Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Missouri

Re: was told had to pay today or would be served papers

First, relax. An attorney will not cost you that much money, and you probably want to see one soon. I suspect you are being dunned by a collector who is not an attorney, but may be employed by one.

To the extent that his communication with you suggests that he or his firm can "charge you" with fraud in the context of a criminal case, that assertion is a blatant lie. He can bring a civil fraud charge, but unless the bank asks the police to conduct a criminal investigation (unlikely) he cannot charge you with "theft." The use of a threat of criminal prosecution in connection with collections is unlawful, being prohibited by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. More importantly, it is blatantly unethical for a lawyer to threaten criminal prosecution as leverage in a civil case. The lawyer who called you should be reported immediately to the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel in Jefferson City, MO.

You should file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against the law firm. You should also see an attorney about bringing a legal action against the collecting attorney.

Offer to pay the $300 amount you owe in $50 increments until paid. If the lawyer does not accept this and threatens to sue you, tell him you will file a counterclaim for violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In truth, I have never seen a law firm actually file a lawsuit (which costs in excess of $100 usually) in order to collect an $800 debt.

Not all lawyers are like the one who called you. There are some very ethical collection attorneys out there, but do not be intimidated by this one.

Re: was told had to pay today or would be served papers

I concur with Mr. Dewitt that you should determine if that person is licensed to practice law in Missouri, and report their statements to the proper authorities. Unfortunately, I disagree with him as to the likelihood of suit being filed. If your loan agreement calls for attorney fees in collecting the debt, it is possible that they will sue you and request the attorney fees be added to the debt.

For that reason, you should gather your documents, and if you agree you owe something, get prepared to make a payment arrangement you can live with. It is the extra "fees" and "costs" that probably accounted for the huge figure the person on the telephone demanded. Probably the figures were wrong.

What this person did was indiciative of what unscrupulous collection agencies and sadly some law firms do when they are running low on funds near the end of the year. What they did was wrong. If you do not file your complaints in Jefferson City, that person and their company will not be exposed and they may prey upon someone else.

You were not able to provide much specific information in this limited space. Therefore the advice that we can provide here is toolimited to be complete.

Please obtain counsel to go over all of the information about this debt, and the telephone conversation you had. They may be able to assist you so that what little you pay them will be offset by what you do not mistakenly pay the collector.

Good Luck,

Tony Smith