Complaint Review: WOLPOFF& ABRAMSON-GREAT SENECA FINANCIAL GROUP - AUGORA HILLS California

IT FEEL'S SO GOOD TO SEE THESE RESPONSES WHO ARE ON MY SIDE. THESE PEOPLE W&A DID SERVE ME A SUMMONS AT AN OLD ADDRESS THAT I HAD NOT LIVED AT FOR 4-5 YRS THEREFORE I NEVER ACTUALLY RECEIVED THE SUMMONS SO I WAS UNABLE TO DEFEND MYSELF AND I WAS NOT EVEN AWARE OF THE SUMMONS. THE GARNISHMENT DID COME OUT OF MY PAROLL CHECK. SINCE I FILED THIS REPORT I HAVE FILED A MODIFICATION AND I WON, THE COURT DISMISSED THE GARNESHMENT AND I WON MOST LIKELY DUE TO THE FACT THAT W&A DID NOT RESPOND TO THE MODIFICATION BECAUSE THE ADDRESS & PHONE NUMBER ON THE COURT SUMMONS AND THATTHE SHERRIFF HAD ON FILE WERE FRAUDULANT. THOUGH I DID LOSE $2300.00 OF GARNISHED MONEY FROM W&A. HOWEVER I WAS HAPPY THAT I WON THE CASE. I GREATLY APPRECIATE ALL THE RESPONSES. AND IF MY INFO CAN HELP OTHERS IN THE SAME ORDEAL BY ALL MEANS I PRAY THAT THIS INFO HELPS THEM. JUSTICE WAS SERVED FOR ME IN THIS CASE REGARDLESS OF ALL I LOST. HOWEVER THESE PEOPLE SHOULD BE STOPPED. ONCE AGAIN THANK YOU TO ALL WHO RESPONDED!

Broavo to the lady above and Steve from Bradenton. I have by way of certain posts in consumer oriented forums educated the public as best I can and had encounterd Steve from Bradenton in another discussion re credit counseling and a so called lawyer speaking with you. I feel in a way, have seen this industry go down so low, (others as well, American business in general) and I wanted to thank you for adding to my knowledge base. I had did some consumer writing based on my thoughts and feelings as I worked for a bank and student loan lender and realized that younger people, coming out of college w/student loans and credit card debt had little chance at financial success and the problems were being compounded by the growing factoring industry. At work I would read credit report after credit report, speak with these people and realize the misery they went thru. Then when a massive layoff at a bank forced me to take a job at a debt settlement company I was then convinced I would educate in this field, that was somehow what I wanted to do, was horrified at the tactics, and targeted lead generation, elderly, high unsecured debt, didn't understand how the owners and managers (most employees did not know what was going on, really believed they were "arbitrating" and helping people) could sleep at night. When they realized I had a little more knowledge, I was instructed not to tell anyone what true arbitration was, shut up, and go with the flow, at least you'll make some money. The end came when they asked all to raise their hand that believed in the program. I was the only one who did not. I quit shortly after, suffering financially, since, but with dignity, as I float from employer after employer, lower and lower, but with a little good feeling many people rely on me for information. I'm learning more and more at this forum-has been a great place for me to continue my education. Thought I knew a lot, been realizing how much I don't know, for instance did not know that the collection industry had infiltrated the Arbitration process. Kind of like the industry found a way back to the 60's and 70's when calls from "City Marshalls", and collectors posing as attorneys was the norm. Well irregardless, I will continue my studies, here, and however I may help, fine, my little spec in this universe is a little place I set up www.answersfordebt.com, an altruistic project, and if some money came from it well fine wouldn't shake a stick at it, but guess I'm going to have to learn much more, and would like to join in this campaign against the "bottom feeders"...... and hope could do some more writing, with a mentor, but need to earn a living preventing that for now. I had planned a guide to help student loan debtors understand laws, and what they were up against, but had to put it off to pay rent. In conclusion, why must we fail before we succeed, so much damage done before justice and redemption, and so my consumer suggestion here is learn about the predators and then - one by one - validation by validation, etc. Thanks Steve from Bradenton- T & J in Port Richey, hmmmm not too far away! In more ways than one.

Broavo to the lady above and Steve from Bradenton. I have by way of certain posts in consumer oriented forums educated the public as best I can and had encounterd Steve from Bradenton in another discussion re credit counseling and a so called lawyer speaking with you. I feel in a way, have seen this industry go down so low, (others as well, American business in general) and I wanted to thank you for adding to my knowledge base. I had did some consumer writing based on my thoughts and feelings as I worked for a bank and student loan lender and realized that younger people, coming out of college w/student loans and credit card debt had little chance at financial success and the problems were being compounded by the growing factoring industry. At work I would read credit report after credit report, speak with these people and realize the misery they went thru. Then when a massive layoff at a bank forced me to take a job at a debt settlement company I was then convinced I would educate in this field, that was somehow what I wanted to do, was horrified at the tactics, and targeted lead generation, elderly, high unsecured debt, didn't understand how the owners and managers (most employees did not know what was going on, really believed they were "arbitrating" and helping people) could sleep at night. When they realized I had a little more knowledge, I was instructed not to tell anyone what true arbitration was, shut up, and go with the flow, at least you'll make some money. The end came when they asked all to raise their hand that believed in the program. I was the only one who did not. I quit shortly after, suffering financially, since, but with dignity, as I float from employer after employer, lower and lower, but with a little good feeling many people rely on me for information. I'm learning more and more at this forum-has been a great place for me to continue my education. Thought I knew a lot, been realizing how much I don't know, for instance did not know that the collection industry had infiltrated the Arbitration process. Kind of like the industry found a way back to the 60's and 70's when calls from "City Marshalls", and collectors posing as attorneys was the norm. Well irregardless, I will continue my studies, here, and however I may help, fine, my little spec in this universe is a little place I set up www.answersfordebt.com, an altruistic project, and if some money came from it well fine wouldn't shake a stick at it, but guess I'm going to have to learn much more, and would like to join in this campaign against the "bottom feeders"...... and hope could do some more writing, with a mentor, but need to earn a living preventing that for now. I had planned a guide to help student loan debtors understand laws, and what they were up against, but had to put it off to pay rent. In conclusion, why must we fail before we succeed, so much damage done before justice and redemption, and so my consumer suggestion here is learn about the predators and then - one by one - validation by validation, etc. Thanks Steve from Bradenton- T & J in Port Richey, hmmmm not too far away! In more ways than one.

Broavo to the lady above and Steve from Bradenton. I have by way of certain posts in consumer oriented forums educated the public as best I can and had encounterd Steve from Bradenton in another discussion re credit counseling and a so called lawyer speaking with you. I feel in a way, have seen this industry go down so low, (others as well, American business in general) and I wanted to thank you for adding to my knowledge base. I had did some consumer writing based on my thoughts and feelings as I worked for a bank and student loan lender and realized that younger people, coming out of college w/student loans and credit card debt had little chance at financial success and the problems were being compounded by the growing factoring industry. At work I would read credit report after credit report, speak with these people and realize the misery they went thru. Then when a massive layoff at a bank forced me to take a job at a debt settlement company I was then convinced I would educate in this field, that was somehow what I wanted to do, was horrified at the tactics, and targeted lead generation, elderly, high unsecured debt, didn't understand how the owners and managers (most employees did not know what was going on, really believed they were "arbitrating" and helping people) could sleep at night. When they realized I had a little more knowledge, I was instructed not to tell anyone what true arbitration was, shut up, and go with the flow, at least you'll make some money. The end came when they asked all to raise their hand that believed in the program. I was the only one who did not. I quit shortly after, suffering financially, since, but with dignity, as I float from employer after employer, lower and lower, but with a little good feeling many people rely on me for information. I'm learning more and more at this forum-has been a great place for me to continue my education. Thought I knew a lot, been realizing how much I don't know, for instance did not know that the collection industry had infiltrated the Arbitration process. Kind of like the industry found a way back to the 60's and 70's when calls from "City Marshalls", and collectors posing as attorneys was the norm. Well irregardless, I will continue my studies, here, and however I may help, fine, my little spec in this universe is a little place I set up www.answersfordebt.com, an altruistic project, and if some money came from it well fine wouldn't shake a stick at it, but guess I'm going to have to learn much more, and would like to join in this campaign against the "bottom feeders"...... and hope could do some more writing, with a mentor, but need to earn a living preventing that for now. I had planned a guide to help student loan debtors understand laws, and what they were up against, but had to put it off to pay rent. In conclusion, why must we fail before we succeed, so much damage done before justice and redemption, and so my consumer suggestion here is learn about the predators and then - one by one - validation by validation, etc. Thanks Steve from Bradenton- T & J in Port Richey, hmmmm not too far away! In more ways than one.

Broavo to the lady above and Steve from Bradenton. I have by way of certain posts in consumer oriented forums educated the public as best I can and had encounterd Steve from Bradenton in another discussion re credit counseling and a so called lawyer speaking with you. I feel in a way, have seen this industry go down so low, (others as well, American business in general) and I wanted to thank you for adding to my knowledge base. I had did some consumer writing based on my thoughts and feelings as I worked for a bank and student loan lender and realized that younger people, coming out of college w/student loans and credit card debt had little chance at financial success and the problems were being compounded by the growing factoring industry. At work I would read credit report after credit report, speak with these people and realize the misery they went thru. Then when a massive layoff at a bank forced me to take a job at a debt settlement company I was then convinced I would educate in this field, that was somehow what I wanted to do, was horrified at the tactics, and targeted lead generation, elderly, high unsecured debt, didn't understand how the owners and managers (most employees did not know what was going on, really believed they were "arbitrating" and helping people) could sleep at night. When they realized I had a little more knowledge, I was instructed not to tell anyone what true arbitration was, shut up, and go with the flow, at least you'll make some money. The end came when they asked all to raise their hand that believed in the program. I was the only one who did not. I quit shortly after, suffering financially, since, but with dignity, as I float from employer after employer, lower and lower, but with a little good feeling many people rely on me for information. I'm learning more and more at this forum-has been a great place for me to continue my education. Thought I knew a lot, been realizing how much I don't know, for instance did not know that the collection industry had infiltrated the Arbitration process. Kind of like the industry found a way back to the 60's and 70's when calls from "City Marshalls", and collectors posing as attorneys was the norm. Well irregardless, I will continue my studies, here, and however I may help, fine, my little spec in this universe is a little place I set up www.answersfordebt.com, an altruistic project, and if some money came from it well fine wouldn't shake a stick at it, but guess I'm going to have to learn much more, and would like to join in this campaign against the "bottom feeders"...... and hope could do some more writing, with a mentor, but need to earn a living preventing that for now. I had planned a guide to help student loan debtors understand laws, and what they were up against, but had to put it off to pay rent. In conclusion, why must we fail before we succeed, so much damage done before justice and redemption, and so my consumer suggestion here is learn about the predators and then - one by one - validation by validation, etc. Thanks Steve from Bradenton- T & J in Port Richey, hmmmm not too far away! In more ways than one.

Cindy, First, you are dealing with some genuine lowlife here. These are junk debt buyers who purchase this type of very old debt for usually less than a penny on the dollar. Second, you CANNOT get garnished [legally] without FIRST being sued. Did you ignore a summons? Third, every state has its own guidelines on garnishments and usually there is a maximum percentage they can take. Fourth, you never specified if the garnishment was of your paycheck through your employer or of your bank account. Which is it? This makes a big difference. The first thing you need to do is STOP them from getting anymore of your money. If they are garnishing your bank account, withdraw all cash from the account and stop all direct deposits. Then CLOSE that account immediately and open a new one at a DIFFERENT bank. This is very important. If the garnishment is of your paycheck through your employer, you need to file a written notice of fraudulent garnishment to both your employer and W&A. You need to DEMAND to see whatever documents were presented to start the garnishment, get copies of them and examine them very carefully. It is common practice of these bottomfeeders to engage in "sewer service" where they knowingly serve an old, or totally bogus address, knowing that you will not respond. Then they quickly move for the default judgement and subsequent garnishment. If this is what they did, first file a BAR ASSOCIATION complaint against all "lawyers" involved, and a complaint with the FTC, and your state attorney general. Now, after doing all of the legwork, get an attorney ASAP! Bud Hibbs can give you more advice and/or make an attorney referral for you. Go to buddhibbs.com for more info. FYI These lowlife are listed on the web as the worst of the worst as far as debt collectors go. They have a terrible reputation. Here is their contact info: Agency Details Wolpoff & Abramson, LLP 702 King Farm Blvd. Ste 500 Rockville, MD 20850-5775 Phone: (240) 386-3000 800-850-0948 800-303-0930 800-678-7720 - 800-365-6584 888-200-4417 800-302-7933 Fax: (240) 386-3822 & 240-386-3823 Head Debt Collectors: Stuart J. Wolpoff, President Harry K. Wolpoff, CCCE, Partner Laurence C. Abramson, Partner Ronald Marc Abramson, Partner Here is what Bud Hibbs has to say about them, and a listing of their dba's: Bud Says... ONE OF AMERICA'S WORST COLLECTION AGENCYS! Can you say BILLIONAIRES?? Yes, Wolpoff & Abramson are on target o become the first BILLIONAIRES of the collection industry. They have an incredible network of law firms across the country who sue on debt that were purchased for pennies, then many have arbitration claims files and/or sue upon. They buy themselves whatever they want and sometime, whomever they want to achieve their goals. To put this empire of scam in perspective here are some of the players: First, one false rumor is that Wolpoff & Abramson (W&A) own the National Arbitration Forum (NAF); that is FALSE! They are the single largest supplier of claims to the NAF and at $ 250.00/per claim, it's easy to see why they win approximately 95-98% of all claims filed. This is further bolstered by the fact that NAF pays their arbitrators (attorneys, retired judges) a fee of $250/hour to handle claims. The rules state they must handle six claims per hour for this $250, so you can understand that any claimant would be lucky for even a cursory review of documents. Buying bad debts for 2-3on the dollar (many for a lot less), paying the NAF $250 with an almost guaranteed award in your favor and a network of lawyers filing suits spells money on the level of a South American drug cartel to Wolpoff & Abramson. W&A pulls the strings for NCAN; the National Collection Attorney Network which is comprised of over 100 law offices across the U.S. of attorneys who sue on debts. A few of these attorneys are good, honest, hard working, many more are inept, have very little understanding of the FDCPA, have no knowledge of any material facts other than what they are told to say and do. They get paid a contingency fee to show up in court, many never do, hoping to take default judgments. Thank goodness for NACA attorneys who have the skills and experience to litigate against them, I recommend you always contact one at naca.net Think your going to beat an arbitration claim? Not when the arbitrator is being paid $250/hour and can be fed claims all day long. Think your rights under the law mean anything? Think again! I have been contacted on hundreds, perhaps thousands of arbitration claims and only one attorney from Texas had the guts to stand up and say Hey! This is wrong! The good news is he took his job seriously; the bad news is he is no longer an arbitrator for the NAF. Many of these arbitrators would feel very comfortable performing their jobs in a Nevada brothel as the two jobs perform similar services. Think your going to get satisfaction from the Montgomery County, MD or Maryland State Bar for ethics complaints against W&A? NOPE! Seems Daddy sits on both boards and not many complaints ever go very far. Here is a partial list of collectors owned/used by W&A: Alegis Group, Sherman Acquisitions, LVNV Funding, LLC Arrow Financial Services Asta Funding Colonial Credit Corporation Palisades Collections, LLC Preferred Platinum Plan aka The Porn Collectors Great Seneca Financial Centurion Capital Sage Financial Monarch Financial Hawker Financial W&A cannot purchase debts as a law firm, so they apparently use these shell organizations to accomplish that goal. Some of their largest NCAN Attorneys include: Cohen & Slamowitz, LLP Hosto & Buchan Javitz, Block, & Rathbone, LLP Mitchell N. Kay, P.C. Love, Beal & Nixon, P.C. Mel S. Harris & Associates Messerli & Kramer Johnson, Riddle & Mark fka/Riddle & Associates Trauner, Cohen & Thomas Weltman, Weinberg & Reis W&A also has offices in many cities where the phones and faxes all ring in at Rockville, MD. They use an auto dialer that calls some consumers as many as 20 times daily (according to complaints I received) and make it near impossible to get wrong persons removed. They file cases by the hundreds every day and reportedly even supply court clerks to work side by side with real court clerks to get the filings done. Want to validate a debt? Fuggettaboutit! Won't happen! Slows them down, who gives a d**n about the law and consumer rights? They have daily, weekly, monthly goals to hit. Besides, they will manufacture most documents in-house for court filings; even notarize them by employees attesting to hearsay facts that are not admissible in most courts. Some smart consumer attorney may one day put W&A employees under oath and learn that Affidavits that are legally supposed to be signed in the presence of the person attesting to the truthfulness (?) of the documents, have instead taken them home to be stamped and signed because of the work load. Again, the law and consumer rights are not the issue at W&A, profits are! NOTE TO EMPLOYEES AT W&A: THINK YOU HAVE PRIVACY WORKING THERE? THE NEW SECURITY PEOPLE (former CIA?) HAVE CAMERAS EVERYWHERE INCLUDING SEVERAL IN AREAS YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT. THINK YOUR COMPUTER ISN'T BEING MONITORED? THINK AGAIN! THERE ARE EYES EVERYWHERE, WATCHING YOU, CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY, THIS IS SECURITY 'CIA STYLE' NOTHING IS SECRET AT WORK! W&A will go to no end to protect their Niagara Falls of cash flowing into their coffers. Nobody is protected, nothing is sacred, whatever it takes. Money rules this organization, EVERYTHING else is secondary. They don't own the NAF but they d**n sure control them. My advice is to make them spend as much money as possible on each and every account they collect. Send them validation notices and tie up their collectors for as long as possible. NEVER fail to show up in court-- they miss a lot more court dates than they keep. Make the NAF work, send them validation notices, and force them to prove you are party to any arbitration agreement. Many, many courts are moving closer to consumers, and attitudes are changing, W&A has lost several BIG court decisions; keep as much pressure on them as you can. Each and every consumer fighting at the grass roots level will help, as well as making their illegal deeds known to your Congressman, Senators, and Judges. Use the experts at NACA www.naca.net This is a struggle Americans can win, one account, one consumer at a time. After you get over getting mad, GET EVEN! Make it costly to come after every account, it adds up quickly, a phone call, a stamp, a collector who can't collect; dispute, validate, make them pay with time and money at EVERY step. >> Good luck fighting these lowlife bottomfeeders. Get that attorney right away!

Cindy, First step: Contact your local Red Cross or Salvation Army for a referral to free legal aide in your area. Legal Aide providers are very strict about whom they provide free aide to. From what you wrote you may be eligible for free legal assistance...a low income single parent who has been pushed over the edge by this (probable) bogus garnishment. If you tell them that you and your child might end up homeless over this, that will make them listen. GREAT SENECA FINANCIAL, WOLPOFF & ABRAMSON. Absolute bottom feeders of the collection industry. They specialize in filing bogus lawsuits against either non-existent or beyond statue of limitations debt, then have the court summons ACCIDENTALLY" sent to the wrong or previous address...an address where they know that you won't be there to get the summons. so then the court date comes along and of course you are not at court as you have no idea about what is taking place. The court will by default give a default judgment against you for not showing up. This is their main trick. If you can prove that the court summons was sent to the wrong address, you can mostly likely get the judgment reversed. You'll need legal help with this, so that's why I'm referring you to free legal aide. Even if this isn't the case, you're still going to need legal help...otherwise the judgment/garnishment will stay as is. Good Luck! ============ From budhibbs Wolpoff & Abramson, one of the top ten WORST debt collection bottom-feeders in America has recently slipped to a new low. We are all aware how they file those absurd arbitration claims to keep the National Arbitration Forum in business with an award level of around 97% of the cases filed. Many of us know how the lawyers and retired judges working to make extra income are paid $250/hour to rule in favor of the claims filed, in spite of the fact that many of those attorneys are from fields so distant from the process that they are almost comical, however the money DOES get the job done and this is only about money. So they take their $250/hourly fee, paid to them by the National Arbitration Forum, rule in favor of all NAF clients and deposit the checks. After all, this is American big business and what rights does a consumer have in this environment? In their quest to make up for the pending loss of revenues resulting from the Bank of America merger of MBNA, where Wolpoff & Abramson and the National Arbitration Forum will be without their big money maker, they are seeking new ventures that bring in the big bucks and possibly (again) trample consumer rights. One such scam they have ventured into is the bottom-feeder business. This one is called: GREAT SENECA FINANCIAL CORPORATION AND PLATINUM FINANCIAL SERVICES CORPORATION, which also appears to feed their mortgage business at FIRST RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE NETWORK, INC. (This is where consumers are told to apply for a loan to pay off those credit cards that are unsecured.) In their true form to steal every dollar they can from unsophisticated consumers, the brains at GREAT SENECA FINANCIAL CORP. have added to their nationwide attorney network, claims from their new bottom feeder entity. GSFC purchases portfolio's of old debts, then attempts to collect on them at an incredible large profit. The fact that these debts may be time barred by statute, or included in a previous bankruptcy, or even paid, makes no difference to these bottom feeders, they sue everyone equally, even when they have to lie about it. As the AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF JUDGMENT which was filed with a GSFC lawsuit is shown below, they will go to any lengths to lie and extort monies they are NOT entitled to, even lie on sworn affidavits that are notarized by company employees. To make this particular affidavit even worse, it originated with another American icon of the bottom feeder industry, Sherman Acquisitions aka/LVNV Funding, another snake that lies, cheats, steals and rips off consumers on a grand scale. It's amazing how all of these cockroaches ended up in the same bed; after all, you are where else would rats go? CATHERINE LAM, ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT for Wolpoff & Abramson, Great Seneca Financial, why did you lie on a bogus court filing? How often do you commit perjury in the scope of your duties as assistant vice president? Are you being paid extra to lie and commit perjury on these false court filings? Why are you involved in illegal court filings? Is it for the money? How many times have you lied for Wolpoff & Abramson and Great Seneca Financial? How many consumers were ripped off because of what you do? How can you cash your paycheck knowing that you had to tell lies to get it? We have name for people who do things for money Catherine, SHAME ON YOU! Catherine Law, Assistant (& expendable) Vice President, We hope you and Notary Michael Roshal suffer the full wrath of the legal system for your blatant lies and total disregard for the law and consumer rights. You have proved once again that nothing matters when it comes to money, especially the truth!