Category: Consumer Law
The Adams County Circuit Court on August 5, 2024, held that an alleged medical debt that became the subject of a collection lawsuit was a “consumer debt” and that, therefore, the patient was entitled to the protections of the Wisconsin Consumer Act. Hess Memorial Hospital sued a patient for approximately $3,000 in medical bills. The […]
One Main Financial, a consumer lending company with branches in 44 states, suffered a significant blow in arbitration recently. One Main sued the debtor in circuit court. The debtor retained Lawton Cates, and Attorney Briane Pagel moved to compel One Main to arbitrate its claims, rather than litigate them. In arbitration, Attorney Pagel convinced the […]
Wisconsin residents who get their cellphone service through T-Mobile are currently facing a high risk of identity theft. T-Mobile disclosed this week that 37 million of its customers had their private information compromised by a hacker or hackers who were accessing the data from November 25, 2022 through January 5, 2023. This is reported to […]
The battle between debtors and debt collectors has been raging for years. In recent times, law changes have given debtors a fighting chance. Even though these law changes haven’t shifted the odds to favor debtors, the balance of power has shifted enough that desperate debt collectors have resorted to committing offenses that violate consumer protection law. […]
If you have made a payment to a debt collector and been charged a service fee, convenience fee, or other charge imposed for making the payment, you might have a right to sue the debt collector. “Pay to Pay” is the name generally given to charges that are often imposed by debt collectors when taking […]
LawtonCates recently won a case involving a dealership misrepresenting the quality and value of a vehicle it sold to our client. The Grant County dealership sold a used vehicle to our client without properly and legally disclosing the issues with the vehicle. The vehicle then broke down, and the dealership repossessed it – even though our […]
Attorney Briane Pagel recently won a jury trial in Rock County on behalf of one of LawtonCates’ clients. The Rock County jury found that the credit union’s phone calls to our client were harassing and illegal. What Happened to Our Client? Like many other Americans, our client fell behind on his car loan. He then made […]
Recently, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued an opinion holding that it is illegal for repo men to seize peoples’ cars from the parking garage in their apartment. The case, Duncan v. Asset Recovery Specialists (case number 2019 AP 1365, reported at 2022 WI 1), was brought by a woman whose car was illegally repossessed from […]
Student loan payments for federal loans are suspended until September, 2020; the CARES Act, which suspended payments, also required that student loan companies treat the loans as though they were still being paid. Some loan servicers may not be complying with the law, and that could damage the borrower’s credit. Recently, Great Lakes Educational Loan […]
On Tuesday, April 12, Governor Walker signed legislation that got rid of earlier increases in mandatory auto insurance coverage. This bill, dubbed “Truth in Automobile Insurance,” which sounds dry compared to the controversy in Wisconsin over the past few months, could have huge impacts on drivers and families who are involved in car accidents. The […]