Rise Above Debt Relief/Consumer Law Associates (CLA)

I have been using Rise Above Debt Relief for three months now and have paid about $5,000 into the program.Â* Today I received a Warrant in Debt (Civil Claim for Money) and have a hearing on 5/7/09 scheduled.Â*
I am wondering if anyone has any experience with debt negotiation companies and receiving a summons?

I think that you should contact your debt settlement company immediately and ask them to negotiate with your creditor.
In the meanwhile, you should file an answer to the summon by visiting the court from where you have received the summon, else a default judgment may be passed against you by the creditor.

yes, this did happen to me but at the 2 year mark. This is what you need to do.Â* File the answer and call your company and they should start some serious negotiations to get it resolved before the hearing. usually this can be resolved before the hearing but sometimes they are just being stubborn such as the card that sued me (citibank) It was my smallest account and they just refused to settle.
Dont be scared or worried if you need to go to court because frankly the judges frown upon the companies for not working with the people that are in settlement.Â* They look at it as a waste of thier time because you are attempting to do something.
Even if a judgement is filed onÂ* thier behalf if you go to court, your settlement company can still negotiate.Â* Its not carved or set in stone. So hand in there and if you have any more questions feel free to ask!

A summons can happen, but it is rare as 94-96% of all accounts in the program never go legal. There is a special dept for accounts that go legal, so make sure you fax that info immediately and call customer service. Anytime an account goes legal, the negotiator almost always can work out a favorable settlement or payment arrangement. And since you have an attorney overseeing your file, the attorney will also step in to help if needed. The summons is much like a traffic ticket, so don't be frightened. Let the experts resolve it. That is the advantage of having a settlement company helping you versus facing something like this on your own.

Those are very inspiring stories I to was once heavily in debt of over 250k until a coworker fixed me up with a law firm company that got my debt cut in half also and here's the kicker 0% interest on that and I was debt free in three 3yrs!!!!! Did it hurt my credit of course it did, but I didn't care I wanted to get rid of the debt and begin to achieve financial freedom again. I figured I rather be a 680 and debt free then 800 with 250k worth of debt that would have taken almost 2 lifetimes to payoff. My credit score is back up to 740. Another good thing was the fact that they didn't charge any upfront fees. They just wanted to make sure that they could help and that was the most reassuring thing. I have finally escaped from the TEMPLE OF DOOM known as the credit card trap. I want to share my story because I want to let people know that there is a real way out of this mess. Now no more sleepless nights stressed to the max of trying to figure out how I'm going to pay for everything. The company was a real pleasure to work with I saved the number of the counselor I worked with he was awesome. His name was Jon and his number is 1877-576-5448 ext 1007 The company was called United Debt Experts. BEST OF LUCK TO EVERYONE AND HOPEFULLY THROUGH THIS MESSAGE I WAS ABLE TO HELP AS MANY AS POSSIBLE. THANKS AND GOD BLESS!!!!

be very frightened!!!

"Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 10:31 pm Subject: Summons Help
A summons can happen, but it is rare as 94-96% of all accounts in the program never go legal. There is a special dept for accounts that go legal, so make sure you fax that info immediately and call customer service. Anytime an account goes legal, the negotiator almost always can work out a favorable settlement or payment arrangement. And since you have an attorney overseeing your file, the attorney will also step in to help if needed. The summons is much like a traffic ticket, so don't be frightened. Let the experts resolve it. That is the advantage of having a settlement company helping you versus facing something like this on your own.
_________________
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Rise Above Debt Relief
Guest"
Telling someone that a "summons is much like a traffic ticket" is a load of crap. I think I'll report you for Unauthorized Practice of Law. You expect us to believe that your attorney will fly out and defend us in a case that has an answer required in 20 days? He's probably not even licensed in my state and you aren't going to pay for that. You, sir, are an idiot.

lol. He's probably a shill for that particular company. It's deceptive statements like that that are getting consumer advocates, the FTC, and Attorneys General all across the country on the offensive against DS firms. Traffic ticket. Wow.

This seems to be a new company. The BBB has no info on them and the only complaint against them on Google is this thread. In fact, they started in April of this year.


Hi meg,

love_my_things has great advice. For some creditors, going with a DS program may actually *increase* your chance of getting sued. Here is a summary of the court process:
"http://www.nedap.org/hotline/court.html"
It's for New York so it is just an example, but it's the best I've seen so far. For your local court procedures and any forms you need, do a Google search. They will have that info on their website.

PLEASE READ FOLLOWING INFO FROM THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION BEFORE USING THIS COMPANY:



* Content edited

We restrict use of copied content here. Please read point 6 and 8 of TOS - Jason

The 2009 Stevie Awards will be handed out in NYC at the American Business Awards on June 22, 2009, and Rise Above Debt Relief is a finalist for Customer Service Department of the Year. No other Debt Settlement company made the finals in any category.

Also, Rise Above Debt Relief was named by Goldline Research as one of the top Debt Settlement Companies in the nation for 2009 and published that in Forbes Magazine.

Rise Above has one of the Best BBB records in the industry, maintaining an A rating for the entire existence until the BBB rolled out a biased grading system and began rating all negotiation companies negatively despite their success. Nothing changed, Rise Above still only has 2 complaints in the last 3 years and both are resolved.

When reading discussions on the internet, please keep in mind that it is very easy for competitors and ex-employees to post anything they want, true or false.

Rise Above would not continue winning awards for its outstanding efforts if they were not working very hard for their clients. Just last week, Rise Above negotiated a settlement of a $32000 AMEX for $3200!! That is 10 cents on the dollar. That settlement letter will be posted shortly on the website.

Despite the best efforts of our competitors and others who want to bring down this successful company, it ain't happening. Rise Above Debt Relief has graduated so many clients and received so many glowing referrals, and will stand tall among the underperforming competition.

Please, don't believe everything you read on the internet, look at the actual settlement letters, look at the BBB record, and then decide for yourself. Rise Above Debt Relief has never had a client fail, EVER!! 100% success rate. Clients have quit the program, but none have ever failed to eliminate their enrolled debt and save 30-50% on their balances. No one offers a $25,000 guarantee like Rise Above, no one.

And because Rise Above offers a $25,000 guarantee, they are very selective about the clients they enroll in the program. That is why Rise Above is a shining star in an industry with many bad players.

I recently signed on with a Debt Settlement Company at a vulnerable time. I was very stressed at the time and was looking for a quick fix. The consultant who signed me up, reviewed with me his company's BBB rating, which was an A. He never reviewed the 2nd company's BBB rating, which I now come to find out is an F rating. Had I known about this rating, I would never have signed on with company. I now would like to cancel out of the program and be refunded all and any amounts I paid. Is this possible? I feel I was defrauded and will get an attorney involved if need be.

My question is can I negotiate with my creditors on my own for a lower monthly payment plan and possibly lower my APR? Perhaps if I explain that the Debt Settlement company mislead me and informed me not to answer the creditors phone calls as well.

Hi Guest,

Most definitely. That's what this forum is all about!

Just click above on the "Do It Yourself" section or here.

Have you noticed that this company now has a D rating on the BBB website? I have been working with them for months and was just sued and offered no help by this company. DON'T BELIEVE THEM!

Did you scroll down and read some more? The stated reason for the rating is: . They are saying that the ENTIRE INDUSTRY is bad.

If you scroll down, you will see only 2 (and both Resolved) complaints in the past 3 years.

"http://central-northern-western-arizona.bbb.org/WWWRoot/Report.aspx?site=30&bbb=1126&firm=97020005"

I understand the bad situation you are now in, but again, nearly the entire industry says the same thing and that is why they are being investigated and sued left and right - and Regulatory legislation is being passed into Law and introduced into State Assemblies all over the nation.

File a complaint with the FTC and your State Attorney General.

Chrys Henderson is a misinformed BOZO. He/She has no idea what he is giving advice about.

Of course anyone can do settlements on their own, you can change your car oil, you can represent yourself in court, you can paint your house. Does that make people idiots if they hire someone to help them with these things.

There are painters that will rip you off, along with car mechanics, lawyers, debt negotiators, etc. It doesn't mean the entire industry is bad. The BBB should be there to help consumers diferentiate, but they have proven that money buys you a better grade, period.

People must realize that even the BBB is money driven and makes bad decisions on how to rate industries based on their bottom line. Sad, very sad.

So before you start spewing info like you are an expert, please do your homework, you are not helping consumers with your misinformation.

blah blah blah...

I'll take the word of state Attorney Generals, the FTC, and consumer advocates ANY DAY over an anonymous attacker, but thanks anyway!

Oh, and I didn't call the people who are taken advantage of by deceptive business practices idiots, in fact I specified that they are NOT. And I never stated that the entire industry is bad, I stated that the BBB SAYS IT IS.

Not to mention, the poster had stated that the particular DS firm in question is bad just because of the Rating. I was suggesting that they ignore the rating and look at the actual record of complaints. I implied by "they *only* have 2 complaints in 3 years" as an indication that they are probably a good firm to go with because they only have 2 complaints.

So many people come on here and other forums or blogs and complain left and right, but when you look at actual *documented* (and hence verified) complaints you often see a different picture.

Not to mention, calls are usually recorded and the recording of the call is reviewed to see which party is correct in any given complaint. If the complainant is just misunderstanding the situation or -for example - simply forgetting that proper disclosures actually were given, the complaint will be Administratively Closed but the BBB *still* keeps it on there.

I have consistently stated that if people have real, legitimate complaints, to file them with the proper authorities where they mean something, at least a lot more than anonymous griping.

Please learn to read before you attack someone....