Once a creditor or debt collector has been advised that you have hired a LeavenLaw attorney for representation regarding your debt owed to or collected by them, they cannot continue to communicate directly with you in an attempt to collect the debt. Instead, they must communicate with our law firm. If they do not, and they continue to send you credit card statements, continue to make debt collection calls, turn you over to a third-party debt collector who collects from you on the creditor’s behalf, or send you collection letters, they have violated both the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA") and the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act ("FCCPA"). If the creditor or debt collector calls your cellular telephone using an automatic telephone dialing system, you could be entitled to up to $1,500.00 per call under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA").

If you do continue to get collection calls or letters, please take note, save the letters and voicemails, and call our office for free assistance.

Credit Card Statements

Many times, after you have notified your credit card company that you have hired a LeavenLaw attorney for representation regarding that credit card (or your debts, generally) they will continue to send you credit card statements or periodic billing statements. In these credit card statements, the creditor will tell you:

  • Past Due Balance
  • Please call to make payment arrangements
  • Please call our office to discuss a payment plan or payment alternatives
  • Continued late payments could affect your credit score
  • We will report your account as past due if payment is not received immediately

Any words contained in a periodic billing statement that expressly command (or ask you) to pay the debt are likely violations of the FCCPA, assuming the creditor knew you were represented by an attorney with regard to the debt. This rule of law was established by the attorneys of LeavenLaw in the seminal case of Kelliher v. Target National, litigated and decided here in the federal courts. If you get such statements, please, call our office and ask to speak to a paralegal or attorney in the Consumer Law / Creditor Harassment Department. We will be happy to analyze your case for free.

Collection Calls

If you get debt collection calls after you (or our office) has provided the creditor or their debt collector notice of our office’s representation of you regarding the debt, they have violated the law. As such, you could be entitled to up to $1,000.00 damages under each the FCCPA and the FDCPA, and possibly up to $1,500.00 per call under the TCPA--if they are auto-dialing your cellular telephone or leaving automated messages. If you continued to get debt collection calls, take good notes using the LeavenLaw Communications Log and call our office to discuss your rights.

Turn-over to Debt Collector

Once a creditor has been notified a LeavenLaw attorney represents you with regard to your debts, they cannot try to get around the law simply by turning the debt over to a debt collector for further collection directly from you. Such "willful blindness" is not allowed. Instead, the creditor has a duty to inform the debt collector that you have hired our office and provide their debt collector notice of our representation. If they do not provide the debt collector such information and the debt collector attempts to collect the debt from you rather than contacting our office, the creditor has certainly violated the FCCPA. And a good argument exists that the debt collector violated both the FCCPA and the FDCPA. Our law firm has litigated this very issue, and has obtained a critical, published decision by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division: Kelliher v. Target National Bank.

If you continue to get collection communications -- calls or letters -- from a debt collector after you told the creditor of our representation, you have a case. Save the letters, gather your collection call notes and call us.

Collection Letters

Once a debt is past due, the reality is, you will in all likelihood receive collection letters from third-party debt collectors. If the creditor, however, has been notified of your representation regarding the debt owed to that creditor, they cannot just turn it over to a debt collector for continued collection. Your creditor must let their debt collector know that you hired a LeavenLaw attorney for representation regarding the debt and provide them with our contact information for further debt collection communication. If your creditor does not, and the debt collector attempts to collect the debt directly from you, the creditor and perhaps the debt collector, have violated with FCCPA and the FDCPA, respectively. Please call us to discuss your case if anyone attempts to collect a debt from you after you have advised them of notice of our representation.

The LeavenLaw Consumer Law & Creditor Harassment Department offers free consultations and case reviews to help individuals in tough, financials straights. Call today to discuss your case. (727) 346.6050.