Category Archives: Debt Relief Industry

Silverthorn & Lupolover Advanced Fee Canadian Debt Settlement Contract Review

A reader has sent in a contract for advanced fee debt settlement services from Silverthorn & Lupolover, LLP in Canada. I thought it would be interesting to take a look at what is being sold in Canada with this partnership of an American and Canadian attorney firm Mark Silverthorn – Canada and Michael Lupolover – [...]

Citizens’ Debt Settlement Fund Pays to Settle Debts of Citizens in UAE

President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates has just announced a national $2,722,600,000 fund for low-income debtors to use to settle their debts with a number of UAE and Dubai lenders. This fund will allow people to be able to settle their debts rather than face prosecution and [...]

SpringCoin Rolls Out Automated Debt Advice and Debt Relief Coach System

A reader just sent in this recent press release to share with readers. At $35 a month, if this software lives up to it’s hype and promises it could radically change the debt relief landscape as we know it today. The key is going to be in the operation and how tightly it is integrated [...]

Debt Relief Information and Innovation – Helping Companies Help Their Customers

One of, if not the largest shortcoming that exists in the current system designed to provide people struggling with debt an alternative to bankruptcy is – Information. That we have come through the “information age” and fallen short of including more of it in professional debt relief products and servicing is a failing that can [...]

A American Debt Consolidation Hit by Louisiana for Missing Bond

A cease-and-desist order has been issued for A American Debt Consolidation on Center Street in New Iberia for allegedly failing to provide the necessary $100,000 bond required for credit repair companies by state law. The order was issued on Jan. 24 by the Louisiana Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, Public Protection Division, [...]

Robby Birnbaum Provides Interesting Review of What Went Wrong With U.S. Debt Settlement Industry

Robby Birnbaum, a lawyer with the law firm Greenspoon Marder and an executive with both TASC (The Association of Settlement Companies) and AFCC (American Fair Credit Council) recently participated in an enlightening interview with Richard Cooper from Total Debt Freedom in Canada. Putting the interview into context, with the lobbying and pushing back TASC engaged [...]

Housing Counselor Sentenced to 72 Months in Jail for Stealing Money to Pay Her Mortgage

Nonprofit housing counselors Lori Macakanja, 35, of Dunkirk, New York, was convicted of mail fraud and theft of government money, was sentenced to 72 months in prison and three years supervised release and ordered to pay $298,639 in restitution to victims. Assistant U.S. Attorney Trini Ross, who handled the case, stated that Macakanja, in her [...]

Persels & Associates Named in Georgia Class Action With Host of Major Players in Debt Relief

On January 28, 2012 Carla Broyles, Charity Miaco and Melba Walker filed a class action lawsuit in Georgia against Persels & Associates, Ruther & Associates, Freedom Debt Relief, Consumer Law Associates, Amerix, Careone Services, Tiffany Rowe. The suit states it covers all Georgia resident debtors who have done business with Defendants since July 2003 to [...]

Canada Takes Swift Action Against Advanced Fee Debt Settlement Companies

Dear Alberta and Manitoba, Damn, that was fast. Steve I suppose it sure didn’t hurt have the entire FTC Telemarketing Sales Rule process done and dusted, but Canada is acting quickly to ban advanced fee debt settlement companies. New regulations in Manatobia are effective in 12 days will prohibit any advanced fees charged to consumers [...]

Who is Most Likely to Work With a Debt Settlement Company

InsideARM recently released information from an industry survey they conducted regarding what part of the debt collection industry is more likely to work in cooperation with debt settlement companies. They survey 649 creditors, collectors, debt buyers and legal recovery firms to ask about their perception or willingness to work with debt settlement companies. The survey [...]

Tipster Expresses Concerns About Litigation Compliance Law Center

A tipster has sent in the following information and expressed the following concerns. I thought I’d just put this out for people to comment on with their opinion of the concerns voiced. Chad Pratt & Stuart Simone attorneys for Real Estate Law center are also Litigation Compliance Law Center marketing to non attorneys to do [...]

What Can We Do About Customers Who Cancel After Debts Are Settled?

I currently work in a negotiations department for a mid sized debt settlement company. We have roughly 2,500 clients who are active. We have been on a massive push recently to get all of our clients settlements once they have made 3 payments. We have reached the point where more than 80% of our total [...]

Attorney Model Debt Settlement Employee Speaks Out On How It Really Works

My name is [redacted], and I worked for a debt settlement company in California known as [redacted] in 2010 and 2011. I was hired as a sales consultant, but was later moved into the negotiations department after most of our sales force was laid off as a resulting slowdown in our business due to the [...]

How Can Credit Counseling Survive These Numbers?

A reader asked me to take another look at trending in the credit counseling industry. Shocking sight. I’m afraid things are not looking up. If the trend of years past was still relevant we would expect to see a big post holiday season spike in consumer interest in credit counseling. But we didn’t see on [...]

Dave Burke, He’s Back Promoting Debt Relief After Being Slammed Shut by Colorado

A tipster just sent me in a note that old Dave Burke, the guy behind the Real Talk Network that was sued out of existence by the State of Colorado, is back in business promoting his financial coaching. Want to read the saga behind Dave Burke, click here. To summarize, Dave Burke had this pitch [...]