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Think twice before paying that bill

05-12-2005 - When Cleburne News employee Stacey Camp received a letter from Boyajian Law Offices saying she owed a past due amount for Verizon phone service she was about ready to pay the $215.49 to keep her credit clean.

However, Camp couldn’t exactly remember such a bill and when she called Boyajian in Rutherford, N.J. she was told it was from 14 years ago. She asked for a more detailed accounting but never got one - she isn’t alone.

An Internet search turns up plenty of complaints (see www.badbusinessbureau.com) and their consumer “Rip-off Reports” from Michigan, Ohio, California, Florida, New York, Virginia, New Jersey and others from Alabama including Enterprise and Troy.

One victim from Troy, in his “Rip-off Report” said Boyajian was previously known as JBC & Associates or JBC Legal Group but after having been pursued by state and federal regulators in several states they reorganized as “Boyajian Law Offices” headed by Jack Boyajian.

The victim says Boyajian is not licensed and has been denied a law license in New Jersey.

Many victims say Boyajian is making up false claims (a majority dealing with Verizon phone service) and placing bad information on their credit reports.

According to some victims Boyajian is also asking for Social Security numbers, copies of individual tax and military records and other private information.

A quick check with the Better Business Bureau reveals that Boyajian has an “unsatisfactory record” with them “due to unanswered complaints” and the BBB of New Jersey has not been provided with basic information about the company.
“I’d throw the thing (collection letter) away,” said a BBB spokeswoman in Birmingham.

In a Nov. 2003 press release West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw announced the filing of a petition asking the Kanawha Circuit Court “to order JBC & Associates, a New Jersey collection agency, and itsowner, Jack Boyajian, to produce records about its West Virginia collection activities as required by a subpoena issued by McGraw’s office on August 11, 2003.

McGraw’s office opened an investigation of JBC after several consumers complained that the law firm/collection agency was attempting to coerce payments of alleged bad checks by threatening arrest and criminal prosecution, harassing consumers repeatedly by telephone, refusing to identify itself, and refusing to provide copies of canceled checks or other verification of debts when disputed by consumers.”

The AG’s office also found that JBC was not licensed and bonded to collect debt in West Virginia. In Minnesota the story was the same.

In a June 16, 2004 press release, the Office of Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch announced the filing of lawsuits against JBC & Associates “for engaging in business practices which violate Minnesota debt collection and consumer protection laws.”

JBC was alleged to have used unlawful tactics to collect debts that were not valild or to collect money from the wrong consumer.
Minnesota Solicitor General Lori Swanson noted that JBC coerced “consumers into paying unsubstantiated debts and amounts that were not even owed by them in the first place.”

The lawsuit charged the company with failure to provide proper notices, false representation about the status or character of debt, attempts to collect on disputed debts without providing verification, unlawful threats to sue and false and misleading representation about civil penalties.

JBC was particularly cited for unlawfully attempting to collect debts for its clients with threats of legal action that cannot be taken, failure to verifiy debts and making unwarranted threats to consumers.

At the time, the Minnesota AG reported JBC to be a California professional corporation with headquarters at 2 Broad Street, 6th Floor, Bloomfield, NJ.

The State of Connecticut has also taken action against the JBC Legal Group and on July 27, 2004 entered into a settlement based on an investigation by the state’s Consumer Credit Division.

They found that JBC acted as a consumer collection agency within Connecticut without a license. JBC agreed to cease operations there and were fined $18,000.

In denying Jack Boyajian and JBC a license to operate in their state, investigators in Connecticut found that the Office of the Attorney General of the State of New Jersey received 126 complaints in 2003 concerning collection practices, failure to provide documents, billing disputes and harassment.

They reported 14 lawsuits have been filed - 13 in federal district courts in several states and one in state court alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and one certified class action lawsuit.

JBC Legal Group does have a website which gives the Bloomfield, NJ address as well as their California address of 9465 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA.

In their collection letter to Camp they use a 201 Route 17 North, Rutherford, NJ address and a letter heading imprint “Boyajian Law Offices - A California Professional Corporation” with 21 national offices.

According to the website Jack Boyajian is “a graduate of the Wharton School of Finance and Rutgers School of Law. Mr. Boyajian is a licensed real estate broker in the State of New Jersey” and “has a deep respect for community and family.”
A check at Whois.Net reveals the website registrant is JBC PC in Bloomfield, NJ.

Their California office phone number has been disconnected but calls to their JBC Legal Group number confirmed JBC and Boyajian are all one and the same.

Jeff Lamb with the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Affairs told The Cleburne News that they have received 307 complaints since April 2001 from New Jersey residents alone citing harassment and refund problems.

The Cleburne News contacted the Alabama Attorney General’s office and spokeswoman Joy Patterson said, “Our office has a record of eight complaints that were received fairly recently, so there is not yet information on how they may be resolved. The general nature of the complaints are that people believe they do not owe the money, generally that either they have paid the bills or are unfamiliar with the debt.”

Asked about the statute of limitations on debts in Alabama, Patterson said, “ it is not possible to answer that because any limits vary greatly depending on matters such the particular kind of debt and contracts involved.”

However, according to: collectionagencylifetips.com, the statutes of limitations for debt collection in Alabama is three years for an open account, six years for a written contract, 20 years for a domestic judgment.

A business license is not required for out-of-state collection agencies to operate in Alabama.

About Wayne Ruple Cleburne News editor Wayne Ruple is a native of Ashville. Before coming to Heflin, he worked for three years as a computer systems manager in Birmingham. Ruple has worked for The Sand Mountain Reporter in Albertville, and was the editor of The Independent in Robertsdale. He has also worked for the Shades Valley Sun, the St. Clair News-Aegis and The Daily Home in Talladega.

Contact Wayne Ruple Phone:
Fax:
E-mail:
(256) 463-2872
(256) 463-7127
news@cleburnenews.com