Is David J. Gold, PC Calling You?*

Is David J. Gold, PC calling you?* Here’s what you need to know.

Financial hardships are hard to cope with. Whether it is because of credit card debt, cell phone bills, or student loans, persistent and harassing calls from debt collectors turn a difficult situation into a nightmare. Although attempting to collect an outstanding debt from you is legal, harassment is not. You have rights that make such treatment illegal.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

You might be surprised to learn that if a debt collector yells at you, threatens lawsuits, and uses abusive language, they are breaking the law and can be sanctioned accordingly. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or FDCPA, prohibits third-party collection agencies from using methods like those below to pressure you into paying.

• Leaving vague messages that do not identify them as debt collectors
• Using profane and abusive language
• Calling you at work after you tell them that you can’t take personal calls there
• Refusing to prove that a debt exists and that they are authorized to collect it
• Contacting your friends and family and telling them that you owe money

Company Profile: David J. Gold, PC

David J. Gold, PC is a law office located in New York City. It was established in 1987, specializes in collecting receivables, and is managed by its founder, David J. Gold. A review of court records retained by the PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) website indicates that this particular law office has been accused of violating the FDCPA by debtors it attempted to collect from.

Alleged Violations against David J. Gold, PC

Aja Trinidad vs. David J. Gold, PC and David J. Gold, Esq.*

According to PACER, in September 2010, David J. Gold filed a complaint against a Defendant in New York County Civil Court. The complaint alleged that she had incurred a bill for services from a cosmetic dental provider and failed to dispute any account statements sent to her prior to the litigation.

The Defendant asserted that she had met with the dental professional only once for an advertised free consultation in July 2009, and never contracted for or received any services. In October 2009, according to her complaint, she began receiving various collection notices from third-party collectors, all of them demanding an alleged balance of $5,995. She allegedly disputed each one.

Through her attorney, The Defendant filed an answer and counterclaim against the dentist, Dr. Barton. In December 2010 David J. Gold sent The Defendant counsel a response to the Requests to Admit. It allegedly indicated that Dr. Barton admitted to being informed by two of his third-party debt collectors that Ms. Trinidad had indeed disputed thee debt. The response also allegedly included an admission that Ms. Trinidad never met with Dr. Barton in his New York County office and that he did not have any written agreement with her for goods and services.

When The Defendant counsel learned that David J. Gold had filed at least 37 complaints against consumers on behalf of Dr. Barton in New York County in the two years prior to 2011, she sued Gold for multiple alleged FDCPA violations, including:

• Filing a claim for an invalid account
• Filing a collection action in a judicial district other than the one where Ms. Trinidad resided or where the alleged contract was signed
• Continuing to prosecute a claim for account stated after knowing it to be false

The matter was later settled.

Hire an Attorney

The phone number for David J. Gold, PC is 1-212-962-2910. If you see it on your caller ID when the phone rings, a debt collector is calling. If they file a baseless lawsuit against you over a nonexistent debt, hire a consumer attorney. The law prohibits such collection actions, and if you take the matter to court, you could potentially be awarded $1,000 per FDCPA violation as well as attorney’s fees, court costs, and any actual damages. When you know you don’t owe a debt, let an attorney help you fight back and put the collector in debt to you instead.

*Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is Case 1:11-cv-01744-RRM-VVP from United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be constructed as legal advice. If you file a claim against David J. Gold, PC, or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation