The Semrad Law Firm

I have been in bankruptcy for almost 4 years and now my last year, there has been a problem occurred. Debt stoppers has / was not doing their job by sending in proper paperwork to payroll in the proper time, now my payments has increased, and has caused hardship, from when first filed.

THIS COMPANY COLLECT OVER $4000 FROM ME AND PROVIDED NO SERVICES TO ME. I WAS FORCE TO FILE MY BANKRUPTCY WITH ANOTHER FIRM. I WAS TOLD I WAS NOT ELIGIBLE TO FILE CHAPTER 7 BECAUSE OF MY INCOME BUT AFTER FILING WITH ANOTHER AGENCY I FOUND OUT THIS IS NOT TRUE. WHEN I WAS ON MEDICAL LEAVE AND MADE SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO CONTACT THE COMPANY REGARDING MY CASE I WAS NOT CONTACTED UNTIL I ATTEMPTED TO FILE A COMPLAINT WHICH FOR THE 2ND TIME DISAPPEARED FROM THE Revdex.com RECORDS. EVEN THOUGH I HAD A CASE FILE NUMBER AND CONTACTED Revdex.com THEY HAD NO RECORD OF IT.

I want to cancel my bankruptcy becauseI was not asked in a manner that I understood that if I had a inheritance {a home} that I could lose it. Chapter 7 does not protect my home. It wasn't until I went in front of the trustee and she asked me while I was under oath to tell the truth. On March 2, 2020, I spoke to my Atty. Amy *** and asked her if I could change my mind she said no and that it has to go through the trustee. I just want out of this contract, I believe I have a right to change my mind before a certain time, I did not see anything that says I could not change my mind. I can not lose my home I have many health issues, including heart disease, depression, diabetes, sleep apnea, just to name a few. I can not sleep, I can not eat, My stress level is so high it is affecting my high blood pressure. Please help
No one has given me any options other then to bring in the will and it has to go before the Trustee, at this point I just want to get out
This does not just affect me, it will affect other members of my family

I filed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy on September 23, 2016 with Semrad for 36 months at 500 dollars each month. Now I am pass the 36 months and I have been informed that I have to make 17 months of more payments. I have not received a notice telling what has happen and why I have to make these addition payment to satisfy this contract when this was not the original contract and I believe I have honored the payment plan. I am a senior on a fixed income and I was just trying to keep my car and pay my bills. We have to pay close attention to paper work and ask questions if we don't understand because these companies will leave us fighting for ourselves.

My experience at the law firm was excellent!!!!!! Sully [redacted] :-):-):-):-):-) stars

[redacted] case was dismissed on November 5, and [redacted] did contact the office prior to the dismissal The attorney from my office mistakenly noted that [redacted] desired that her case be dismissed Upon catching the error, we could have vacated the dismissal order or filed a new case on [redacted] behalf We recommended [redacted] file a new case and offered to do so for free because a new case will provide [redacted] with much more financial benefit than her previous case [redacted] opted to leave her case dismissed but file with a new firm In order to resolve her grievance, we have offered [redacted] a full refund in the amount of $813.33, which represents $1,in total funds paid to the firm less expenses in the amount of $for court filing fees, credit reports, and credit counseling I will await her response

Very unprofessionalDoes not return phone calls and mails you information weeks after you should have been notifiedThey did not file all my debt with the case, and the paralegal was rude, heartless, and unprofessional

I am not pleased with Debt Stoppers! I feel like they look down on anyone that comes to them for helpI received a call today from an Attorney from their office looking for paymentas it stated on their papers they give you to call their office within hours before payment is deducted from out of your account I followed the directions and left a message on their voice mail stating that I wouldn't be able to pay them on the date I had scheduled and wanted to know if I could either have it changed or change the amountthe guy that was on the phone was threatening me and very very rude about ithe stated he never received a message from me, and that they would withdraw my case if I didn't pay themI'm not sure if what they are doing is advertising, but I intended on paying them the money but I feel like they are treating me like a fraudulent person because I filed bankruptcy

Mrs [redacted] is correct in most of her allegations She did file a Chapter bankruptcy with our firm in and did pay off the balance in April Currently, she is eligible for a discharge and we are awaiting the Chapter Trustee to close the case Unfortunately, my office only represents Mrs [redacted] , not the Chapter Trustee The Trustee, [redacted] is court appointed and reports only to the United States Trustee Upon receiving this grievance, I contacted the managing attorney for the Chapter Trustee, [redacted] Mr [redacted] informed me that the case was recently audited and will be closing shortly He assured me that he is watching the case to make sure it moves along in the process If the case has not moved ahead by the end of August, I will file a motion to compel the Trustee to close the case However, I am reluctant to file such a motion as the United States Bankruptcy Court is very deferential to the Trustee’s process This morning, I called Mrs [redacted] and spoke to her spouse, Tony ***I assured Mr [redacted] that I will monitor this case to make sure is closes

Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 8, 2015/03/25) */ Contact Name and Title: [redacted] Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX Contact Email: [redacted] @robertjsemrad.com The firm did agree to represent Mr [redacted] in his Chapter bankruptcy case for a flat fee of $4,plus costs of $ for the filing fee, credit reports, credit counseling and tax transcriptsI have enclosed a copy of the retention agreement to this responseIn addition to preparing all of the bankruptcy pleadings, the firm represented Mr [redacted] at the Meeting of the creditors and appeared in court twice on his behalf Upon reading this grievance, I did call Ms [redacted] West to resolve her complaint and left a detailed voice messageIn light of her father's recent health challenges and to maintain good will, the firm will waive any balance owed by Mr [redacted] I have informed [redacted] not to contact the [redacted] again

If I was able to give a negative 5 stars I would. False information from the beginning of my claim, communication is beyond terrible, my paralegal has been switched numerous times, I pay up until 3 payments then all of a sudden I make to much money and will have to pay entire debt owed. Which would negate my entire purpose for coming to the office. Then I get a call that my case was dismissed in which I had no idea it was in jeopardy due to my attorney not calling me back to inform me how court went. Not knowing how much I have to pay, how long I have to pay, or what other options are available. This place is a complete train wreck and I'm believing that with the lack of transparency with the trustee's, this office is stealing money from under informed clients.

Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 8, 2015/03/25) */ Contact Name and Title: [redacted] Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX Contact Email: [redacted] @robertjsemrad.com [redacted] Revdex.com CASE # XXXXXXXX On February 17, Ms [redacted] came to the Law Offices of [redacted] J [redacted] & Associates for a free consultation and met with [redacted] an attorney with the firmMs [redacted] indicated that she was two months behind on her vehicle and had other miscellaneous debt including student loansMr [redacted] advised Ms [redacted] on filing a chapter bankruptcy in order to protect the vehicle from being repossessed by the finance company for lack paymentsAlso, the chapter would allow Ms [redacted] to pay back the vehicle at a reduced interest rate (roughly 5%) from the current rate in the finance agreement that she had signedFinally, the chapter would allow her to pay a small percentage of the total amount owed to the miscellaneous debts that were roughly $Mr [redacted] informed her of the firm's fees and the amount ($700) Ms [redacted] needed to put down to file a chapter bankruptcyMs [redacted] left our office after her free consultation On February 19, Ms [redacted] called our office and set up an appointment for later that day to start preparing the filing of her chapter bankruptcyLater on that day, Ms [redacted] came back to our office and met with [redacted] who is an attorney at the firmAlthough Ms [redacted] did not have the $to file the case Ms [redacted] spent approximately hours with Ms [redacted] preparing her chapter bankruptcy petitionIn addition, she ordered Ms [redacted] 's credit report and also ordered Ms [redacted] last years of taxes from a certified public accountantAfter Ms [redacted] finished, Ms [redacted] paid $of the $that was necessary to file Ms [redacted] 's bankruptcyMs [redacted] set up a two post dated debits (March 6th & March 20th) from her checking account for the remaining $Ms [redacted] also needed to provide Ms [redacted] a few paystubs in addition to completing the online credit counseling course that is required to be completed before a person can file a bankruptcy On March 3, 2015, Ms [redacted] called and left a message for Ms [redacted] regarding sending in the paystubs and taking the online courseTwo days later Ms [redacted] called back and informed a member of our customer service department that she would like to cancel filing her caseThe next day Mr [redacted] contacted her and Ms [redacted] informed him that she had changed her mind regarding filing bankruptcy and would like a refundMr [redacted] explained to Ms [redacted] that there would be no refund because the $she put down did not even cover the costs of pulling a credit report, ordering taxes, and the several hours of attorney time spent in the preparation of her bankruptcy petition The firm did reach out to Mr [redacted] in order to resolve her complaint on March 24, and left a voice message for herIn order to resolve this grievance and to maintain good will, the firm will refund $163, which represents a full refund minus the costs incurred by the firm in ordering the credit report and tax transcriptsWe will await instructions from Ms [redacted] on whether she would like to pick up the refund or have the funds sent

I started Debtstoppers years ago, they were great then! I called about months ago to ask them for some paperwork for my school and to spoke to a African American man name Pierre [redacted] He was VERY rude, he cursed at me for not paying my balance (I didn't know I had a balance), and hung up on meYesterday I called to re-file my case, the secretary said she'd have someone call me back the next dayWell at 9am this morning I received a phone call from the same rude man asking why do I want to file again and saying, "I'm not going to do ***! Don't ever call this firm again?" I called different numbers to report him and they all got back to him and he answered saying, "You're not going to get around me, stop calling here" and hung up in my faceI called a different number back and was connected to him again and he tried to change his voice to pretend to be a white manI told him this is not very good customer service and he responded, "This is not a customer servic

Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 5, 2015/05/08) */ Contact Name and Title: [redacted] Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX Contact Email: [redacted] @robertjsemrad.com I have reviewed Ms [redacted] 's caseThe delay in discharge was caused because the trustee did not have a copy of Ms [redacted] 's tax returnUpon learning this, Ms [redacted] did provide a copy of the return, which we forwarded to the trusteeWe represented Ms [redacted] at the motion to dismiss and were successful in having the motion withdrawnHowever, this triggered a new case audit which slightly changed that amounts due to each creditor This afternoon, I called the Trustee's office and they confirmed they will be sending the final disbursement on Friday, May 22ndOnce these checks are cleared, the trustee will close out the case and refund the balance to Ms [redacted] I left a message for the team leader requesting that this process be expedited and have not heard back yet I understand Ms [redacted] 's frustrationShe has paid her case off since the beginning of the yearHowever, my office represents only Ms [redacted] The Trustee represents the creditors and the estate and we have no influence over the time it takes for her office to close out a caseIn the past cases where we have asked the Court to intervene, the Court has given wide latitude to the Trustee regarding the closing process I will continue to monitor this case and will keep Ms [redacted] updated as to the progress Initial Consumer Rebuttal / [redacted] (2000, 7, 2015/05/08) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.) Mr [redacted] called me and advised of his findings and I feel more confident that my case will come to a end very soonMr [redacted] has provided me with his contact information and stated he would follwith me

I went to DebtStoppers on 7/24/19 to cancel the bankruptcy, on 8/5 it went into effect, there have been 2 payments submitted after the bankruptcy was discharged. I was told on 3-4 separate occasions by 3-4 representatives that my reimbursement will be issued on the last Friday of the month then I was informed after my case get through being audit they will issue my refund, now there telling me they don’t know when they will issue my refund. We are approaching November and I shouldn’t have to wait so long for something that is rightfully mine. They have been disrespectful and one of the ladies I spoke with called me out my name. I have been nothing but patient I want my $506 plus back. They have never waited for their payments nor was I ever late so why do I have to wait 3 months for my money that was sent to them by error??

I have a complaint, I currently have an active case with this firm. My attorney is given me false information regarding the voluntary garnishment of my pay. This has cause me a hardship and she is advising me it can not be stop, which I know is not true. I am about to lose everything do to I am not able to keep my mortgage payments for my home. The property has already been removed from the bankruptcy. She offered me a Voluntary Dismissal, which defeat the purpose of my situation. I wish I never entered into a contract with them. I am currently trying to make a court date with the judge so I can advise the court of the mistreatment I am receiving. Hopefully, I will be able to remove them as attorney as well as stop the garnishment.

Do not spend your money here! Run! They treat you like a Queen as they're coaxing you to sign a contract with themThen, as soon as they get that money deducted from your pay check it all changesI filed a bankruptcy in Whenever I had to meet with the trustee, I represented myselfMy lawyer never showed upI needed to contact my attorney *** *** to send an approval to buy a used car to get to workI could not contact him or his officeThe gas company turned my gas off a year after the bankruptcy was filed, I called my lawyer againHe told me to call the gas company and give them my case numberI thought that was his job but I wound up having to do all the legwork myselfHe did nothing!!! The trustee threatened to dismiss my case, I could not contact my lawyer againTheir lawyers are uselessIf you have to file bankruptcy, do it yourselfYou'll save money

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2015/09/18) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@semradlaw.com
It appears that we have done a very good job for Ms***However, our collections manager should never have spoken to her in a
terse mannerI advise Ms*** that I she will not be contacted by the collection manager and that she can take whatever time she needs to get back on her feetShe advised that she felt better about the situation and will call us when she is able to make payment arrangements
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 8, 2015/09/18) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Received call from Mr*** ***He listened, apologized and spoke to me with respectHe afforded me the opportunity to get financially stable to satisfy my debt with DebtstoppersI appreciate that and am satisfied with the response

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: I responded to *** *** email during the week of November and requested the plus 335$ the additional filing feeI have sent at least emails and left a voicemail for him and his assistant and have not receiv d a response.
I also emailed numerous times during the week of November and still no responseI am expecting $per his suggestion along with $that I had to file with a new attorney
Sincerely,
*** ***

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/03/06) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***, Partner
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@robertjmserad.com
Ms*** filed a Chapter bankruptcy with our firm in primarily for the purpose of surrendering a property
located *** *** *** *** which was under secured by over $100,We proposed a plan that surrendered the property to *** of *** in full satisfaction of the entire debtThis plan was confirmed (approved) by the Bankruptcy Court in January Had Ms *** continued to make the monthly Chapter payment in order to complete her plan, she would no longer owe any money to *** of ***
However, in January 2013, Ms*** spoke with attorney *** *** about selling another property that Ms*** owned free and clear and using the proceeds to purchase a foreclosure propertyMrs*** advised Ms*** that the bankruptcy court would require approximately $10,of proceeds from the sale of the property to be used to pay off Ms***'s remaining creditorsMs*** did not wish to use the proceeds for that purpose and instead requested that her case be dismissed so that she would be free to use the proceed as she wished
Mrs*** properly advised Ms*** that any creditors that she owed prior to the bankruptcy would have the right to pursue her in the event that she dismissed the caseMs*** also signed a waiver advising her of this consequence to ensure she understood she would still owe moneyA copy of the waiver is attached hereto
As for Ms***'s remaining allegations in her grievanceAs a law firm, we do employ both attorney and non-attorney staf* *** who initially consulted Ms*** is a licensed Illinois attorney*** *** who sat with Ms*** and prepared her bankruptcy petition, is a licensed *** attorney*** *** to whom Ms***'s case was ultimately assigned, is also a licensed Illinois attorneyMs*** was not going to pay more than $108,into her caseMs***'s plan was confirmed to pay $10,over a period of months in order to discharge more than $281,of debt
Unfortunately, it is not possible to erase the filing of a bankruptcy from Ms***'s credit reportShe did file the case and remained under its protection for over a yearThe bankruptcy will no longer be reported as of the 7th anniversary of the filing dateIf Ms*** is still needing to discharge her remaining debt, I am happy to discuss filing a Chapter bankruptcy with herTo date, Ms*** owes my firm $2,for unpaid attorney's feesShe has not returned any of our phone calls to make arrangements to pay the balanceAs an accommodation in order to close this matter, I will waive this balance