Added

By |July 19th, 2012|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Lapin Law Offices has updated its website (lapinlawoffices.com) to include definitions of some commonly used consumer protection and other financial words and phrases. It includes words and phrases involving the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA), the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). […]

Protect Yourself Against Phantom Debt Collectors

By |March 19th, 2012|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Lapin Law Offices urges consumers to protect themselves against phantom debt collectors. A phantom debt collector is a “debt collector” who attempts to collect on a debt that never existed or that you do not legally owe. They may also be known as “fake debt collectors” or “false debt collectors.. As we recently posted, the FTC filed a lawsuit against phantom debt collectors who allegedly collected over $5 million dollars from U.S. consumers. In that case, the alleged phantom debt collectors obtained information about people when they applied for online payday loans. The people who paid these phantom debt collectors did do based on threats of lawsuits, going to jail or the loss of their job. […]

Proposed FDCPA Amendment Would Allow Messages By Collectors

By |March 6th, 2012|

Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.) recently introduced H.R. 4101 (112th Congress, Second Session) entitled the “Fair Debt Collection Practices Clarification Act of 2012”, to the House Committee on Financial Services. The proposed Act would alter the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and permit debt collectors to leave voicemails and messages on answering machines, which is currently permitted only if the debt collectors provides certain information, which itself can cause a FDCPA violation. The proposed Act would require the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to set forth regulations regarding these messages. In addition, H.R. 4101 would limit the ability of a debt collector’s use of arbitration to settle a dispute. […]

CFPB Proposes Rule to Define “Larger Participants” It Will Monitor

By |February 21st, 2012|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

On February 16, 2012, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced a proposed rule to identify the debt collectors and consumer reporting agencies will fall within its nonbank supervision program. Before it can began to monitor these entitieis, it has to define who is a “larger participant” within these areas. Currently, debt collectors and credit reporting agencies are not subject to direct federal supervision; the government only gets involved after a violation occurs. […]

The Economy is Causing Big Business for Debt Collectors

By |September 26th, 2011|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

At a meeting of debt collectors last week in Atlantic City, it was noted that the current state of the economy has created even more business for debt collectors. In a article published today in the Lincoln Journal Star (Debt collectors: Business great but hard as ever) debt collectors at the meeting state that aggressive tactics, such as threats and repeated calls “just don’t work.” In addition, they allege that unpaid debt is never truly written off; it just gets passed on to new customers. […]

Lapin Law Offices Newest Television Advertisement: Abusive Debt Collectors

By |August 26th, 2011|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Lapin Law Offices newest television advertisement is now available on our website, Facebook and YouTube. The advertisement is for our newest areas of practice: claims against abusive debt collectors (FDCPA) and telephone/ fax abuses (TCPA).
ABOUT LAPIN LAW OFFICES
Lapin Law Offices represents clients that have been abused, harassed, threatened, and lied to by debt […]

More About Lapin Law Offices’ New Areas of Practice

By |August 24th, 2011|

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Lapin Law Offices has expanded its practice areas to include representing clients whose rights have been violated under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) as well any applicable Nebraska state law. These cases are a natural extension of what we already do: represent injured people. Injuries do not necessarily have to be physical; people can suffer financial, emotional or psychological injuries or damages. […]

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