Blog – The Royal Law Office

5 Tactics to Use when Dealing with Debt Collectors

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:50:00 GMT

Debt collection is profitable for debt collectors! There are about 4,100 debt collection agencies in the United States, “employing nearly 450,000 people, and the industry expects to grow by 23 percent over the next three years,” notes Peter Van Buren, in a Huffington Post Blog entitled “Poverty is Profitable: 1 out of 3 US Consumers in Debt Collection”. He explains that in 2010, Debt Collection Agencies collected about $40 billion dollars from consumers. In another area of debt, Van Buren states, American banks are collecting approximately $30 billion dollars a year in overdraft fees, instead of bouncing checks when customers write a check that exceeds the amount in their account! How does this impact consumers? Van Buren quotes a report by the Urban Institute and Encore Capital Group’s Consumer Credit Research Institute that says that 77 million Americans have a debt in collection. If you are one of the over 77 million Americans with a debt in collection, the following tips are for you.

TACTIC #1
Know your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. As a consumer, you generally have the right to have the debt validated and verified, the right to be protected from harassment and abuse in the collection of a debt, and the right to sue debt collectors for violation of the law.

TACTIC #2
Make sure the debt is not “old” and past the time that it can be collected via the filing of a lawsuit. If the statute of limitations has passed, the collection agency does not have the right to pursue the collection of the debt in court. If you are coerced into making a payment on an old debt however, you may lose the protections of the statute of limitations and the collection agency may get additional time in which to sue you, extending the time period allowed by the statute of limitations.

TACTIC #3
Verify the debt. Scrutinize any information that is provided to you as verification of the debt. Did you live at the address in question? Is the name listed correctly? Did you ever have a debt with the original creditor? Have you already paid the debt? These are the questions you should be asking before making payment arrangements.

TACTIC #4
Don’t ignore collection attempts. If you ignore the attempts, the debt collector may file suit against you. If that happens you will be in danger of being subject to a default judgment if you do not respond to the court proceedings. Its best to try to work out a payment arrangement or settle the debt for a lesser amount.

TACTIC #5
Get any settlement agreements or payment arrangements in writing. The written agreement and your payment receipts will be proof of payment if the debt is sold to another collector who begins collection efforts against you.

In conclusion, these five (5) tactics should help you to deal with a debt collector should you be contacted in the collection of a debt. If the debt collector refuses to comply with the law, abuses or harasses you in the collection of a debt, or fails to stop collection actions when you have shown that the debt has been paid or the debt is not yours, you may wish to consult with an attorney . The Royal Legal Group, LLC, is here to help .

10 Tips to help you get your business started

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:48:00 GMT

What do you need to know to open a business? In order to get started, use a checklist to make sure you have covered the basics. The U.S. Small Business Administration suggests the following 10 steps.

The first and most important step, in my opinion, is to write a business plan. Having a business plan will give you direction and help you focus. It will also help you to get a handle on what funds you will need, and help you to identify your resources and partners. This first step and the remaining steps to include in your checklist are:

You may also wish to align yourself with several professionals for guidance and advice. You may have questions about taxes, financing, trademarks and liability, that an accountant, a banker, an attorney and an insurance professional should be able to answer. In addition these and other professionals may be able to assist you at each step of the process if you need help.

If you need legal assistance, call the Royal Legal Group, LLC. 202-255-6921 For more information on the steps to take when starting a business, and to help you identify resources go to www.sba.gov .

The post 10 Tips to help you get your business started appeared first on The Royal Law Office .

6 Steps to take to Clean up Your Credit History

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:46:00 GMT

Your credit report is reviewed if you want to buy a house, or a car, or even when you apply for a job. Many of us don’t know what is on our credit report. How old is the information? How long does it stay on your report? Is there anything you can do to remove stale or inaccurate information? Read further to find out some of the steps that you can take to Clean Up Your Credit History!

Step #1
Obtain a copy of your credit report from the major credit reporting agencies, Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. Review the report with a highlighter noting inaccurate information like names, dates, addresses, creditors, and negative information, etc.

Step #2
Know your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The Fair Credit Reporting Act promotes accuracy, fairness and privacy in the reporting of consumer credit information. You have a right to know what is in your file and you have the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. The reporting agency must investigate your dispute and correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete or unverfiable information from your report.

Step #3
Dispute incomplete, inaccurate or unverifiable information in writing. Follow the credit reporting agency’s procedure for disputing credit report entries. Many credit reporting agencies have forms available online for this purpose.

Step #4
Contact the Creditor or Debt Collector Directly. Provide information and/or documentation in support of your dispute. The creditor or debt collector must be able to verify the debt in order for it to remain on your credit report. Once the issue is resolved, have the Creditor or Debt Collector contact the credit reporting agencies to correct your credit report.

Step #5
File a complaint with a federal or state agency that handles consumer protection matters if the creditor won’t request that the inaccurate information be removed.

Step #6
Sue the Creditor if the creditor continues to provide inaccurate information and will not correct it. The Fair Credit Reporting Act provides for this, but creditors also have protections under this law.

If you need legal help getting your credit report cleaned up, contact the Royal Legal Group, LLC . We are here to help.

4 Reasons Why You Should Use an Attorney to Draft your Legal Agreements

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:45:00 GMT

Everyone wants to save money. But do you want to run the risk of costing yourself and/or your business more money in the long run with hastily crafted documents that are not legally sound? Here are some reasons why you might consider having an attorney review and/or draft your legal agreements.

Reason No. 1
You may end up bound to terms that you don’t want. Without fully understanding the laws that may affect your business you may inadvertently not include terms in your agreement that are required by law. Many states have consumer protection laws that require businesses that perform door-to-door sales to have language concerning a three day right to cancel in its contracts. Don’t take the words “door to door” literally. If the contract is signed in a place that is other than the seller’s place of business, the door-to -door sales rule may apply. Other laws may have an affect on your legal obligations to your customers.

Reason No. 2
Online Legal Document Libraries may be enticing, but you may not understand the terms that you are putting in your document. It’s hard to know what goes in and what should be taken out when you are trying to customize a document to your needs without legal training. You are taking a chance that may have legal consequences if you don’t understand what you are doing.

Reason No. 3
You may not be creating a valid and enforceable agreement. The purpose of a contract is to memorialize the agreement of the parties in writing, so there is no confusion as to each party’s obligation under the contract. If the contract is not legally valid it is not enforceable. Accordingly you would not be able to use the contract in court to enforce your rights under it and it is useless. A contract attorney will know what terms are needed to protect your rights.

Reason No. 4
You may not be protecting your interests. Without being familiar with contract law, a contract drafted by a non-lawyer may not protect your interests at all, especially if you are unaware of what rights you may have. Laws may need to be interpreted in order to determine your rights. An experienced attorney can draft and negotiate contracts that will protect your interests and will be legally sound.

The Royal Legal Group can draft your legal documents for you. If you need help contact Stephanie Royal at sroyal@royallawoffice.com .

6 Common Estate Planning Mistakes

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:44:00 GMT

If you want to know if you need to start the Estate Planning process, ask yourself if you want to have some say during your life how your property will be distributed after your life. Also ask yourself, how will health care decisions be made if you are incapacitated. The American Bar Association recomends that you engage in Estate Planning in order to provide for your immediate family; to reduce stress on your family; to help a favorite cause; and to choose your Executor or Trustee. If you want to have input then watch out for these five things as you prepare to make decisions about your property and your health. You may also wish to name a guardian for minor children and be able to choose your beneficiaries.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #1
Thinking you don’t need a Will or an Advance Directive for Healthcare. We live in a society where SUVs rule the road, we use airplanes for travel, shootings can happen on college campuses and other dangers and illnesses can befall us. Having a Will and Advance Directives for Healthcare make sure you are prepared in the event that you are incapacitated or die. Having a Will should be part of your financial “to do” list. It is the only way to really have control over the decisions you would make if you were there to make them.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #2
Not telling anyone about your Will or other Estate Planning documents. At a minimum you should tell your personal representative about your Will and also provide that person with the location of the Will. If you die and no one knows that you made a Will or where it is, then it may not be implemented. In addition, if you wish to discuss with your family members how you will distribute your posessions, you may wish to do it sooner than later. There may be animosity and disagreements, but you can deal with it now. Once you are gone it will be too later.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #3
Not using a Trust to avoid the probate process. Generally assets in a trust pass outside of probate. This may allow your beneficiaries to have access to your assets faster than they would under a Will. A testamentary trust is a trust that is outlined in a will and funded after death with funds subject to probate. A revocable living trust is a trust created that allows your assets to pass outside of probate, but also allows you to be names as Trustee during your life so that you can control the assets during your lifetime. In order to fund a revocable living trust, your assets must be titled in the name of the trust.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #4
Not updating your Will. Life happens. If you executed your Will many years ago, it may be time to update it. Maybe you didn’t have children at the time. Maybe you were married. Maybe you disposed of or obtained property. Your will should correctly identify your family and assets, so its good to periodically update it.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #5
Asking the wrong person to serve as Personal Representative. This decision should be made with the idea that the best person for the job should be chosen. It may be someone who will be seen as impartial and fair. It may be someone who will faithfully execute the duties of the position. A lot of thought should go into this decision, this person will have to implement your wishes and handle administrative tasks involved in probate.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE #6
Neglecting to meet with a legal, financial or tax professional. Although there are many “do it yourself” options for drafting Wills and other Estate planning documents, if you have any doubts about whether what you are doing is legally sound, or actually accomplishes your wishes, you may wish to consult with an attorney, and a tax or other financial professional to discuss tax implications.

For more information on Estate Planning, read the ABA’s Estate Planning FAQs . The Royal Legal Group, LLC can also help – contact us today!

7 Ways an Outside General Counsel can help your small to mid-size business

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 01:40:00 GMT

When you start a new business many legal issues may arise. For instance, you may wonder, what type of business structure should you have? Other questions include: What contracts will I need for procurement, professional services and other goods and services? What kind of agreement will I use with my customers? Will I need employment contracts? What about ethical issues? Here are seven ways that an Outside General Counsel can help your business.

The Royal Legal Group, LLC offers a general counsel package to fit your needs. Call us at 202-255-6921 .