Consumer law relates to consumer financial transactions, purchases, and debts. We provide legal advice, investigation, or full legal representation to consumers only, not businesses. The types of cases and the level of service we can provide may vary based on available resources.
Examples of some of the case types we have handled in the past are below.
Defending consumers facing:
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- Debt Collection lawsuits
- Auto Loan lawsuits after a repossession
- Medical debt lawsuits with false charges
- Student loan affordability and defaults
- Illegal eviction lawsuits
Protecting consumers from:
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- Deceptive car dealers
- Abusive debt collectors and creditors
- Landlords conducting illegal “self-help” evictions without going to court
- Landlords refusing to repair very severe defects to rental premises
- Rent-to-own and “contract for deed” housing scams
- Credit reporting errors and identity theft
Providing legal advice and assistance for eligible St. Louis City 2025 Tornado victims:
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- Evictions
- Contractor disputes
- Debt or credit disputes related to tornado disaster or recovery
- Other tornado-related legal issues
Assistance is based upon our current intake protocols and capacity; not all applicants may receive assistance.
Counties Served
St. Louis City, St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Franklin County and Jefferson County.
Additional Resources
Consumer Debt & Credit
If you are facing debt collection pressures, bad credit, collection lawsuits, or other financial challenges, the book Surviving Debt can help you. The book is published by The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) and available online. Surviving Debt is easy to read and written in plain language for non-lawyers. Best of all, it has separate chapters on each kind of debt issue for easy and quick reference on specific topics.
Bankruptcy
For all things bankruptcy, and some debt management advice too, Upsolve.org is a great resource. It provides enormous amounts of information. It also has all the forms a debtor needs to file bankruptcy on their own.
If someone wants to find a good consumer bankruptcy lawyer, many are members of National Association Of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA). Consumers can search for a lawyer on NACBA’s website.
Financial Counseling and Improving Credit
One community partner who can help with financial counseling and improving your credit is PROSPERITYCONNECTION.ORG.
Also, the FTC has a nice handout called “Fixing your credit”. This and more FTC resources are available at: FTC.GOV/DEBT.
Consumer Claims
If we can’t help, the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA) has a find a lawyer tool by topic at: CONSUMERADVOCATES.ORG.
Mo Tenant Help
MO Tenant Help offers free, easy-to-use, and mobile-friendly resources to Missouri tenants facing eviction or other housing needs.
Our DIY forms are accessible to tenants, attorneys, paralegals or anyone helping a tenant.
MO Tenant Help is funded by HUD (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) and is supported by legal aid organizations across Missouri.
Visit www.MoTenantHelp.org
Staff
- Terry Lawson, Managing Attorney
- Stephanie Acon, Paralegal
- Jennifer Agles, Senior Paralegal
- Taylor Burrows, Attorney
- Shawn Caruso, Senior Attorney – Tornado Recovery
- Abbie Leonard, Housing Advocate/Social Worker
- Kayley Lincoln, Social Worker
- Jami Scott, Social Worker
- Victoria St. Jean, Attorney
- Rob Swearingen, Attorney