Consumer Debt Litigation (mostly Texas): ZWICKER AND ASSOCIATES

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

ZWICKER AND ASSOCIATES - Review of Debt Collection Firm

Profile of Debt Collection Firm

ZWICKER & ASSOCIATES, P.C.

This is a major national debt-collection lawfirm that represents leading financial institutions (among them American Express and Discover Bank) in mass debt litigation. It operates through attorneys licensed in the states in which debt litigation is performed.

Zwicker correspondence reflects that this lawfirm has attorneys licensed in the following states: Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and District of Columbia (not a state).

Zwicker’s mailing address: Zwicker’s debt litigation in Texas is handled from a single office in Round Rock, Texas 78681.

TEXAS LAWYERS ASSOCIATED WITH ZWICKER & ASSOCIATES

As of June 2013, the following Texas-licensed attorneys are associated with Zwicker & Associates:
Troy D. Bolen, Joseph M. O’Bell, Audrie L. Lawton, Laura L. Bedford. O’Bell replaced Christopher D. Osborn, who left the firm early in 2012. According to her SBOT profile, Megan D. Naglreiter still works for Zwicker, too, but her name is not listed on Zwicker's current address block.

Other attorney who handled Texas litigation for ZWICKER in the past: Kendall Lauren Bryant, now with the Ryan Law Firm LLP in Austin.

How many lawyer are affiliated with Zwicker?

It is unclear how many lawyers work for Zwicker in Texas. The firm’s court-filed papers list four, but the firm-size information on the state bar’s website, which is submitted by each attorney separately, is inconsistent on that matter.

O’Bell’s profile reports the firm size for ZWICKER & ASSOCIATES as 25-40. The profile of one of his colleagues (Troy Bolen) quotes the number as 2-5. The discrepancy may reflect inclusion and exclusion of appearance attorneys, respectively. Appearance attorneys are local lawyers who go to court for law firms with multi-city operations (such as ZWICKER & ASSOCIATES) in various parts of the state for hearings and trials, but do not themselves sign pleadings or motions. The use of local counsel for court appearances makes mass litigation conducted simultaneously in many parts of the state more economical and logistically feasible because it reduces the need for attorney travel. It can also be beneficial in other respects. Although local counsel who work as contractors may be of varying caliber, they are usually familiar with their local courts, including the judges and their staff, and how things are done in different courthouses around the state. A lawyer from out-to-town is often at a competitive disadvantage and more prone to make errors or commit a faux pas.

TYPICAL PLEADINGS FILED BY ZWICKER ATTORNEYS

Like others in the business of debt collection, Zwicker attorneys file pleadings generated with a document production system that inserts a few case-specific details (name of defendant, a few digits of the account number, and the amount for which judgment is sought) into a template. As a result, the petitions filed in multiple cases handled by this attorney have the same look, make the same allegations (except for the amount of the debt), and are based on the same legal theory: breach of contract.

The standard petition filed by attorneys associated with ZWICKER AND ASSOCIATES is titled “PLAINTIFF’S ORIGINAL PETITION” and does not include discovery requests either within the petition itself or as a separate attachment. Some other debt plaintiffs makes such requests within the petition, and use a document title that makes reference to discovery, e.g. Plaintiff’s Original Petition and First Request for Admissions and Production of Documents. Others serve discovery request with the petition, but as separate documents. In that case, the citation should include a mention of the additional documents, otherwise there may not be official proof of service.

As of June 2013, the standard petition does not include a request for attorney’s fees. In the past, Zwicker attorneys requested such fees in their petitions, typically $400-$500 dollars per case.

EXAMPLE OF PETITION FILED BY ZWICKER LAW FIRM IN JANUARY 2014