Mike Landis is the Litigation Director of U.S. Public Interest Research Group (“PIRG”). The job requires Mike to take a macro view of problems consumers face throughout the country and provides a platform to make impact changes through litigation. Although he is only in his mid 30’s, Mike has a lifetime worth of diverse experiences in his backgroun…

Jeremy Golden left the cold of Minnesota to study law in the sunshine of California. Originally the plan was to practice intellectual property law, but a job opportunity after law school lead Jeremy to discover the world of consumer law. Fifteen years later, he has a successful law firm outside of San Diego focused on debt defense, Fair Debt Collec…

Michael Fuller is no ordinary consumer lawyer. He goes by the name Underdog Lawyer and has earned that persona based on his upbringing. Overcoming hardship early in life, he turned his trajectory around, obtained a law degree and dedicated his career to representing underdogs. Of all the attorneys to appear on the podcast, Michael probably has the …

In early March 2019 I interviewed The Student Loan Lawyer, Josh Cohen following the National Consumer Law Center’s annual Fair Debt Collection Practices Act conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. I left the conversation impressed and inspired. Josh has used technology to build a business where he not only counsels borrowers dealing with student debt ques…

Ron Burdge is a trailblazer. Ron started his legal career doing trial work at a small Ohio firm. Early in his career the partners of his law firm handed Ron an auto fraud case. The chance circumstance gave rise to a career that saw the rise of lemon laws and consumer rights in the auto industry. A key to Ron’s success is his love of story telling a…

In less than ten years of practice as an attorney, Carla Sanchez-Adams has earned a well-deserved reputation as an attorney focused on creating change in communities impacted by poverty. Carla’s role as a lawyer often walks the line from advocate to social worker. We discuss Carla’s background, the challenges of public service law, and how consumer…

the eight basic consumer rights

Consumer Rights Talk host Adam Deutsch interviews Ira Rheingold, the Executive Director of the National Association of Consumer Advocates. Ira began representing consumers in the greater Washington D.C. area in the early 1980’s and went on to influence an overhaul of lending practices and foreclosure law in Chicago. Thereafter, he became the Execut…

In March 2019 the Consumer Rights Talk is relaunching with a new format. Host Adam Deutsch will interview a different consumer rights attorney in each episode. The goal is to publish a new interview twice a month. Each interview will offer valuable insight and practice tips for other consumer attorneys, and will also shed light on rights consumer m…

On July 19, 2018 Adam Deutsch, Esq. will be joined by another consumer attorney Eric Kornblum, Esq., for a free seminar in downtown Springfield, MA addressing common credit and debt issues facing consumers. This podcast features a short preview explaining five key steps you can take to improve your credit score.…

The Federal Government estimates that 25% of all credit reports contain an error. These errors can negatively impact your ability to buy a home, car, finance college, or obtain employment. The errors can also cause the cost of borrowing money to go up. A common error is the mixed file, where someone else’s information appears on your credit file. I…

Sadly, I'm predicting that 2017 is the year the long predicted student loan crisis becomes real. The facts do not look good. Defaults are up 14% since the end of 2015 and it turns out half of college grads made less money in 2016 than graduates made in 2000. Of course, despite stagnant and declining wages, the cost of tuition keeps going up. This i…

Recently my 93 year old Grandmother began receiving demand letters from a debt collection company that was hired by AT&T to collect money. The problem, no money was owed! Although I've had clients in this position before, none were family and it absolutely made the situation more personal. This got me thinking about five basic tips that anyone can …

According to the latest report by the Federal Bank of New York analyzing the fourth quarter of 2016, consumer borrowing is trending up. New auto borrowing increased at a faster pace than credit card and mortgage borrowing. The money spigot is opening so fast that subprime lending is also growing rapidly. In America, we need and love our cars, but w…

This week's episode of the Consumer Rights Talk addresses the Feb 8 report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau which highlights trends in consumer complaints and gives a closer look at mortgage related grievances. Adam discusses three of the most common complaints filed with the CFPB and provides some guidance on how to deal with these is…

There are roughly 90 million homeowners in the Untied States of America. As a country we commonly encourage home-ownership as vehicle for developing savings and community stability. For most, a home will be the largest single asset they own in a lifetime. Consider the following- the standard mortgage contract used to fund the purchase of a home is …

There is a new sheriff in town and the Presidency of Donald J. Trump is projected to bring sweeping deregulation and privatization of government. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa and presumptive Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin have openly advocated to privatize the collection of unpaid federal income taxes. There are major risk to taxpayers in dereg…

There is a major disparity in courts. Approximately 95% of all parties filing lawsuits have an attorney, while figures show that fewer than 25% of people being sued in foreclosure or for the collection of a medical, auto, or credit card debt retain an attorney. Collectors know they are likely not going to face someone who is represented and they co…

In January 2017 the Pew Research Center released a new report analyzing disparity in home ownership and interest rates on first mortgage loans when viewed among racial lines. Sadly, the numbers show a clear difference in both ownership rates and the cost of financing charged to different racial groups in America. The cause could have more to do wit…

Physicians are making more errors in billing practices as they struggle to adapt to changes in the insurance industry. Patients are suffering as a result. Episode 3 discusses a scenario where a patient is subjected to inappropriate debt collection efforts caused by the physician's billing error. Listen to find out what happens if a physician seeks …

On December 27 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its monthly report on complaint statistics. The report offers a special focus on debt collection. Looking at the numbers it appears that complaints are trending upward. Compared to the same time period in 2015, complaints about student loan servicing errors are up more than 100%, comp…

You have stumbled upon the first episode of the Consumer Rights Talk. Find out what we have in store for listeners going forward.Adam Deutsch