Texas Debt Lawsuit Defense Lawyer
Focusing on Credit Card Lawsuit Defense
Weston & Associates, PLLC is a full service debt relief agency. The father and son team of attorneys, Pete Weston and Texas Credit Card Lawsuit Attorney, Mike Weston combine for over 33 years of legal experience. Mike focuses on defending credit card lawsuits and suing abusive debt collectors and has earned a “Very good” rating, from AVVO.
Mike Weston has successfully defended over a 1000 credit card lawsuits in the past six years. Here is a guide which will hopefully answer some of the burning questions that you have.
Credit Card Law News
February 23, 2012
Regulators warn of 'phantom' debt collectors'
The FTC warns of firms seeking debt collection from consumers who don't owe. Officials shut down a Villa Park operation that allegedly collected about $5 million in so-called phantom debts.
Federal regulators warned of a new scam in which so-called phantom debt collectors harass people into paying bills they don't even owe, typically preying on Americans already burdened with financial problems.
Officials said Tuesday that they had shut down a Villa Park operation that they alleged in a lawsuit fraudulently collected about $5 million in phantom debts. In a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission, a court froze the assets of American Credit Crunchers, an affiliated company called Ebeeze and their owner, Varang K. Thaker.
The FTC alleged that the companies used callers in India, who often posed as law enforcement officers or other government officials, to threaten people with arrest, a lawsuit or the loss of their job if they didn't repay online payday loans.
But the companies did not make the loans and had no right to collect the money, the agency said.
A phone number for American Credit Crunchers was not working Tuesday, and its website had been shut down. Thaker did not return a call seeking comment. More...
First, we understand that nobody likes to be sued. This may be
the first time you have ever been sued. If you have been sued by
a debt purchaser for an old debt, the first thing you need to
realize is that you are not alone. There are thousands of
consumers in Texas who are sued every month on debt that is
usually three to four years old. Unfortunately most consumers
make the mistake of not hiring an attorney to defend the lawsuit.
The debt purchasing business has exploded in recent years. Debt
purchasers buy portfolios of debt for as little as three cents on
the dollar. The purchasers then farm the debt out to local
collection attorneys who file individual lawsuits. Under Texas
law, they only have four years to sue you from the time you made
your last payment.
Have you been sued for a debt?"
There are hundreds of consumers sued in Texas cities every month.
Mike Weston has successfully defended hundreds of credit card lawsuits over the past few years. Below is a guide which will hopefully answer some of the burning questions that you have.
First, I understand that nobody likes to be sued. This may be the first time you have ever been sued. If you have been sued by a debt purchaser for an old debt, the first thing you need to realize is that you are not alone. There are thousands of consumers in Texas who are sued every month on debt that is usually three to four years old. Unfortunately most consumers make the mistake of not hiring an attorney to defend the lawsuit. The debt purchasing business has exploded in recent years. Debt purchasers buy portfolios of debt for as little as three cents on the dollar. The purchasers then farm the debt out to local collection attorneys who file individual lawsuits. Under Texas law, they only have four years to sue you from the time you made your last payment.
Why do they file the lawsuits?
They file the lawsuits because they want to get a judgment against you. With a judgment, the debt purchaser has a lot more power to collect from you than it did without a judgment. With a judgment, the purchaser can forcibly take money out of your bank account. This is called a garnishment. They cannot garnish your wages in Texas, but after you deposit your paycheck, the funds are no longer “wages” and they can be seized. Another popular reason they try to get a judgment is to hold onto the judgment until you try to buy, sell, or re-finance a home. A lot of times your lender will force you to pay off or settle a judgment prior to lending any money to you. A judgment lasts for 10 years and can be renewed. Needless to say, you don’t want to have a judgment against you.
The Rise in Credit Card Lawsuits
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Providing Debt Lawsuit Defense in all cities of Texas, USA, Practice areas include:
Top Consumer Myths about debt purchaser lawsuits
I don’t have any assets so there is no reason for me to fight it.
As stated above, any money in the bank can be garnished. I have had people call me two to three years after a judgment to say that their bank account is frozen, even people on social security. (Technically creditors cannot garnish social security funds but I have seen it happen). You do not have notice of the garnishment either, usually the first sign is having a check bounce or a debit card declined. Also, just because you don’t have assets now doesn’t mean you won’t have assets 10 years from now. If you try to buy a house the judgment will most likely cause a problem. I would like to tell you that they won’t try to collect the judgment but that is generally not the case these days.
I know I owe the debt.
First things first, you may have owed a debt to the original creditor, but most likely they are out of the picture. They sold the debt to an investor and the amount alleged has probably doubled or tripled.
Let me explain it like this: You borrow $1,000 from a friend (A) you pay on the debt for a few years but because you lose your job you have to stop paying (A). Three years after you stoppedpaying (A), he sells the debt to his friend (B) for $30.00. Then B, a person who you have never met sues you for $4,000.00 on a debt he purchased for $30.00 without much documentation. Do you agree that you owe $4,000.00 to B? I didn’t think so. This is how the debt purchasing business works.
I don’t have any money to pay them.
I have settled $15,000.00 cases for $1,000.00. This is not the norm but they are much more likely to settle if you have an attorney. The vast majority of the time I get these cases dismissed but settlement may be appropriate in certain circumstances. (see below).
I don’t have money to hire an attorney.
I generally charge flat fees to defend credit card lawsuits and this fee can often be received in installments as low as $250.00 per month.
They never provided me with proof that I owe them so I’ll just ignore them.
Don’t ignore the lawsuit! If you don’t fight the case and they get a judgment against you, the argument is over – you owe the debt. Your arguments down the road don’t matter. Now is the time to fight it!
I’ll just defend myself.
Famous last words. I personally would not try to re-wire the electricity in my house because I would probably electrocute myself. It’s no different in this situation. Every few weeks I get a call from a potential client who went this route and ended up with a judgment against them, not because they didn’t tell their side of the story right, but simply because they fell into a technical legal trap. The legal process is complicated and it is laced with traps. If you do not respond to certain questions in the petition in a certain way, within a certain time, you will probably end up with a judgment against you without even having your “day in court”. Unfortunately if you get a judgment against you, the process is very costly and time-consuming to try and undo that judgment.
Below are recent testimonials from actual clients of Weston & Associates, PLLC
“Mike Weston was very professional and conscientious in settling for zero a credit card debt. He used his knowledge of the FDCPA to turn the tables on a debt collector which was threatening legal action on an old debt which had been previously settled with the company. Thank you Mike! ”
Brian
“I had a case brought against me by a company that if not handled correctly would of had me pay money to a company that they didnt deserve and Mr. Weston got them to dismiss the case. Would highly recommend if you think you have no one else to turn to. ”
JEFF
I was scared when I was sued by a creditor. Mike treated me like a person, with respect, and settled my case in a timely and affordable manner. The case settled while my husband was in the hospital with a serious health issue and I KNEW my case was in good hands. Thank you Mike for helping us when we did not know what to do. If you are having problems with a creditor, call Mike TODAY. He knows how to help! ”
Kim C, Spring TX.
“I was handed the court papers regarding credit card debt at my house. I would like to thank Mr. Weston for handling my case and succesfully getting it dismissed. Appreciate the professionalism. Kate Wallace also answered my questions in a very timely manner. Definitely would recommend their services to my friends! Again, thank you. ”
Omar, Garland, Texas.
“Michael Weston has helped me several times in the past and has always won my case. He is a very professional, and yet compassionate person. I know from personal experience he will do his very best to help your situation. I highly recommend hiring Michael as your attorney.”
Mar
“Mr. Weston and his professional team got me through unceartinity and won my debt lawsuite case. The Weston team was understanding and compasionate. I found Weston and Associates through mail media and after reading his letter I believed that he was a sincere attorney who guienually wanted to help me. Mr. Weston took my case and won it and I am soo happy! :-)
”
EAG
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