Lawsuit Loan Sharks Strike Again

We’ve been talking about lawsuit loansharking here for a while now. Recently, a woman filed suit against the law firm that represented her in a Vioxx class-action lawsuit, alleging that the law firm illegally persuaded her and more than 200 other plaintiffs to take out high-interest loans from a company run by the owners of the firm and their relatives. What’s more, the law firm convinced their clients to take out these loans with full knowledge that the settlements payments would be made in the near future.

This is a prime example of lawsuit loansharking at its worst. Lawsuit loansharking - the practice of offering plaintiffs expecting large legal settlements a portion of their expected settlement or lawsuit award up-front through a high-interest loan – is creeping up in states across the country.

Some lenders charge very high fees that are similar to high-interest loans. The fees may be so high that consumers may end up with nothing – or even worse – end up in debt even after receiving their lawsuit award or settlement.

To read more about the effects of lawsuit loansharking on consumers, check out this New York Times article or head over to Sick of Lawsuits.

Lawsuit loan sharks mislead and hurt consumers.  While a lawsuit is supposed to be about making an injured party whole, the personal injury lawyers and the loan sharks end up walking away with the money.