National Association of Consumer Advocates
• NACA is a nationwide organization of consumer protection attorneys. The NACA site contains a directory of consumer rights attorneys, opportunities for consumers to participate in national and state-wide consumer rights campaigns and online “Know Your Consumer Rights” resources.

National Consumer Law Center
• NCLC is a non-profit organization that advocates on behalf of consumers and provides information and resources to consumers and consumer attorneys. The organization’s website includes an extensive section for non-lawyers that covers many consumer topics, including: debt collection harassment, credit reporting issues, “credit repair” companies, identity theft, bankruptcy, your rights as a credit card holder, “tax refund” and “tax anticipation” loans, “rent to own” loans, payday loans, preventing foreclosure, and how the elderly can protect themselves from being taken advantage of financially.

Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project
• NEDAP engages in advocacy and organizing efforts on behalf of New York City’s low-income residents. NEDAP’s Consumer Law Project provides one-on-one legal consultation to low-income consumers, focusing on helping low-income women defend debt collection law suits. (This program can be accessed by contacting the NYC Financial Justice Hotline at 212-925-4929.) NEDAP’s website contains extensive resources for consumers, including online publications and/or sample letters on the following topics: Credit Reports and Credit Score, Debt Collection, Identity Theft, Predatory Lending, Foreclosures. The NEDAP site also contains resources aimed specifically at assisting the elderly and immigrants.

New York City Department of Consumer Affairs
• The NYCDCA’s website provides resources for business and consumers, as well as information on how to file a consumer complaint with the Department.

Federal Trade Commission
• The U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection is tasked with preventing fraud, deception and unfair business practices in the marketplace. The FTC’s website provides consumer information on a variety of consumer issues, including consumer protection information on Automobiles, Internet, Credit and Loans, Identity Theft and Telemarketing. The FTC’s website also allows consumers to file online complaints about unfair/deceptive practices.

Americans for Fairness in Lending
• AFFIL is a not-for-profit organization that works to reform the lending industry to protect Americans’ financial assets.

Center for Responsible Lending
• The Center for Responsible Lending is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research and policy organization dedicated to protecting homeownership and family wealth by working to eliminate abusive financial practices. The Center’s staff includes attorneys, researchers, and policy analysts in North Carolina, Washington DC, and California who study and report on predatory lending matters and monitor legislative and regulatory activity in state capitols and in the US Congress.

Office of the New York State Attorney General
• The New York Attorney General provides an abundance of resources for consumers dealing with unfair debt collection, foreclosure defense and a wide range of other consumer fraud issues.  A good starting point is the Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud Burea online Resource Center. This site includes information on how to file a complaint with the New York Attorney General.  The Attorney General has recently increased its focus on debt collection abuse, and has launched a separate website, www.NYDebtHelp.com, dealing just with these issues.

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NOTE: The information provided in “Consumer Law Resources” is general information only. Schlanger & Schlanger, LLP does not make any representation as to the accuracy of any of the information provided here, nor of any of the information provided by any of the websites, organizations or agencies listed, nor does Schlanger & Schlanger, LLP make any representation as to the quality or suitability of the services provided by any of the above listed organizations or agencies.