Legal Question in Banking Law in New Jersey

I have a loan and credit card with the credit union of the organization I currently work for. I had opened the accounts and took out these loans before I joined the organization. During the financial crisis, I left my previous employer and joined my current employer, taking a 52k paycut. I fell behind on my loans and even though I tried making arrangements with the credit union, nothing could be done. The credit union started debiting my account immediately my pay check was direct deposit such that I would sometimes be left with $300 for the rest of the month despite the fact that I have two children. I transfered my direct deposit elsewhere and could not afford to continue paying on my loans. A collections rep called me severally and I wrote a plea for loan modification but they declined unless I make several payments (that I could not afford) and produce some documents. Barely a month after, a collections agent wrote an email to my supervisor at work asking him to help her make me understand that I need to pay. My Three questions: Is it Legal for a credit union to arbitrarily take someones pay even before the garnishment process has been done? Two, Is it legal for the credit union to embarrass and humiliate me by contacting my supervisor? Three, What is the legal recourse because I feel humiliated, mistreated and quite frankly, suicidal?


Asked on 11/24/09, 8:50 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Davies The Davies Law Firm, P.A.

Take a deep breath. It will be OK.

You have a job and earn money. that is good, lots of people do not.

You have two kids. that is wonderful. you have to fix the finances so they can have a good life.

Go see a counsellor if you feel suicidal.

Now: you need to take all of your paperwork to a lawyer and figure out what your best choices are. What you can do will depend on a lot of things that will take some help from a lawyer to figure out.

Please give me a call to talk it over. The telephone discussion will be free of charge, and I will let you know what I believe I can do to assist you further. My contact information can be obtained from the links below, just click on the Attorney Profile link. Let my secretary know you found me through LawGuru.

Disclaimer: This answer is based only on the statements you have made, and may not be accurate. Your question and any response does NOT create an attorney-client relationship between you and this law firm. You can not rely on the statements made by an attorney given over the internet. The exact facts of your situation, including facts which you have not mentioned in your question, may completely change the result for your situation.

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Answered on 11/30/09, 12:12 pm


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