Sponsored Content WEBINAR: ELECTION 2008: E-mail Tips from a Political Insider   WEBINAR: Becoming the Illusionist: The Magic of Using "Brand" to Drive Response without Results Disappearing in the Process   WEBINAR: Score and Win Through Cooperation   TOOLS OF THE TRADE: Holiday's are prime-time for email marketing - maximize your ROI by getting to the inbox   ON DEMAND WEBINAR--MASTER CLASS: High Performance Online and Off-line Strategies for Large Scale Customer Acquisition   FREE WHITE PAPER - Direct Mail and the Internet Find any supplier you need - agencies, CRM, fulfillment, lists, e-commerce, paper, printers, telemarketing, and more. Featured Categories Lists and Data Telemarketing Database Marketing E-commerce Web Marketing Agency & Creative Services Print, Production & Paper Lists and Data Processing :: view all categories Get free access to more than 50,000 list data cards - one of the most comprehensive databases in the industry. >> Search Now DIRECT Buzz Blog Webinars Buyer's Guide Calculators JobZone ListFinder Promo Calendar Research Store E-Newsletters Print Magazine This Month in Direct Magazine Deal With It Direct had a full house for this year's list roundtable. Considering all the additional responsibilities on brokers' plates, that's impressive... See Full July Issue

Florida attorney Randall L. Leshin, his debt management services company, Express Consolidation Inc. and telemarketer Consumer Credit Consolidation Inc. have agreed to collectively pay $2 million to settle charges they used abusive telemarketing and deception to sell consumer debt management services, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida has ordered that the defendants refrain from making false representations to sell debt management services and violating the National Do Not Call (DNC) Registry, according to the Commission.

A separate order governing Express Consolidation also requires that some current customers be transferred to another debt management services provider and that all current customers be given the opportunity to shift their debt management payments to another provider, according tor the FTC.

Specifically, the first order settles the Commission’s charges against Express Consolidation; Leshin as company president; Randall L. Leshin P.A. and Charles Ferdon, Express Consolidation vice president. They allegedly sold and provided debt management services under the names Express Consolidation and Debt Management Counseling Center, according to the FTC.

The second court order settles the charges against telemarketer Consumer Credit Consolidation Inc. and its president, Maureen Gaviola, who were charged with using deceptive marketing to sell contracts for Leshin and Express Consolidation, according to the FTC.

The complaint charges that the defendants violated the FTC Act and that the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) in selling debt management services to consumers nationwide under the name of Express Consolidation, according to the FTC.

Although the defendants advertised Express Consolidation as a nonprofit company, the FTC alleged that its nonprofit status was a sham, and the contracts and fees secured under its name actually benefitted Leshin.

The complaint also alleged that the defendants made many other false representations including claims that the only cost for the defendants’ services was a monthly administrative fee, that fees were adjusted to comply with state law requirements, that enrollment would bring consumers specified savings and that the services would improve consumers’ credit ratings, the FTC continued.

The defendants also allegedly failed to disclose the total cost of the program and falsely characterized fees as deposits or payments that would be refunded, according to the Commission.

The FTC further alleged that the defendants violated the TSR by calling consumers who had placed their telephone numbers on the DNC Registry by calling consumers who said they did not want to be called, by failing to pay for access to the Registry and by abandoning calls made to consumers using voice broadcasting services.