Just because someone is a lawyer doesn’t mean he or she is knowledgeable in the area of consumer law. If you are going after a credit bureau, original creditor, or collection agency, you need to talk to a specialist in this field. Similar to the medical field, the legal field is very broad and no one can know everything about all areas of law. That’s why lawyers specialize in fields such as criminal, family, corporate, accident/injury, tax, and credit law. Just as you wouldn’t ask a divorce lawyer to handle your credit case, you wouldn’t ask a heart specialist to do brain surgery, at least we hope you wouldn’t. While in some cases bankruptcy attorneys can handle credit law, in most cases, they do not. We recommend not using a bankruptcy attorney if they are not familiar with the FCRA and FDCPA.
Finding a Consumer Attorney
Unfortunately, there are not a lot of consumer attorneys out there because the impression is that there is not much money to be made. Of course, that impression is incorrect. The number of illegal actions taken by credit bureaus, collection agencies, auto dealerships, and credit card companies is staggering. Here’s our pitch to anyone currently in the legal field — take up this type of practice. You will be doing yourself, and the consumer, a great service.
Attorney Qualifications
The other roadblock to finding an attorney is that an attorney must be licensed to practice law in your state. Each state has very different laws and procedures for taking a case to court and an attorney must be intimately familiar with them. In order to be licensed in a particular state, the attorney must take and pass the very difficult bar exam, even if he or she has practiced law for many years in a different state.
Some Attorneys Our Readers Have Recommended
The list below represents lawyers that our readers have recommended. By the way, the fact that readers have recommended these lawyers means that they have won their cases against the credit bureaus and collection agencies, something that should encourage you to fight.
If you cannot find a lawyer in your state listed here, there are a couple of other ways to find one.
- Go to the National Association of Consumer Attorneys (NACA). Note: A large percentage of these lawyers handle class-action lawsuits exclusively, but there are some on the list that will take an individual case.
- Another good idea is to go to the court website listing the active civil cases in your state and county. Input the creditor you think is going to sue (or any of the big creditors) into the search engine. The case listings will include the lawyer or firm representing the defendant. If you see one lawyer who has handled multiple cases for defendants, you can assume they are well versed in consumer law. If this lawyer has cases scheduled in the future, you can even go to the court on the appearance date and watch their performance in court.
If you know of another lawyer that has helped you out, we want to know. None of these lawyers has paid us to list him or her here.
ALABAMA
Earl Underwood
Underwood & Reimer, P.C.
Mobile, AL
(800) 273-9534
M Stan Herring & John G Watts
Watts Law Group, P.C.
Birmingham, AL
(205) 879-2447
ARIZONA
Mark Willimann
The Law Office of Mark F. Millimann, LLC
Tucson, AZ
(520) 579-6622
Floyd W. Bybee
Bybee Law Center, PLC
Mesa, AZ
(480) 756-8822
Hyung S. Choi
Choi & Fabian, PLC
Tempe, AZ
(480) 517-1400
Richard Groves
The Law Office of Richard Groves
Phoenix, AZ
(602) 230-0995
CALIFORNIA
Howard Silver
Law Offices of Howard D. Silver
Oak Park, CA
(855) 341-2611
Robert L. Hyde
Hyde & Swigart
San Diego, CA
(619) 233-7770
M. David Magher
The Law Offices of M. David Meagher
Escondido, CA
(760) 743-2200
William Krieg
Kemnitzer, Barron & Krieg
Fresno, CA
(559) 441-7485
William E. Kennedy
Consumer Law Office of William E. Kennedy
Santa Clara, CA
(408) 241-1000
Fred W. Schwinn
Consumer Law Center, Inc.
San Jose, CA
(408) 294-6100
Alexander B. Trueblood
The Trueblood Law Firm
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 443-4139
COLORADO
List of Consumer Protection Lawyers
CONNECTICUT
Joanne Faulkner
New Haven, CT
(203) 772-0395
FLORIDA
Mary Reid Mayo Morelly, Esq.
Edgewater, FL
(386) 689-6591
GEORGIA
Kris Skaar & James M. Feagle
Decatur, GA
(404) 373-1970
Marietta, GA
(770) 427 5600
Skaar and Feagle
Law Offices of James M. Feagle, P.C.
Lawrence Silverman
Southeast Consumer Law Group
3535 Roswell Rd., Suite 9
Marietta, GA 30062
770-973-2599, ext. 207
IDAHO
Ann Jacquot
Jacquot Law, PLLC
Coeur d’Alene, ID
(208) 209-6399
ILLINOIS
Schad, Diamond & Shedden
Law Offices of Schad, Diamond & Shedden
Chicago, IL
(800) 294-0539
Daniel A. Edelman
Edelman, Combs, Latturner & Goodwin, LLC
Chicago, IL
(888) 592-6124
O. Randolph Bragg
Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates
Chicago, IL
(312) 372-8822
INDIANA
List of Consumer Protection Lawyers
KENTUCKY
Borowitz Law Group, PLC
Louisville, KY
(502) 584-7378
LOUSIANA
Robert M. Louque, Jr.
Louque Law
700 Camp Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
(504) 324-2807
Toll Free: 1-866-264-4690
MARYLAND
Sonya A. Smith-Valentine
Valentine Legal Group, LLC
Largo, MD
(301) 513-9500
MASSACHUSETTS
Elisa Zawadzkas
Michael A. Zawadzkas Attorney at Law
Orleans, MA
(508) 240-1403
MICHIGAN
Ian Lyngklip
Lyngklip & Associates
Southfield, MI
(248) 208-8864
Kurt Okeefe
Bankruptcy & Consumer Lawyer
Detroit, MI
(877) 817-9506
MINNESOTA
Peter F. Barry
Barry & Helwig, LLC
St. Paul, MN
(612) 379-8800
Thomas J. Lyons
Lyons Law Firm, P.A.
Vadnais Heights, MN
(651) 770-9707
MISSISSIPPI
Christopher E. Kittell
Merkel & Cocke, P.A.
Clarksdale, MS
(662) 627-9641
MISSOURI
Peter Van Leunen
The Van Leunen Law Firm, LLC
The VL Law Firm
5838 Macklind Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63109
(314) 481-4646
NEVADA
Craig Friedburg
Consumer Law
4760 South Pecos Road, Suite
103 Las Vegas, NV 89121
(702) 435-7968
Mitchell D. Gliner
Attorney at Law
Las Vegas, NV
(702) 870-8700
NEW JERSEY
List of Consumer Protection Lawyers
NEW MEXICO
Rick Feferman & Susan Warren
Law Offices of Feferman & Warren
Albuquerque, NM
(505) 243-7773
NEW YORK
Anthony J. Pietrafesa
Law Office of Anthony J. Pietrafesa
Albany NY
(518) 518-0851
James B. Fishman
Fishman Rosen, LLP
New York, NY
(212) 897-5840
NORTH CAROLINA
List of Consumer Protection Lawyers
OHIO
List of Consumer Protection Lawyers
OKLAHOMA
Justin Lamunyon
Lamunyon Law Firm, P.C.
Enid, OK
(580) 242-4621
David Humphreys
HWH Lawyers
Tulsa, OK
(918) 747-5300
B. David Sisson
Law Offices of B. David Sisson
Norman, OK
(405) 447-2521
William Irons
Irons Law Firm, PLLC
Tulsa, OK
(918) 392-0079
OREGON
Robert S. Sola
Portland, OR
(503) 295-6880
Rudyard Coltman
Yervasi & Coltman, LLP
Baker City, OR
(541) 663-8987
PENNSYLVANIA
James A. Francis
Francis & Mailman, P.C.
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 735-8600
James Pietz
Malakoff, Doyle & Finberg, P.C.
Pittsburgh, PA
(412) 281-8400
Cary L. Flitter
Cary L. Flitter, Esq.
Narberth, PA
(610) 822-0789
RHODE ISLAND
Chris LeFebvre
The Consumer and Family Law Center of Claude Lefebvre, Christopher Lefebvre, P.C.
Pawtucket, RI
(401) 728-6060
SOUTH CAROLINA
Dave Maxfield
Trotter & Maxfield, Attorneys at Law
5217 N. Trenholm Road, Suite B
Columbia, SC 29206
(803) 509-6800
TEXAS
Michael T. O’Conner
The Law Offices of Dean Malone, P.C.
900 Jackson Street
Dallas, TX
(214) 670-9989
TENNESSEE
Barnette Law Offices
309 Hollow Tree Court
Nashville, TN 37221
615-585-2245
615-250-8787 (fax)
UTAH
Lester A. Perry
Hoole & King, L.C.
Salt Lake City, UT
(801) 272-7556
Atkins & Shields P.C.
Salt Lake City, UT
(801) 533-0300
VIRGINIA
Leonard A. Bennett
Consumer Litigation Associates, P.C.
Newport News, VA
(757) 930-3660
G. R. “Rusty” Boleman
Boleman Law Firm
Richmond, VA
(804) 355-2057
Dale Pittman
Petersburg, VA
(804) 861-6000
WASHINGTON
Christopher Green
Attorney at Law
Seattle, WA
(206) 686-4558
WISCONSIN
Daniel A. Edelman
Edelman, Combs, Latturner & Goodwin, LLC
Chicago, IL
(888) 592-6124
