Case Studies
If you don’t trust us, see for yourself. There are countless examples of the incredible results we have obtained for our clients. Here are just a few:
We Settle Full Balance Consent Judgments Obtained by Previous Debt Settlement Companies
Our attorneys are ethical, compassionate, and zealous advocates for our clients. We will always do everything on the right side of the law and for the best interests of our Clients. One client came to us after being represented by one of the biggest debt settlement companies in the United States. While being represented by the previous company, the Client was sued on one of his large accounts. The previous debt settlement company was only able to get rid of the lawsuit by agreeing to a “full balance settlement.” That means the Client did not save any money, and still had to pay back the full debt amount, plus interest and Court costs. The only thing negotiated by the previous debt settlement company was the term, as the Client was able to pay the judgment off over a few years. The Judgment was in the amount of $20,519.00. We took over and settled that same judgment for $8,000.00. Our lawyers understand that strategy makes the difference between success and failure. Every move we make on behalf of our clients is carefully planned and methodically executed. With proper leverage and excellent negotiation skills, we always put our clients in a position of strength so they can effectively and successfully achieve their goals! Trustmark National Bank v. Client ( JUDGMENT ACCOUNT)
Credit Union Lawsuit
Our Client suffered an aneurysm and fell behind on all her obligations. The client was sued by her Credit Union in the amount of $9223.00. We settled the account for $3000.00 over 30 equal payments. Three Rivers Federal Credit Union v. Client 02D01-1908-XXXX
We Settle Medical Debt Collection Lawsuits
Our Client was sued by a hospital in the amount of $19,876.00. We were able to obtain a settlement agreement in the amount of $7,000.00. One week after our agreement, the Creditor tried to renege on grounds that we never had an official agreement. We argued that we did have a valid, binding, and enforceable agreement. After putting up a good fight, we finally settled for $8,000.00. Bryan Medical Center v. Client (CI 16 XXX)
We Get Lawsuits Dismissed
We have multiple Clients that have been sued by their Creditors, but they are essentially not collectible. This means that even with a lawsuit, there is not much the Creditor can do to actually collect from the Client. During negotiations, we explain in great detail how going after the Client legally is useless as the Client is 100% judgment proof. Creditors hear these threats all day long from other companies and know that most companies can’t back their claims up with actual proof. It’s the equivalent of claiming every Client will file for bankruptcy, but the Client never does. After a while, these claims are ineffective if untrue.
We have built ourselves a solid reputation as being a law firm that doesn’t “bluff” and is always ready to “put their money where their mouth is.” For that reason, we have numerous Clients whose lawsuits we were able to get dismissed on grounds, and proof, that the Clients were judgment proof. Synchrony Bank v. Client (CV-139-XXX); Synchrony Bank v. Client (CV-235-XXX)
DISCLAIMER: Every case is different. Results depend on the unique facts and law of each case. The Gershfeld Law Group, P.C makes no guarantees or warranties about the outcome of any particular matter or case. The Gershfeld Law Group, P.C website, and the information contained within the website, should be construed as ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.
We Fight Improper Bank Levies
Our Client was sued in the amount of $10,212.00. While defending the Client in the legal action, we were in constant negotiations with opposing Counsel to resolve the matter. Despite our best efforts, opposing counsel and the Creditor were being difficult. They were willing to settle, but upon terms we did not find acceptable given our Client’s serious hardship and lack of collectability. They wanted over 85% of the balance in a lump sum which was simply impossible for our Client. Unable to resolve the matter, Plaintiff filed a Motion for Summary Judgment which is basically a shortcut to try to obtain a judgment without going through a full trial. After explaining all the options to our Client, he decided that given his lack of collectability, he was willing to have a judgment entered against him. The strategy was to settle with that Creditor at a later time when they would be more reasonable.
Judgment was entered against our Client. Shortly thereafter, we were notified by the Client that the Creditor had levied his bank account, which means they withdrew money from his bank account without us knowing. We immediately filed a Claim of Exemption with the Court, wherein we argued that our Client was improperly levied upon as he is exempt given his protected status as a retired and disabled Veteran. They filed opposing papers, arguing why our Client was not exempt, and we replied with additional proof and law.
The Court agreed with us, GRANTED our Claim of Exemption, and ordered the Creditor to return all improperly levied funds to the Client.
The best part: the Creditor finally saw we weren’t bluffing when we told them the Client was not collectible, and they realized that they needed to be more reasonable in their offers or they would never collect from him. This gave us new leverage to resolve the matter for $5,000.00! Discover Bank v. Client (17CV00XXX)
We Settled Default Judgments
Our Client was out of the country when he was served with a lawsuit. When he returned home a default judgment was already entered against him in the amount $40,887.91. As a result of our excellent relationship with opposing counsel, we were able to get the judgment set aside without having to file any Court documents, and we successfully settled the matter for $21,000.00. American Express Bank v. Client (JUDGMENT ACCOUNT)
We Settle Auto Repossession Lawsuits
Due to serious medical hardship, our Client was no longer able to make his car loan payments and had the car repossessed by the Lender. The Client was later sued by the Creditor in the amount of $10,258.00 on the deficiency balance. As a result of our strong negotiations skills and excellent relationship with opposing counsel, we settled the matter for $4,224 over 24 payments. TD Auto Finance v. Client (Y171XXX)
We Stop Improper Garnishments
Our Client was sued and improperly served. Having improper notice of the lawsuit, a default judgment was entered against her, and the Creditor began garnishment of the Client’s wages. We stopped the garnishment, had the Creditor return all improperly garnished funds to our Client, and ultimately settled the matter upon very good terms. American Express National Bank v. Client (17CHLC0XXX)
We Settle Lawsuits Where Creditor Improperly Accrued Interest Post Charge-Off
Our Client borrowed $2525 from Cash Call at exorbitantly high-interest rates. The delinquent debt was later sold to another Creditor who sued Client in the amount of $15,929.00. During negotiations, we learned that the debt charged off years ago for much less money, yet the Creditor continued to charge interest, which is usually not allowed. After conducting our research, and reviewing the original contract with Cash Call, we learned that there is a gray area in the law under the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) that does not allow a Creditor to continue to charge interest on charged-off debt unless certain conditions are met. One of the conditions is that the Creditor must send monthly statements to the Client even after the debt is charged-off. Our gut instinct told us that the Creditor was probably not doing that. After confirming this with our Client, and getting an admission from the Creditor that they were not sending regular monthly statements after charge off, we used that as leverage to settle the debt for $6,600.00 over 24 payments. SFM-6 LLC v. Client (18CHLC2XXX)
Here are more examples of settlements obtained for our Clients on non-legal accounts:
Loan Mart account with balance of $13,096 settled for $1,000
Capital One Auto Finance account with a balance of $10,826 settled for $1,095
Lending Point account with a balance of $8,084 settled for $1,264
Capital Auto Finance repo account with balance of $10,826.00 settled for $1,095.11
One Main repo account with a deficiency balance of $2,888.48 settled for $870.00
Specialty Loans account with balance of $3,291.40 settled for $597.00
State Farm Financial account with balance of $7,431.38 settled for $3,200
Citi account with balance of $3,745.23 settled for $1,500
Citi account placed with ARS for collections with balance of $9,595.75 settled for $3,359
Synchrony Bank account with balance of $8,826.10 settled for $3,089.14
Barclays Bank Delaware account with balance of $5,969.88 settled for $2,090
CBNA account with balance of $4,744.39 settled for $1,661
Chase account with balance of $21,668.34 settled for $7,600
Wells Fargo account with balance of $24,740.00 settled for $9,530
We Remove Fixture Liens that Were Fraudulently Placed on a Property
A Client came to us one week before close of escrow, desperate for help with a Fixture Lien that was placed on his property unbeknownst to him. At some point in time there was another joint tenant on title to the property with our Client. This joint tenant, unbeknownst to our Client, took out a $50,000.00 loan from a Finance Company for Cabinets and Countertops to be installed in the property by a named Construction Company. The other joint tenant defaulted on the loan, leaving our Client stuck with a lien on his property that would have to be paid off through escrow in the amount of $66,000.00. To add insult to injury, the alleged Cabinets and Countertops were never installed on the property.
Our initial strategy was to go after the Finance Company on grounds that they had no right to place a fixture lien upon property held in joint tenancy where one tenant did not incur the debt and had no idea about the loan. After further investigation we realized that the Finance Company was not the real culprit. In fact, they were a victim of fraud just like our Client was. Apparently, the other joint tenant worked together with the Construction Company to defraud both our Client and the Finance Company.
We changed our strategy and decided to use the Finance Company as our ally. We explained and demonstrated with evidence that the Cabinets and Countertops were never installed in our Client’s property and he never even heard of the Construction Company until he saw the lien on title. We wrote a detailed letter to the Finance Company urging them to remove the lien off our Client’s property and instead go after the culpable parties. After completing their own investigation based on evidence we provided, two days before escrow was to close the Finance Company agreed to remove the lien, wherein we saved our Client $66,000.00—and we didn’t even have to litigate!
