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Posted on July 20, 2011 by admin

Welcome to our mini-website for Oregon consumer law. The attorneys of Baxter & Baxter, LLP, are dedicated advocates for consumers. Baxter & Baxter, LLP, is a Pacific Northwest consumer protection law firm with offices in Oregon and Washington. To visit our firm’s main website, visit www.baxterlaw.com.

The Oregon consumer protection lawyers of the Consumer Litigation Group represent individuals in cases with false credit reports, identity theft cases, unlawful debt collection cases, and consumer fraud cases. The Portland Oregon bankruptcy attorneys, Hillsboro, Oregon bankruptcy attorneys, Oregon City bankruptcy attorneys, and Vancouver Washington bankruptcy lawyers of the Bankruptcy Practice Group represent individuals in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Our mission of committed and zealous consumer advocacy is unrivaled, and our track record of excellence and professionalism is recognized nationwide.

For more information about the Consumer Litigation Group, click on the links below:

“We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for relief under the Bankruptcy Code.”

How to Order your Free Annual Credit Report

Posted on April 25, 2012 by admin

Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report each year. If you have been denied credit, you are also entitled to a free copy of your credit report.

While it is possible to access your credit report online, some credit reporting companies require consumers to give up important rights in order to access their credit report through their website. Also, it can be confusing navigating the many links to purchase services that you do not necessarily need. A better way is to request it by mail.

Consumers can request their free annual credit report by writing to Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The request form is available at the annualcreditreport.com website.

You can also click here to view and print the form.

How to Dispute Credit Report Errors

Posted on April 25, 2012 by admin

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, consumers have the right to dispute false information in their credit reports. Under ordinary circumstances, credit reporting agencies and creditors are required to conduct an investigation in response to such a dispute.

It is not necessary to pay anyone to write a dispute letter — you can do it yourself for free. Below is a short description of the process for disputing false information on your credit report.

1. Get a copy of your credit report. Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report each year. If you have been denied credit, you are also entitled to a free copy of your credit report.

2. Send a written dispute letter to the credit reporting agencies. Write a polite, professional letter detailing exactly what is incorrect and why. Be specific. Enclose documentation, such as police reports, correspondence with your creditors, and any additional information documentation you have. Tell the credit reporting agency if you are being prevented from obtaining credit, such as a mortgage, credit card, or auto loan, or if you are being harmed in other ways.

Send your letter via certified mail, with a return receipt requested. Keep a copy of your signed, dated letter, along with copies of enclosures.

The addresses for the “Big Three” credit reporting agencies are:

Equifax
PO Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374

Experian
701 Experian Parkway
Allen, TX 75013

Trans Union LLC
PO Box 390
Springfield PA 1906

3. Review the credit reporting agency’s response. Check whether additional information is requested and send it. If the credit reporting company didn’t understand your dispute, write again with a clearer explanation of your dispute. Always send your correspondence via certified mail, with a return receipt requested, and keep a copy of your signed, dated letter for your records. If you cannot get false information removed from your credit report on your own, you can consider speaking to a consumer lawyer, such as the attorneys at Baxter & Baxter, LLP.

Unlawful Debt Collection Practices

Posted on June 22, 2011 by admin

Unlawful Debt Collection Practices

Unlawful debt collection practices are regulated by a patchwork of state and federal laws. The basic principal of fair debt collection law is that a consumer who does not owe a debt should not be “dunned” with collection calls or letters. Even when a consumer does owe a debt, state and federal law recognize that collectors cannot engage in deceptive, harassing, or unfair debt collection practices.

Unlawful debt collection practices often overlap other fields of consumer law, including identity theft, false credit reporting, and elder abuse cases. In general, debt collectors may not engage in the following types of behavior:

Harassment

A debt collector may not engage in any conduct the natural consequence of which is to harass, oppress, or abuse any person in connection with the collection of a debt, including:

(1) The use or threat of use of violence or other criminal means to harm the physical person, reputation, or property of any person.

(2) The use of obscene or profane language or language the natural consequence of which is to abuse the hearer or reader.

(3) The publication of a list of consumers who allegedly refuse to pay debts.

(4) The advertisement for sale of any debt to coerce payment of the debt.

(5) Causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass any person at the called number.

(6) The placement of telephone calls without meaningful disclosure of the caller’s identity.

False or misleading representation

A debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt, including:

(1) The false representation or implication that the debt collector is vouched for, bonded by, or affiliated with the United States or any State, including the use of any badge, uniform, or facsimile thereof.

(2) The false representation of—
(A) the character, amount, or legal status of any debt; or
(B) any services rendered or compensation which may be lawfully received by any debt collector for the collection of a debt.

(3) The false representation or implication that any individual is an attorney or that any communication is from an attorney.

(4) The representation or implication that nonpayment of any debt will result in the arrest or imprisonment of any person or the seizure, garnishment, attachment, or sale of any property or wages of any person unless such action is lawful and the debt collector or creditor intends to take such action.

(5) The threat to take any action that cannot legally be taken or that is not intended to be taken.

(6) The false representation or implication that a sale, referral, or other transfer of any interest in a debt shall cause the consumer to—
(A) lose any claim or defense to payment of the debt; or
(B) become subject to any practice prohibited by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

(7) The false representation or implication that the consumer committed any crime or other conduct in order to disgrace the consumer.

(8) Communicating or threatening to communicate to any person credit information which is known or which should be known to be false, including the failure to communicate that a disputed debt is disputed.

(9) The use or distribution of any written communication which simulates or is falsely represented to be a document authorized, issued, or approved by any court, official, or agency of the United States or any State, or which creates a false impression as to its source, authorization, or approval.

(10) The use of any false representation or deceptive means to collect or attempt to collect any debt or to obtain information concerning a consumer.

(11) The failure to disclose in the initial written communication with the consumer and, in addition, if the initial communication with the consumer is oral, in that initial oral communication, that the debt collector is attempting to collect a debt and that any information obtained will be used for that purpose, and the failure to disclose in subsequent communications that the communication is from a debt collector, except that this paragraph shall not apply to a formal pleading made in connection with a legal action.

(12) The false representation or implication that accounts have been turned over to innocent purchasers for value.

(13) The false representation or implication that documents are legal process.

(14) The use of any business, company, or organization name other than the true name of the debt collector’s business, company, or organization.

(15) The false representation or implication that documents are not legal process forms or do not require action by the consumer.

(16) The false representation or implication that a debt collector operates or is employed by a consumer reporting agency.

Unfair Collection Practices

A debt collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any debt, including:

(1) The collection of any amount (including any interest, fee, charge, or expense incidental to the principal obligation) unless such amount is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt or permitted by law.

(2) The acceptance by a debt collector from any person of a check or other payment instrument postdated by more than five days unless such person is notified in writing of the debt collector’s intent to deposit such check or instrument not more than ten nor less than three business days prior to such deposit.

(3) The solicitation by a debt collector of any postdated check or other postdated payment instrument for the purpose of threatening or instituting criminal prosecution.

(4) Depositing or threatening to deposit any postdated check or other postdated payment instrument prior to the date on such check or instrument.

(5) Causing charges to be made to any person for communications by concealment of the true purpose of the communication. Such charges include, but are not limited to, collect telephone calls and telegram fees.

(6) Taking or threatening to take any nonjudicial action to effect dispossession or disablement of property if—
(A) there is no present right to possession of the property claimed as collateral through an enforceable security interest;
(B) there is no present intention to take possession of the property; or
(C) the property is exempt by law from such dispossession or disablement.

(7) Communicating with a consumer regarding a debt by post card.

(8) Using any language or symbol, other than the debt collector’s address, on any envelope when communicating with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram, except that a debt collector may use his business name if such name does not indicate that he is in the debt collection business.