Debt Relief Agency

Davidson Backman Medeiros PLLC is a debt relief agency as defined by the Bankruptcy Code.  Davidson Backman Medeiros PLLC, for compensation, provides bankruptcy assistance to a person who owes debt incurred primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, and has less than $ 164,250 in non-exempt assets.

Under the Bankruptcy Code:

A debt relief agency may not fail to perform any service which it informed the debtor that it would provide in connection with a bankruptcy case.

A debt relief agency may not make any untrue and misleading statement in a document filed in a bankruptcy case, or make a statement which, upon the exercise of reasonable care, should have been known by the debt relief agency to be untrue or misleading.

A debt relief agency may not counsel or advise the debtor to make any untrue and misleading statement in a document filed in a bankruptcy case.

A debt relief agency may not directly or indirectly, affirmatively or by material omission make a misrepresentation with respect to the services that the debt relief agency will provide, or the benefits and risks that may result in filing bankruptcy.

A debt relief agency may not may not advise a person contemplating the filing of a bankruptcy case to incur more debt in contemplation of filing bankruptcy, or to incur more debt pay an attorney or bankruptcy petition preparer a fee or charge for bankruptcy services.

A debt relief agency must provide the debtor with the written notice of the clerk of the court which contains brief descriptions of chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13, and the general purpose, benefits, and costs of proceeding under each of those chapters; and the types of services available from credit counseling agencies. The debt relief agency must retain this notice for 2 years from the date that the notice is given.

A debt relief agency must provide the following information to the debtor, to the extent that the Bankruptcy court clerk's notice does not provide it: (1) all information is required to be complete, accurate, and truthful; (2) all assets and all liabilities are required to be completely and accurately disclosed; (3) the replacement value of each secured asset must be stated where requested after reasonable inquiry to establish that value; (4) the debtor must disclose, after reasonable inquiry, his or her current monthly income, and the amounts specified to determine whether a case satisfies the means test under 11 USC § 707(b)(2), including the debtor's nonpriority unsecured claims; the debtor's monthly expenses; the actual expenses paid by the debtor for care and support of an elderly, chronically ill, or disabled household member or member of the debtor's immediate family; the expenses of administering a chapter 13 plan; the expenses to attend a private or public elementary or secondary school for each dependent child less than 18 years of age; housing and utilities expenses if in excess of IRS Local Standards; average monthly payments on account of secured debts; and expenses for payment of all priority claims (including priority child support and alimony claims). Further, in a case under chapter 13, the debtor must disclose after reasonable inquiry, his or her disposable income (determined in accordance with section 707(b)(2)), which are required to be stated after reasonable inquiry. That information may be audited, and failure to provide information may result in dismissal of the case or other sanction including a criminal sanction.

A debt relief agency is required to provide this notice within 3 business days after the first date that the debt relief agency first offers to provide any bankruptcy assistance services, and the debt relief agency must retain this notice for 2 years from the date that the notice is given.

Specific written statement. A debt relief agency must provide the written statement titled "IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BANKRUPTCY ASSISTANCE SERVICES FROM AN ATTORNEY OR BANKRUPTCY PETITION PREPARER" which is set forth in 11 USC § 527(b), which shall be clear and conspicuous and shall be in a single document separate from other documents or notices which the agency provides.

The debt relief agency must give the debtor "reasonably sufficient information (which shall be provided in a clear and conspicuous writing) to the assisted person on how to provide all the information the assisted person is required to provide" for the documents required by 11 USC 521, which include the list of creditors, schedule of assets and liabilities, schedule of current income and current expenditures, and statement of the debtor's financial affairs. That information must include: (1) how to value assets at replacement value, determine current monthly income, the amounts specified for the means test in section 707(b)(2) and, in a chapter 13 case, how to determine disposable income in accordance with section 707(b)(2) and related calculations; (2) how to complete the list of creditors, including how to determine what amount is owed and what address for the creditor should be shown; and (3) how to determine what property is exempt and how to value exempt property at replacement value as defined in section 506.

A debt relief agency must execute a written contract with the debtor which must clearly and conspicuously explain: (1) the services such agency will provide; (2) the fees or charges for such services; and (3) the terms of payment. The contract must be executed not later than 5 business days after the first date on which such debt relief agency provides any bankruptcy assistance services to an assisted person, and prior to the filing of the bankruptcy petition. The debt relief agency must provide the assisted person with a copy of the fully executed and completed contract.

A debt relief agency must clearly and conspicuously disclose in any advertisement directed to the general public that the services or the benefits offered are with respect to bankruptcy relief. Advertising requiring the disclosure includes advertisements in general media, seminars or specific mailings, telephonic or electronic messages, or otherwise; and descriptions of bankruptcy assistance in connection with a chapter 13 plan whether or not chapter 13 is specifically mentioned in such advertisement. No statements such as "federally supervised repayment plan" or "Federal debt restructuring help" or other similar statements may be made that could lead a reasonable consumer to believe that debt counseling was being offered when in fact the services were directed to providing bankruptcy assistance with a chapter 13 plan or other form of bankruptcy relief.

A debt relief agency must clearly and conspicuously include in advertisements the following statement (or a substantially similar statement): "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code."