How to Stay in Business During a Crisis Times are tough. No doubt about it. Restaurants, bars and hotels are extremely hard hit. So what can you do to keep a float during this crisis? So here is my list of some things to keep in mind to help you get through this. This is not the be all, do all list … [Read more...]
When is it Too Late to Save Your Home from Foreclosure?
How late can you file bankruptcy and stop a foreclosure sale? My firm represents Maine homeowners in trouble. A common question is: how late is too late to save my home from a foreclosure sale? When is the last moment you can file a petition and stop sale? Thankfully for homeowners in distress it … [Read more...]
Delivering the Goods: What Happens When a Consumer Puts Up a Deposit for Goods and the Retailer Goes Belly Up?
Last September, Gediman's Appliances of Bath Maine close abruptly. Customers who had put deposits down on appliances were left with neither their money or what they ordered. Sadly, this is not an uncommon occurrence when a retailer, big or small, closes. What then is a customer to do? Unfortunately, … [Read more...]
IRS Will Not Seize Refunds to Pay Back Old Debts to Social Security
For the 2014 tax filing season, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has agreed not to seize an individual's tax refunds to pay back old debts. Since 2008, the SSA has been able to have the Treasury Department seize federal payments to someone who owes a debt to the SSA, usually in the form of … [Read more...]
Consumer Turns the Table on Debt Collector, or “How a Law Firm Turned a Debt of $3,000 into a Judgment of $300,000”
A North Dakota law firm learned the hard way that, if you are not careful, suing on a stale debt can come back to bite you. Johnson, Rodenburg & Lauinger ("JRL") regularly collects consumer debts and in this case it was attempting to collect a debt on behalf of Collect America Ltd., a debt … [Read more...]
It is Not Enough to Prevail – You Still Have to Collect Your Judgment
“Jane Doe” was a fifth-grader when she was sexually assaulted by her teacher, Wayne Manson. Subsequently, in 2000, Jane was awarded a quarter million dollars after filing a civil lawsuit against Manson. Almost fifteen years later, Jane has only collected a small portion of the judgment and with … [Read more...]
