When a party seeks to enforce a legal right, they file a lawsuit. The path that lawsuits take as they journey through the civil justice system is called litigation.

Not every attorney practices bankruptcy law, and not every bankruptcy attorney is a litigator. For litigation to be effective, one needs to know each and every aspect of the case as well as the procedures that enable the parties to successfully navigate the lawsuit. Whatever the case, we bring over 15 years of litigation experience in various federal and state courts on a variety of factual and legal issues.

We represent our clients throughout the litigation process, including:
-Mediation: where a neutral is brought into the dispute for the purposes of facilitating productive discussions with a goal towards resolution;
-Arbitration: where an arbitrator is brought by the agreement of the parties to render a decision in the dispute;
-Trial or substantive motion; and
-Appeal.

Bankruptcy Litigation
Bankruptcy litigation usually takes the form of an Adversary Proceeding: a law suit filed in the bankruptcy court. Creditors, Debtors and Trustees may initiate these actions. These proceedings are separate from a bankruptcy filing where a debtor seeks a discharge or an opportunity to reorganize. An Adversary Proceeding is very similar to civil suits filed in other courts.
There are a number of reasons why an Adversary Proceeding may be brought. These include, but are not limited to situations where:
-A creditor seeks a judgment of non-dischargeability of a debt;
-A debtor seeks damages for violations of the automatic stay; or
-A trustee seeks the turn over of estate property.

Consumer Litigation
Many bankruptcy debtors have consumer rights claims and these disputes may find their way in court if there are violations of:
-The Truth in Lending Act
-The Real Estate Settlement Practices Act
-The Fair Credit Billing Act and
-The Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Debt Litigation
Consumer and Commercial disputes arise when debt is the issue. In addition to defending the debt on the merits, we also enforce consumer rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act when warranted, as well as the rights of consumers and businesses under chapter 93A of the Massachusetts General Laws (the Massachusetts Consumer Protection and Unfair and Deceptive Practices Statute).