Complaint Review: JA Cambece - Peabody Massachusetts

I appreciate your comments. This is the only problem we have encountered with the bankruptcy debt and the exact reason I filed alone (and without a lawyer that I couldn't afford) is that except for this one debt, all the other debt was in my name only and there was no reason for my husband to file. We were working with a debt settlement company who supposedly was working on our behalf to settle this but wasn't. So we ended our contract with them and went it alone and that is how Cambece ended on my lap. I know he was still responsible for this one since it was a joint account.I just feel that her threatening to take our property and garnish wages etc is unethical debt collection practice and treating people like second class citizens when prior to falling on hard financial times, had excellent credit and always paid bills BEFORE they were due, is just cruel. People deserve respect no matter what their situation, most people like myself, did not just decide to not pay bills one day. There is usually a reason! So to kick someone when they are down is unjust. I understand it is their job to collect a debt, but the way they go about it and treat people is just flat wrong. I think if they could be compassionate and actually try to help someone find ways to pay such as payment plans, then more people would be willing to try if they can. I know too, that there are people out there to just take advantage of the system and they ruin it for the rest of us who truly want to try and solve their debt. Unfortunely for me, I have no job and small children and my husband is about to lose his job and start on his own. It is more important to me, to buy diapers than pay a debt that won't help my credit since the debt no longer belongs to the creditor. Its easy for you to say "get a lawyer" since that is your job. Most people who file bankruptcy as you know are broke! I think in a complicated case you would need one, not in mine. Try deciding to spend what little money you have for a lawyer to list my creditors in a no asset case, (or do it myself with software,) vs. spending what little I have right now taking care of my childrens needs. Now if my husband had to file he would need a lawyer because he has secured debt such a mortgage, and several assets. But mine was all unsecured credit card debt. Pretty simple and straight forward. I didn't feel it was necessary in my particular case and I didn't have the money, also, I am not complaining about my case, I am complaining about the practices of this law firm and they way they went about things. Thanks for your comments and appreciate your viewpoint and advice.

M, I don't want to sound harsh, because I sympathize with your situation, but I don't know if I can avoid it. In your report, you pretty much pointed out exactly where this all went wrong: "Luckily I am a very educated and informed person and I know alot of legal things." If you don't KNOW that you know the law, then it is quite dangerous to assume that you do and take action accordingly. Every area of the law is vastly complex. Without a legal education, you don't know the law. Even legal professionals wouldn't dare delve into a specific area of the law with which they are unfamiliar, unless they want a malpractice claim against them. When I started law school I too thought I already knew the law pretty well. It didn't take more than a couple days of classes to teach me that I was seriously mistaken. Years later, there are still many areas of the law that I would never touch because, for as much as I do know, I have to recognizwe that there's alot that I don't. "I didn't have an attorney represent me in bankrupcty, (no need this is not a community property state and most everyting is in my husbands name)." This illustrates my point. Bankruptcy is a creature of federal law, and isn't entirely dependent on state law for matters of debt assignment and collectibility. for many debts, it doesn't matter whether you're in a community property state, or whether the accounts are jointly held. If one spouse declares bankruptcy, certain creditors can go after the spouse regardless of whether the couple is in a community property state, and without regard to the name/s on the account. Medical providers are a prime example. Say you have a husband and wife, all the property is in the husband's name, and the wife has a load of medical bills. If the wife declares Chapter 7 on her own, the medical creditors can then proceed against the husband, obtain a judgment against him, and file a lien against the property. Basically, to escape all debt in msot cases, married couples will have to file jointly. If they choose not to, they may find out that they just shelled out a good chunk of change, and spent an awful lot of time, only to find out that their bankruptcy declaration only shifted debts from one spouse to another. But they don't tell you that on those $25 form sites. And that (among many other factors) is why you need a lawyer. Your situation is somewhat different, but the same principle applies. Since this was a jointly held account, you and your husband were jointly responsible for it "in the entirety." When you had your debts discharged, the entire debt at hand shifted to your husband. And, as a spouse, the collectors can communicate with you about the debt. In other words, I don't see anything illegal here. Your bankruptcy was, for all practical purposes, ineffective as regards this debt. Your either going to have to pay it off, or your husband is going to have to file for himself. At any rate, best of luck, and get a lawyer next time.

Go to the budhibbs.com website and look under "Agencies to Avoid"...you will get an idea of what a sleazeball organization this is. The information there will be very helpful to you. They prey on people in bad situations through intimidation..trust me, they KNOW you're in bankruptcy and want to profit from what they hope is your ignorance. Don't give them a thing.