Questioner: Lynn
Category: Collections Law
Subject: Medical Bills
Question: I have insurance, but even with 90% of everything covered, ended up owing $1,000.
The hospital is a non-profit, but would not work with me unless I could pay the entire balance off in 6 months or less. (I could not).
So, the bills were turned over to collections. (an Agency in Greeley, CO, who, ironically, has the majority of its clients as non-profit, medical organizations!).
1) Is it true that I, personally, had to agree or sign off on their turning this over to collections, more specifically, to this agency in particular?
2) Is it true the hospital is now likely collecting twice; once in its profit and loss statement, once selling this to Professional Finance?
3) I am really struggling to keep up with the $50 a month they demand; if I am making every effort, being sure to pay something each month, keeping in contact with them,can they still take me to court and garnish my wages?
I did not get sick intentionally. The economy sucks, there have been lay offs at my company, I struggle to keep utilities on, food on the table, a roof over my head. How do these people live with themselves? Must you sell your soul to Satan, to work in collections? Especially for medical bills?
Answer:
click here to enlarge
1) Is it true that I, personally, had to agree or sign off on their turning this over to collections, more specifically, to this agency in particular?
Probably not.
2) Is it true the hospital is now likely collecting twice; once in its profit and loss statement, once selling this to Professional Finance?
I have no knowledge of that subject. Maybe they did and maybe they didn't. Depends on their internal bookkeeping procedures.
3) I am really struggling to keep up with the $50 a month they demand; if I am making every effort, being sure to pay something each month, keeping in contact with them,can they still take me to court and garnish my wages?
Yes, they can and you should believe that they will do that sooner or later and start preparing for it now. Above all, you should never pay another dime to the hospital nor the debt collector and most especially not to the debt collector. Start learning all about FDCPA, FCRA and how to catch debt collectors breaking the law and how to take them to court for their violations. If you do that you can easily end up making them forget about ever collecting a dime and make them pay you instead. My students do it all the time.
I did not get sick intentionally. The economy sucks, there have been lay offs at my company, I struggle to keep utilities on, food on the table, a roof over my head. How do these people live with themselves? Must you sell your soul to Satan, to work in collections? Especially for medical bills?
Sounds logical to me. How do these people live with themselves? Easy! The same way all thugs, corrupt politicians, and other scam artists live with themselves. They convince themselves that what they do is right or at least OK and they can make good money fast and easy. They somehow kid themselves into believing that they won't get caught.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
Licensing requirements
Questioner: Katia
Subject: Law Firm Licensing Requirements
Question:
I have a case with a debt collection law firm. The law firm first acted as a collection agency by sending out a dunning letter and then proceeded to file suit after validating. I keep reading according to my state's laws and Federal Law that this firm is acting as a collection agency within the law firm and according to my state's law, the firm must be licensed as a collection agency. My lawyer, however, says I should settle for the full claim (including all fees). If this firm is supposed to be licensed as a collection agency, shouldn't they be unable to collect on this account since they are not licensed?
Answer:
That is a really dumb lawyer you have there. Be that as it may, you need to check with your state consumer protection division but in most states lawyers are specifically excluded from such license requirements. Of course, there is a catch to that because if the law firm is not licensed to practice law in your state then I tend to think they would have to be licensed in your state. More importantly, have they complied with all aspects of FDCPA? Here is a starter list of 15 things that debt collectors cannot do.
__________________________________________________________________
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, FDCPA, dictates how debt collectors can act when collecting a debt from you. These are things a debt collector can't do. If you need to reference the law, citations have been provided.
1. Ask you to pay more than you owe
The collector cannot misrepresent the amount you owe. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(2)(a)
2. Ask you to pay interest, fees, or expenses that are not allowed by law. The collector can't add on any extra fees that your original credit or loan agreement doesn't allow. [15 USC 1692f] § 808(1)
3. Call repeatedly or continuously
The FDCPA considers repeat calls as harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(5)
|4. Use obscene, profane, or abusive language
Using this kind of language is considered harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(2)
5. Call before 8:00 am or after 9:00 pm
Calls during these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)
6. Call at times the collector knew or should know are inconvenient
Calls at these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)
7. Use or threaten to use violence if you don't pay the debt
Collectors can't threaten violence against you. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(1)
8. Threaten action they cannot or will not take
Collectors can't threaten to sue or file charges against you, garnish wages, take property, cause job loss, or ruin your credit when the collector cannot or does not intend to take the action. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(5)
9. Illegally inform a third party about your alleged debt
Unless you have expressly given permision, collectors are not allowed to inform anyone about your debt except:
* your attorney
* the creditor
* the creditor's attorney
* a credit reporting agency your spouse
* your parent (if you are a minor)
[15 USC 1692c] § 805(b)
10. Repeatedly call a third party to get your location information
The collector can only contact a third party once unless it has reason to believe the information previously provided is false. [15 USC 1692b] § 804(1)
11. Contact you at work knowing your employer doesn't approve
A collector is not allowed to contact you at work if you’ve let them know your employer doesn’t approve of these calls. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(3)
12. Fail to send a written debt validation notice
Within five days of the collector's initial communication, it must send you a notice include the amount of the debt, name of the creditor, and notice of your right to dispute the debt within 30 days. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(a)
13. Ignore your written request to verify the debt and continue to collect
A collector can't continue to collect on a debt after you've made a written request to verify the debt as long as the request was made within 30 days of the collector's written notice. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)
14. Continue to collect on the debt before providing verification
After receiving your written dispute, the collector must stop collecting on the debt until you have receieved verification. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)
15. Continue collection attempts after receiving a cease communication notice
If you make a written request for the collector to cease communication, it can only contact you one more time, via mail to let you know one of the following: that further efforts to collect the debt are terminated, that certain actions may be taken by the collector, or that the collector is definitely going to take certain actions. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(c)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
That's a pretty broad list of potential violations and it is virtually impossible for a debt collector (lawyers are 3rd party debt collectors) to collect or attempt to collect a debt without running afoul of the law. When they do break the law the best bet is to take them to federal court where the fact that you owe them money has no bearing on the outcome. You can win the case that way if they broke the law which they most likely did on multiple occasions.
They might very well get a judgment in local court but they will be more than willing to drop that and pay you some good damages, expenses and maybe more to keep from going before a federal judge and jury where they have no chance of winning.
For instance, I have a situation where an elderly lady lost her case in local court then the lawyer attempted to garnish her SSI. They cannot do that according to item #8 so they have probably violated. I say probably because all they have done so far is send her a question sheet wanting to know all about her finances. That in itself is not a violation so she has to wait until they actually make some move to grab SSI money so she can see what they actually try to grab. Asking questions isn't a violation.
They didn't actually threaten to take money from her. While I realize that filing an action against her might seem like a threat to take her SSI they might only put a lien on her property and wait until she passes on. So until they actually make some palpable threat or make a move to go after her SSI money she doesn't have a solid case. At least not on that grounds but she does have a possible cause of action on another grounds. Combine multiple causes of action and then a solid case can be built.
So if you want to win then you need to think in terms of finding their violations and go after them in federal court where you can win.
You don't need a lawyer in either local or federal court and you will never see the inside of a federal courtroom.
Your lawyer says you should just pay up in full? With friends like that who needs enemies? What have you done to respond to the case? Nothing yet? I'm not a lawyer so obviously I can't give you legal advice but I sure know what I would do if I were sued for a debt. First thing I would do is file a denial as my response then I'd prepare my demand for admissions and send both of them to the plaintiff's attorney and we would go from there. You should have done that long ago instead of getting some lawyer who is only going to sell you down the river.
Subject: Law Firm Licensing Requirements
Question:
I have a case with a debt collection law firm. The law firm first acted as a collection agency by sending out a dunning letter and then proceeded to file suit after validating. I keep reading according to my state's laws and Federal Law that this firm is acting as a collection agency within the law firm and according to my state's law, the firm must be licensed as a collection agency. My lawyer, however, says I should settle for the full claim (including all fees). If this firm is supposed to be licensed as a collection agency, shouldn't they be unable to collect on this account since they are not licensed?
Answer:
That is a really dumb lawyer you have there. Be that as it may, you need to check with your state consumer protection division but in most states lawyers are specifically excluded from such license requirements. Of course, there is a catch to that because if the law firm is not licensed to practice law in your state then I tend to think they would have to be licensed in your state. More importantly, have they complied with all aspects of FDCPA? Here is a starter list of 15 things that debt collectors cannot do.
__________________________________________________________________
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, FDCPA, dictates how debt collectors can act when collecting a debt from you. These are things a debt collector can't do. If you need to reference the law, citations have been provided.
1. Ask you to pay more than you owe
The collector cannot misrepresent the amount you owe. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(2)(a)
2. Ask you to pay interest, fees, or expenses that are not allowed by law. The collector can't add on any extra fees that your original credit or loan agreement doesn't allow. [15 USC 1692f] § 808(1)
3. Call repeatedly or continuously
The FDCPA considers repeat calls as harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(5)
|4. Use obscene, profane, or abusive language
Using this kind of language is considered harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(2)
5. Call before 8:00 am or after 9:00 pm
Calls during these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)
6. Call at times the collector knew or should know are inconvenient
Calls at these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)
7. Use or threaten to use violence if you don't pay the debt
Collectors can't threaten violence against you. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(1)
8. Threaten action they cannot or will not take
Collectors can't threaten to sue or file charges against you, garnish wages, take property, cause job loss, or ruin your credit when the collector cannot or does not intend to take the action. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(5)
9. Illegally inform a third party about your alleged debt
Unless you have expressly given permision, collectors are not allowed to inform anyone about your debt except:
* your attorney
* the creditor
* the creditor's attorney
* a credit reporting agency your spouse
* your parent (if you are a minor)
[15 USC 1692c] § 805(b)
10. Repeatedly call a third party to get your location information
The collector can only contact a third party once unless it has reason to believe the information previously provided is false. [15 USC 1692b] § 804(1)
11. Contact you at work knowing your employer doesn't approve
A collector is not allowed to contact you at work if you’ve let them know your employer doesn’t approve of these calls. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(3)
12. Fail to send a written debt validation notice
Within five days of the collector's initial communication, it must send you a notice include the amount of the debt, name of the creditor, and notice of your right to dispute the debt within 30 days. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(a)
13. Ignore your written request to verify the debt and continue to collect
A collector can't continue to collect on a debt after you've made a written request to verify the debt as long as the request was made within 30 days of the collector's written notice. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)
14. Continue to collect on the debt before providing verification
After receiving your written dispute, the collector must stop collecting on the debt until you have receieved verification. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)
15. Continue collection attempts after receiving a cease communication notice
If you make a written request for the collector to cease communication, it can only contact you one more time, via mail to let you know one of the following: that further efforts to collect the debt are terminated, that certain actions may be taken by the collector, or that the collector is definitely going to take certain actions. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(c)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
That's a pretty broad list of potential violations and it is virtually impossible for a debt collector (lawyers are 3rd party debt collectors) to collect or attempt to collect a debt without running afoul of the law. When they do break the law the best bet is to take them to federal court where the fact that you owe them money has no bearing on the outcome. You can win the case that way if they broke the law which they most likely did on multiple occasions.
They might very well get a judgment in local court but they will be more than willing to drop that and pay you some good damages, expenses and maybe more to keep from going before a federal judge and jury where they have no chance of winning.
For instance, I have a situation where an elderly lady lost her case in local court then the lawyer attempted to garnish her SSI. They cannot do that according to item #8 so they have probably violated. I say probably because all they have done so far is send her a question sheet wanting to know all about her finances. That in itself is not a violation so she has to wait until they actually make some move to grab SSI money so she can see what they actually try to grab. Asking questions isn't a violation.
They didn't actually threaten to take money from her. While I realize that filing an action against her might seem like a threat to take her SSI they might only put a lien on her property and wait until she passes on. So until they actually make some palpable threat or make a move to go after her SSI money she doesn't have a solid case. At least not on that grounds but she does have a possible cause of action on another grounds. Combine multiple causes of action and then a solid case can be built.
So if you want to win then you need to think in terms of finding their violations and go after them in federal court where you can win.
You don't need a lawyer in either local or federal court and you will never see the inside of a federal courtroom.
Your lawyer says you should just pay up in full? With friends like that who needs enemies? What have you done to respond to the case? Nothing yet? I'm not a lawyer so obviously I can't give you legal advice but I sure know what I would do if I were sued for a debt. First thing I would do is file a denial as my response then I'd prepare my demand for admissions and send both of them to the plaintiff's attorney and we would go from there. You should have done that long ago instead of getting some lawyer who is only going to sell you down the river.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
The Lawyer's tool box
 Tips & Tactics |
The Lawyer's Little Red Toolbox ... Every lawyer has a little red toolbox of tricks and traps intended to throw you off track and put you at a disadvantage. Today's "Tips & Tactics" gives you a glimpse into that toolbox. To learn more, of course, get our complete Jurisdictionary 24-hour step-by-step self-help course. Issues. Lawyers typically try to "muddy the waters" by trying to get you to argue issues that have absolutely nothing to do with the outcome of the case. If you aren't careful, they will drag you off into a never-never land of expensive and time-consuming efforts to prove or disprove facts that are "outside the pleadings", facts that were not raised by the pleadings and, therefore, do nothing but drain your energy and gobble up your time so the other side can make it look like you are struggling to prove your case. Don't put up with it. Make your record. "Objection, your Honor. Counsel is raising issues beyond the scope of the pleadings!" (More about this in our 24-hour self-help course.) Sidebar. Lawyers will try to whisper to the judge on the bench (so the court reporter cannot hear) communicating to the court about matters they would never be allowed to present if the court reporter were taking everything down and you were in a position to object on the record. When the lawyer on the other side of your case calls for a sidebar conference, make sure the court reporter comes with you to the bench and types every word spoken by the judge, the other lawyer, and yourself. Failure to do so has been the downfall of many. Don't let it happen to you! Testifying. This is the biggest and most common crime and one of the many reasons people hate lawyers. When a lawyer can't find a witness or documents or anything else to support their arguments, they'll just tuck their thumbs under their armpits and strut about the courtroom stating facts about which they have no personal knowledge whatever. And, if you let them get away with it, you are inviting disaster. The only time a lawyer (or pro se litigant, for that matter) should be allowed to talk about facts is when the facts recited are already in the record - either because a witness testified to them or some documents or other things were presented to the court to demonstrate those facts. Unless the lawyer has first-hand knowledge, he is an incompetent witness. "Objection, your Honor. Counsel is testifying." If the lawyer claims to have first-hand knowledge, move the court to make him or her submit to cross-examination under oath! Empty Objections. Ever watch court programs on TV and hear the lawyers call out that familiar word, "Objection", without saying anything more about why they are objecting? Of course you have. Not many script writers are lawyers, so they assume that single word, without more, is good enough. It's not! If the other side jumps up with an "Objection", you jump up immediately and demand, "Grounds, your honor! What are the grounds?" Unless an objection is based on proper grounds, it is improper for the court to sustain the objection. If you allow this trickery, you only invite the other side to get away with murder. Well, that's just a few of the things you'll learn with our fabulous, wildly popular, 24-hour step-by-step lawsuit self-help course. Get your own little red toolbox now at Jurisdictionary and learn how to fight legal corruption in court and win! If you'd like us to cover a particular topic in future Tips & Tactics newsletters, go to our website and click on the "Contact" button to send us an email. Learn how to use the rules to win your case! Order our case-winning 24-hour Jurisdictionary step-by-step self-help for non-lawyers course now and discover for yourself how easy it is to control crooked lawyers ... and win your lawsuit! It's easy with Jurisdictionary. It takes just 24 hours to learn how to win! ... Dr. Frederick D. Graves |
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PMB-11185
428 Childers Street
Pensacola, Florida 32534
USA
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Court Summons for Credit Card Debt.
Court Summons for Credit Card Debt.
Question:
I live in Florida. The alleged credit card debt was initiated in Massachusetts. My question is; under my credit card agreement under "Applicable Law" This Agreement and your Account will be governed by federal law, and the laws of Arizona, whether or not you live in Arizona and whether or not your Account is used outside of Arizona. You agree that:(1) this Agreement is entered into in Arizona; (2) all credit under this Agreement will be extended from Arizona; and (3) all credit extended under this Agreement is subject to, and governed by, Section 44-1205(C) of Arizona Revised Statutes. All terms and conditions of this Agreement (including Returned Check Charge and Over Limit Change provisions) are deemed to be material to a determination of the finance charge.
My argument would be to dismiss this law suit due to this debt is pass the SOL period. Since Arizona Open accounts is 3 yrs. Do you think this argument will work?
My second argument would be that the debt amount is incorrect and I would then request a original application with my signed signature. I know the amount is incorrect and read some where that it's illegal for them to state an amount this is false; is that true?
My last question is I received another letter from the same Attorney, same Case No. but for a larger amount. Do you think their falsifying their documents?
Thank you so much for your time and any response that you can give me is so much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Guest101
Answer:
Will your SOL argument work? Probably not unless you really know how to make it stick. Most judges simply won't want to hear it first of all because if that argument were to be accepted they would just about have to go to school all over again. It isn't just the SOL argument that can be used against plaintiffs. There are other ramifications and arguments that can be used as well if judges accept that argument. So you are likely to get denied even though there is a fair amount of case law to support your argument. As a result I would guess that you will not only need to know how to argue that point but how to force the judge to accept it whether he wants to or not. Be aware that in order to prevail you may have to take it to the appellate level or even higher. If you are willing to do that then I'd say you have a pretty fair chance. I am aware of an ongoing Florida case that is currently being decided by the judge who took it under advisement and is studying the matter. That person, a student of mine based his argument on another Florida case against Capital One wherein Cap One lost the case argued on the same grounds. The problem is that the first case was also decided in another district court in Florida so it is not a compulsary case.
There is another case that I am aware of that was ruled on in the 10th Circuit court of appeals. That case is not exactly the same but definitely similar and could be cited as well. Once again, however, rulings of the 10th circuit would not be compulsary in your state so all of the cases could only be advisory cases. They might help and they might not. You might very well have to take it all the way to your circuit court of appeals too. I would very deeply appreciate your keeping me abreast of what happens if you do argue it.
Then you ask about getting the original agreement to see if all the charges are allowable under the terms and conditions of the agreement. Another excellent argument that should be vital to the outcome of the case but again you may have to put up a hard fight to get that accomplished.
Are they falsifying their documents to get more money? Most likely they are.
Again, I think your arguments have much merit but trying to get a judge to agree with you isn't likely to be easy unless you know how to argue the case well and be prepared to back it up with further action if things don't go well.
Please keep me posted as your situation progresses.
Question:
I live in Florida. The alleged credit card debt was initiated in Massachusetts. My question is; under my credit card agreement under "Applicable Law" This Agreement and your Account will be governed by federal law, and the laws of Arizona, whether or not you live in Arizona and whether or not your Account is used outside of Arizona. You agree that:(1) this Agreement is entered into in Arizona; (2) all credit under this Agreement will be extended from Arizona; and (3) all credit extended under this Agreement is subject to, and governed by, Section 44-1205(C) of Arizona Revised Statutes. All terms and conditions of this Agreement (including Returned Check Charge and Over Limit Change provisions) are deemed to be material to a determination of the finance charge.
My argument would be to dismiss this law suit due to this debt is pass the SOL period. Since Arizona Open accounts is 3 yrs. Do you think this argument will work?
My second argument would be that the debt amount is incorrect and I would then request a original application with my signed signature. I know the amount is incorrect and read some where that it's illegal for them to state an amount this is false; is that true?
My last question is I received another letter from the same Attorney, same Case No. but for a larger amount. Do you think their falsifying their documents?
Thank you so much for your time and any response that you can give me is so much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Guest101
Answer:
Will your SOL argument work? Probably not unless you really know how to make it stick. Most judges simply won't want to hear it first of all because if that argument were to be accepted they would just about have to go to school all over again. It isn't just the SOL argument that can be used against plaintiffs. There are other ramifications and arguments that can be used as well if judges accept that argument. So you are likely to get denied even though there is a fair amount of case law to support your argument. As a result I would guess that you will not only need to know how to argue that point but how to force the judge to accept it whether he wants to or not. Be aware that in order to prevail you may have to take it to the appellate level or even higher. If you are willing to do that then I'd say you have a pretty fair chance. I am aware of an ongoing Florida case that is currently being decided by the judge who took it under advisement and is studying the matter. That person, a student of mine based his argument on another Florida case against Capital One wherein Cap One lost the case argued on the same grounds. The problem is that the first case was also decided in another district court in Florida so it is not a compulsary case.
There is another case that I am aware of that was ruled on in the 10th Circuit court of appeals. That case is not exactly the same but definitely similar and could be cited as well. Once again, however, rulings of the 10th circuit would not be compulsary in your state so all of the cases could only be advisory cases. They might help and they might not. You might very well have to take it all the way to your circuit court of appeals too. I would very deeply appreciate your keeping me abreast of what happens if you do argue it.
Then you ask about getting the original agreement to see if all the charges are allowable under the terms and conditions of the agreement. Another excellent argument that should be vital to the outcome of the case but again you may have to put up a hard fight to get that accomplished.
Are they falsifying their documents to get more money? Most likely they are.
Again, I think your arguments have much merit but trying to get a judge to agree with you isn't likely to be easy unless you know how to argue the case well and be prepared to back it up with further action if things don't go well.
Please keep me posted as your situation progresses.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Facing foreclosure in Oklahoma
Question: Hello, I got information today from a home investor that LB&N had some type of lien or had attached an $8000.00 dept to my home, I am trying to avoid foreclosure, and am trying to sell fast, as I also have a new job which will have me out of state for 4 weeks starting the 5th of OCT. Any way that $8000.00 would come out of the price I do get for the house, problem is I am getting less than that after pay off.
I have not received any certified mail regarding this, and the last piece of mail I did receive was back in 2002 or 2003, it was for a repossessed car in 2002. I want to call this place tomorrow and ask if they will take less, but after google searching their name to get a phone number and running across nothing but the words "scam" "rip off" and many other negative reports filling the entire first page of the search window I am a bit hesitant. Please I need good advice.
Answer:
creditwrench
I certainly would advise against contacting LBN in any way because judgments have a 5 year statute of limitations in Oklahoma. If there has been no collection activity for 5 years after the judgment as entered against you then there is no judgment against you. It is null and void and unenforceable. The fact of the lien may make that a different story but although I don't know what the length of time a lien can remain on a property may be in Oklahoma I think there is a limit on that too. You can do your research on Oklahoma liens here --
Oklahoma Statute on Liens
I would be very hesitant to label LBN as some websites may have done. They hardly fall under the scam classification regardless of what many of their victims may say about them. While indeed they are one of Oklahoma's most aggressive law firms that fact does not make them scam artists by any means.
You say you are trying to avoid foreclosure by selling the home before it happens? That isn't going to be easy to say the least. If you are going to get less than you owe out of the home then the lender isn't going to let the sale go through. Seems you have some real problems going on and you are going to need some real help if you can't pull out of the foreclosure situation by bringing the not up to date or working something out with the servicer.
Who is the purported lender in your case? The reason I say "purported" lender is that as you may well know by now is that the note may have been sold on the securities and exchange market.
You not only need to get busy trying to get those payments up to date or doing something but you also need to get up to speed on the mortgage meltdown situation and how that works.
The problem also is that while the proposed massive cash influx into the financial arena may shore things up for a while the crash that the politicians are currently trying to stave off isn't likely to work and the economy will crash no matter what they do. If the American economy crashes it will probably make such a huge impact on the entire world that other countries will also see their economies crash setting off a global depression the likes of which are almost unimaginable.
It also is not an economic crisis it is also a worldwide food shortage that confronts us at the same time. Although most don't understand the full scope of the world's problems today I think they will soon enough and the tasting of it will not be good for anybody.
I've been predicting the oncoming crash for the last two years now. The pinch was actually starting to be felt a year ago in July and maybe even before that. What congress is now proposing as a cure is nothing more than a small bandaid on a gaping wound. Secretary Henry Paulson recently stated that if they don't get this legislation passed in a hurry the situation will soon escalate to the point where companies cannot even pay their employees and will have to close their doors. I predict that is going to happen no matter what they do because it will become a chain reaction. Defaults on credit card debt and automobile loans are escalating rapidly as well. When it is all said and done there won't be enough money in all the world to contain the mess.
I know you don't want to hear that there may well be no escaping the foreclosure but I would start thinking in those terms while doing all you can to keep it from happening. I'd starto learning how to fight the foreclosure before it starts happening. As soon as it does you will start getting letters from scam artists telling you that they can save your home from foreclosure with their so called mortgage fraud programs and mythical attorneys who will go to court and fight for you. I know of most if not all of those scam artists here in Oklahoma. I'm working with some of the victims of those scams now.
What happens is that the scammers will have you sign a response to the summons and complaint that looks like it really ought to get the job done but is actually nothing but legal gobble-de-gook that will get you nowhere yet cost you another bundle of money. They will be talking about such foolish ideas as accord & satisfaction, contributory negligence, duress, Estoppel, Fraud, illegality, laches, waiver and regaling you with tales about how their mortgage fraud investigators will scrutinize your mortgage and find all the fraud and RESPA violations so you can sue the lender for those violations.
They may very well include a long list of interrogatories, demand for admissions and production of documents and the whole thing will look very legitimate. When the attorney returns with a laundry list of cut and past objections they may even be smart enough to file a motion to compel the plaintiff to comply with those demands but when the attorney comes back with an objection your scammer runs out of bullets to fire back with and suddenly they lose interest in your case and you are left hanging out to dry but the attorney is still full of fight.
The response that the scammers are now providing also include a laundry list of complaints that they file in a counter claim. Most of those counter claims might very well be valid complaints but the proper place to file them is not in local court as a counter claim but in a federal case against the lender. Local judges don't want to hear all that stuff because they are far to busy to go into the lengthy trials that would ensue if they paid them any attention. Their remedy is to simply dismiss your counter claims no matter how valid they may be and move on to give judgment to the plaintiff and you lose. Of course you lose your property and all the money you invested in that but you lose any money you paid the scammers as well.
The next problem you face is that since you didn't know how bad the scammer's supposed magical cure really is you also can't hire an attorney because you aren't equipped to know whether they are any better than the scammers plus they will cost you much more money than the scammers will. One is as bad as the other.
There is a good possibility that you will be facing LBN all over again or if not them then Baer, Timberlake & company. Between the two of them they probably do the majority of foreclosures in Oklahoma.
Of course, I don't know what county you live in but if you live in Oklahoma County I know most of the judges although not personally but I do know what they are like and how they treat defendants. Most are about as friendly as a pack of wolves on a dark and wintery night.
You might want to call in to my Friday night conference call which starts at 7:00 P.M. central time. The number for that is 712-432-1601 and the pin number is 508548#. You might also want to call in to my Monday night Radio talk show. The number for that is (914) 803-4464 The show starts at 10:00 P.M. central time.
I have not received any certified mail regarding this, and the last piece of mail I did receive was back in 2002 or 2003, it was for a repossessed car in 2002. I want to call this place tomorrow and ask if they will take less, but after google searching their name to get a phone number and running across nothing but the words "scam" "rip off" and many other negative reports filling the entire first page of the search window I am a bit hesitant. Please I need good advice.
Answer:
creditwrench
I certainly would advise against contacting LBN in any way because judgments have a 5 year statute of limitations in Oklahoma. If there has been no collection activity for 5 years after the judgment as entered against you then there is no judgment against you. It is null and void and unenforceable. The fact of the lien may make that a different story but although I don't know what the length of time a lien can remain on a property may be in Oklahoma I think there is a limit on that too. You can do your research on Oklahoma liens here --
Oklahoma Statute on Liens
I would be very hesitant to label LBN as some websites may have done. They hardly fall under the scam classification regardless of what many of their victims may say about them. While indeed they are one of Oklahoma's most aggressive law firms that fact does not make them scam artists by any means.
You say you are trying to avoid foreclosure by selling the home before it happens? That isn't going to be easy to say the least. If you are going to get less than you owe out of the home then the lender isn't going to let the sale go through. Seems you have some real problems going on and you are going to need some real help if you can't pull out of the foreclosure situation by bringing the not up to date or working something out with the servicer.
Who is the purported lender in your case? The reason I say "purported" lender is that as you may well know by now is that the note may have been sold on the securities and exchange market.
You not only need to get busy trying to get those payments up to date or doing something but you also need to get up to speed on the mortgage meltdown situation and how that works.
The problem also is that while the proposed massive cash influx into the financial arena may shore things up for a while the crash that the politicians are currently trying to stave off isn't likely to work and the economy will crash no matter what they do. If the American economy crashes it will probably make such a huge impact on the entire world that other countries will also see their economies crash setting off a global depression the likes of which are almost unimaginable.
It also is not an economic crisis it is also a worldwide food shortage that confronts us at the same time. Although most don't understand the full scope of the world's problems today I think they will soon enough and the tasting of it will not be good for anybody.
I've been predicting the oncoming crash for the last two years now. The pinch was actually starting to be felt a year ago in July and maybe even before that. What congress is now proposing as a cure is nothing more than a small bandaid on a gaping wound. Secretary Henry Paulson recently stated that if they don't get this legislation passed in a hurry the situation will soon escalate to the point where companies cannot even pay their employees and will have to close their doors. I predict that is going to happen no matter what they do because it will become a chain reaction. Defaults on credit card debt and automobile loans are escalating rapidly as well. When it is all said and done there won't be enough money in all the world to contain the mess.
I know you don't want to hear that there may well be no escaping the foreclosure but I would start thinking in those terms while doing all you can to keep it from happening. I'd starto learning how to fight the foreclosure before it starts happening. As soon as it does you will start getting letters from scam artists telling you that they can save your home from foreclosure with their so called mortgage fraud programs and mythical attorneys who will go to court and fight for you. I know of most if not all of those scam artists here in Oklahoma. I'm working with some of the victims of those scams now.
What happens is that the scammers will have you sign a response to the summons and complaint that looks like it really ought to get the job done but is actually nothing but legal gobble-de-gook that will get you nowhere yet cost you another bundle of money. They will be talking about such foolish ideas as accord & satisfaction, contributory negligence, duress, Estoppel, Fraud, illegality, laches, waiver and regaling you with tales about how their mortgage fraud investigators will scrutinize your mortgage and find all the fraud and RESPA violations so you can sue the lender for those violations.
They may very well include a long list of interrogatories, demand for admissions and production of documents and the whole thing will look very legitimate. When the attorney returns with a laundry list of cut and past objections they may even be smart enough to file a motion to compel the plaintiff to comply with those demands but when the attorney comes back with an objection your scammer runs out of bullets to fire back with and suddenly they lose interest in your case and you are left hanging out to dry but the attorney is still full of fight.
The response that the scammers are now providing also include a laundry list of complaints that they file in a counter claim. Most of those counter claims might very well be valid complaints but the proper place to file them is not in local court as a counter claim but in a federal case against the lender. Local judges don't want to hear all that stuff because they are far to busy to go into the lengthy trials that would ensue if they paid them any attention. Their remedy is to simply dismiss your counter claims no matter how valid they may be and move on to give judgment to the plaintiff and you lose. Of course you lose your property and all the money you invested in that but you lose any money you paid the scammers as well.
The next problem you face is that since you didn't know how bad the scammer's supposed magical cure really is you also can't hire an attorney because you aren't equipped to know whether they are any better than the scammers plus they will cost you much more money than the scammers will. One is as bad as the other.
There is a good possibility that you will be facing LBN all over again or if not them then Baer, Timberlake & company. Between the two of them they probably do the majority of foreclosures in Oklahoma.
Of course, I don't know what county you live in but if you live in Oklahoma County I know most of the judges although not personally but I do know what they are like and how they treat defendants. Most are about as friendly as a pack of wolves on a dark and wintery night.
You might want to call in to my Friday night conference call which starts at 7:00 P.M. central time. The number for that is 712-432-1601 and the pin number is 508548#. You might also want to call in to my Monday night Radio talk show. The number for that is (914) 803-4464 The show starts at 10:00 P.M. central time.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
AllExperts Answers - Sent Using Google Toolbar
| Process of hearing vs trial. | |
| Question: | I haven't been served yet, but its coming any day. I can get on the internet and see the hearing is scheduled for October 15Th. Once I get served by the process server i will immediately file a graduated denial. The quesion I have is , When dO I ask for discovery?? I want to know how they came to the amount they say i owe, are they authorized to collec the debt, past invoices, etc etc etc. If I go to the hearing and deny the debt, can I then ask for Discovery or a trial at that time? Or is this first hearing the time where my fate is going to be sealed. I just dont want to show up and teh judge not allow me request the documents I deserve to see to validate the debt. Can I ask for a extension at this time? Thanks for your help. |
| Answer: | Send all your discovery requests to the plaintiff's attorney at the same time you send your denial. The plaintiff's attorney will be likely to object to or deny or refuse to answer as many of your requests as possible. If they don't object, deny or refuse to answer any question or demand you might want to File a Motion to Compel and set it for hearing. Support your motion with a memorandum, showing why the judge should compel production. At the hearing ask the court to enter an Order Compelling Production, giving the other side a set period of time to respond. If the judge refuses to do that you might try to demand that the judge recuse himself/herself. If you do the judge is likely to deny that too. If so then ask for an in camera hearing on the recusal demand. That is likely to get denied too. If so you will have to move to the next steps in getting the judge recused. Getting a judge recused isn't all that hard to do but it does take time and know how. You must understand the process and follow all the steps, taking it to the appellate level if necessary. If they don't obey the second order, file a Motion for Contempt and set it for hearing. At the hearing, if your opponent has not yet produced what he was ordered to produce, the judge will probably have him jailed on the spot and kept in jail until the documents are produced. If he isn't jailed immediately, the judge may give him a few hours to comply before issuing an arrest warrant. The goal of every lawsuit is a judgment or other court orders that favor your cause. The power of a judge's pen to order civilian law enforcement officers to take your opponent into custody if he disobeys the court's orders is your power to win! You can make our American legal system work for you. Once you know how to play your cards the right way. The only real hurdle to getting your way is having the fortitude to stand up and say the right things at the right time and in the right way. Know the law and how to use it isn't rocket science. Anyone can do it. Anyone can also learn how to take the lawyer and his client to federal court and win there. Federal court is much less stressful because you will almost never have to actually see the inside of a federal courtroom. Most cases are handled over the internet, by phone or by email so it is much less stressful that way. RECOMMENDED READING |
 | |
Subscribe to Creditwrench |
- FDCPA EXPERT
- Reverse phone number look up
- www.creditwrench.com/howjudgmentswork.html
- www.creditwrench.com/18questions.html
- http://shrinkmylink.com/kmlqson
- www.creditwrench.com/objections.html
- www.creditwrench.com/howcreditwrenchworks.html
- List of community property states
- How to answer a summons
- Mike JM tells about his experiences in federal court
- Mike JM tells about Greentree Financial case.
- Listen to this student tell how he got $10,000 from a federal case against Capital One
- http://shrinkmylink.com/xsjqson
- Mark in Rhode Island gets settlement offer
- Statute of Limitations for all states
- How to set up your hard drive for creditwrench files.
Makes them easy to find.
The Creditwrench conference calls will start this coming Friday evening at 7 P.M. Central time. It is free and open to the public. There is no cost or obligation other than what it may cost you for the phone call itself. You can join in and ask questions or just listen or whatever you want to do.
Dial-in Number: (712) 432-1601
Access code: 508548#
You might also want to visit our message forum at http://consumers.creditwrench.com to get answers to questions you need answered before next Friday night.
__________________
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Before you go, stop and think about this. Its all about fighting poverty. Although we may go through our daily routines without realinzed it, the number of homeless people is growing rapidly. While many of the homeless have drug or alchol problems many are simply people who are homeless because of mortgage foreclosures and other financially related problems. I have armed you with a great deal of information about how to deal with debt collectors who can easily beat you out of your hard earned cash and make you the next victim of poverty. Help fight poverty (yours) by keeping your cash in your pocket. Creditwrench teaches you how to do exactly that.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Do I have to attend court-ordered mediation sessions? I do not want to attend this mediation. Thanks
No, you don't have to attend the court ordered mediation. But failure to attend is likely to make you wish you had attended.
If you do attend you can refuse to mediate and take it to a judicial hearing. Of course, I'm sure you won't want to go to that hearing either so you can just not attend and let them get a judgment, garnish your wages, bank accounts or whatever else you might own that is legal for them to take under the federal and state laws. How would you like to wake up one day to the fact that you had just paid your bills and every check you wrote bounced causing a $25.00 or more service fee plus the bank charged you a hundred or so garnishment processing fee and you went to work only to find out that in the future you will be taking home 25% less money to pay all your bills with?
Now what do you want to do, go or not go? But as usual, that's not the rest of the story which is that almost no matter which path you choose to take the results are probably going to be the same. But a fork in the road don't always leave only two choices. Sometimes there are multiple paths to choose from and this is one of those road forks that has multiple paths going in different directions. One of them leads to a dead end dropoff into a deep canyon with a raging river at the bottom. Another leads to a similar fate and the third ends up on a sort of turntable something along the lines of those used in railroad yards to turn the trains around so they can make the return trip. But this turntable is a bit on the tricky side because you have to learn how to manipulate the levers and switches that make it work.
I've got to run to a meeting with a local student of mine here in Oklahoma City who lost his home to foreclosure the 8th of this month.
Now comes the Sheriff's sale and then the final confirmation hearing. Then they will evict him and throw all his belongings out on the curb if he don't do something to put a stop to it. He is pretty dejected and miserable at this point because his job is taking him out of town for the next month or so. What is he to do?
Never fear, Creditwrench is here. I've prepared his turntable for him and he will go jump on it today. The attorney for the plaintiff forgot at least one or more little details such as the fact that his wife never signed any papers whatever but they sued her too. That is called mis-joinder of the parties. She can file a motion to vacate based on that fact. Mis-joinder of the parties. That should easily get the judgment vacated. Lawyers just hate to get sued for having wrongfully mis-joined someone to a lawsuit. Usually ends up costing them a bundle of money when the injured party sues them for their little mistake. This one ought to be worth somewhere between $50 to $100 Thousand.
But the train isn't going to stop there. We have multiple causes of action under FDCPA, FCRA, TILA and RESPA as well. This train is going to federal court.
So what do you want to do now? Refuse to go or start learning how to operate your own personal turntable?
Here is where you can start learning
Creditwrench
Forum
Subscribe to Creditwrench
This post is part of Blog Action Day 08 - Poverty
No, you don't have to attend the court ordered mediation. But failure to attend is likely to make you wish you had attended.
If you do attend you can refuse to mediate and take it to a judicial hearing. Of course, I'm sure you won't want to go to that hearing either so you can just not attend and let them get a judgment, garnish your wages, bank accounts or whatever else you might own that is legal for them to take under the federal and state laws. How would you like to wake up one day to the fact that you had just paid your bills and every check you wrote bounced causing a $25.00 or more service fee plus the bank charged you a hundred or so garnishment processing fee and you went to work only to find out that in the future you will be taking home 25% less money to pay all your bills with?
Now what do you want to do, go or not go? But as usual, that's not the rest of the story which is that almost no matter which path you choose to take the results are probably going to be the same. But a fork in the road don't always leave only two choices. Sometimes there are multiple paths to choose from and this is one of those road forks that has multiple paths going in different directions. One of them leads to a dead end dropoff into a deep canyon with a raging river at the bottom. Another leads to a similar fate and the third ends up on a sort of turntable something along the lines of those used in railroad yards to turn the trains around so they can make the return trip. But this turntable is a bit on the tricky side because you have to learn how to manipulate the levers and switches that make it work.
I've got to run to a meeting with a local student of mine here in Oklahoma City who lost his home to foreclosure the 8th of this month.
Now comes the Sheriff's sale and then the final confirmation hearing. Then they will evict him and throw all his belongings out on the curb if he don't do something to put a stop to it. He is pretty dejected and miserable at this point because his job is taking him out of town for the next month or so. What is he to do?
Never fear, Creditwrench is here. I've prepared his turntable for him and he will go jump on it today. The attorney for the plaintiff forgot at least one or more little details such as the fact that his wife never signed any papers whatever but they sued her too. That is called mis-joinder of the parties. She can file a motion to vacate based on that fact. Mis-joinder of the parties. That should easily get the judgment vacated. Lawyers just hate to get sued for having wrongfully mis-joined someone to a lawsuit. Usually ends up costing them a bundle of money when the injured party sues them for their little mistake. This one ought to be worth somewhere between $50 to $100 Thousand.
But the train isn't going to stop there. We have multiple causes of action under FDCPA, FCRA, TILA and RESPA as well. This train is going to federal court.
So what do you want to do now? Refuse to go or start learning how to operate your own personal turntable?
Here is where you can start learning
Creditwrench
Forum
RECOMMENDED READING
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Subscribe to Creditwrench - FDCPA EXPERT
- Reverse phone number look up
- www.creditwrench.com/howjudgmentswork.html
- www.creditwrench.com/18questions.html
- http://shrinkmylink.com/kmlqson
- www.creditwrench.com/objections.html
- www.creditwrench.com/howcreditwrenchworks.html
- List of community property states
- How to answer a summons
- Mike JM tells about his experiences in federal court
- Mike JM tells about Greentree Financial case.
- Listen to this student tell how he got $10,000 from a federal case against Capital One
- http://shrinkmylink.com/xsjqson
- Mark in Rhode Island gets settlement offer
- Statute of Limitations for all states
- How to set up your hard drive for creditwrench files.
Makes them easy to find.
The Creditwrench conference calls will start this coming Friday evening at 7 P.M. Central time. It is free and open to the public. There is no cost or obligation other than what it may cost you for the phone call itself. You can join in and ask questions or just listen or whatever you want to do.
Dial-in Number: (712) 432-1601
Access code: 508548#
You might also want to visit our message forum at http://consumers.creditwrench.com to get answers to questions you need answered before next Friday night.
__________________
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It pays you cash money for every search you do!
How about a search engine on steroids? It acts like an RSS feed for most other search engines. Between these two you shouldn't ever need anything else. Use these two for all your searches. You will be glad you did.
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This Sigline updates constantly! Try it!
Creditwrench - The lethal weapon against debt collectors
ceo@creditwrench.com
Creditwrench Blog
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(405) 684-9297 FAX NUMBER
(405) 227-9423 - CALL ANYTIME
(405) 384-4508 - CALL ANYTIME
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FDCPA
Before you go, stop and think about this. Its all about fighting poverty. Although we may go through our daily routines without realinzed it, the number of homeless people is growing rapidly. While many of the homeless have drug or alchol problems many are simply people who are homeless because of mortgage foreclosures and other financially related problems. I have armed you with a great deal of information about how to deal with debt collectors who can easily beat you out of your hard earned cash and make you the next victim of poverty. Help fight poverty (yours) by keeping your cash in your pocket. Creditwrench teaches you how to do exactly that.
This post is part of Blog Action Day 08 - Poverty
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