Lynn Ellen Coleman

I offer personal, compassionate assistance with debt and consumer law issues to persons in the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina.

St. Mary's University School of Law

J.D. | Law

1983 - 1986

Trinity University

B.S. | History, Political Science

1979 - 1982

North Carolina State Bar

Member

Current

National Association of Consumer Advocates

Member

2010 - Current

National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys

Member

2009 - Current

North Carolina Bar Association

Member

1999 - Current

North Carolina

Since 2000

Texas

1986-2000

• Free Consultation
  I offer a free online or telephone consultation.
• Credit Cards Accepted
  Debit cad only for bankruptcy. Credit card (all major cards) for other areas.
• Contingent Fees
  For certain consumer law cases only.
• Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
  I offer flat fees, contingency fees, and hourly fees depending upon the nature of the case.

Bankruptcy

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Debt Relief

Collections

Foreclosure Defense

• Student Loan Law
• General Civil

Q. I am a disabled veteran who currently lives with a friend/homeowner who does not want to fix ac and other problems.

February 8, 2023

A: In general, if there is a condition that makes things unsafe and a health hazard - lack of running water, lack of useable toilet bathtub or shower, leaky sewage, standing water or leaks causing mold,unsafe electrical system, rotten stairs or floorboards, lack of operable locks, for example - the landlord must make repairs expeditiously. If you think things are so bad that the housing code has been violated, contact the city or county housing inspector. Do you have a written lease? Does it call for a specific term (does it have an end date)? If not, what are the terms of your verbal lease (agreement)? The landlord is responsible for maintaining existing appliances and heating/air systems to working condition, but beleive it or not, a working air conditioner is not required to be provided by a landlord under existing North Carolina law. You are way too vague about the "other problems" for any lawyer to give you specific advice. In fact, online message boards are not really an appropriate place to get specific advice. If there is a written lease, a lawyer needs to review it or else any opinion is just speculation. I mention this because if you are on a verbal or written agreement that is "month to month", the landlord only has to give you seven days notice to vacate and then can file a summary ejectment action against you if you do not leave. If the conditions are annoying but not causing imminent harm, you should just start looking for another place to live. As a disabled veteran, there are agencies available to assist you in finding more suitable place to live. Call 211 or search for local agencies. The only reason you would want to go to court is to sue for a rent abatement (reduction in rent) for the duration of a longer term lease until repairs are made and quite honestly, the amount of reduction in your rent that a magistrate would give would be so small it might not be worth it. In addition, if you have a written lease that has not expired, your friend has absolutely no legal obligation to give you a lease renewal once it expires. If you sue, you can guarantee that a renewal will not be offered to you. It's obvious this person is not as much of a friend as they once were, so perhaps it is best to move on.

Q. We bought a car, the dealer registered it to wrong person, temp tag now expired. Dealer now won’t reply.

February 7, 2023

A: The North Carolina DMV DOES have an office that handles these kind of claims called the "License and Theft Bureau". Go to this link (copy and paste into your browser) https://www.ncdot.gov/dmv/offices-services/locate-dmv-office/Pages/dmv-offices.aspx Turn OFF the sliders on the right of the map which are automatically set ONLY to find driver license and license plate. Turn ON the slider for "License and Theft Bureau". These offices are often only staffed a few days a week. Locate the onle in your county or the closest one to your county and contact them for further assistance. A dealer not issuing a permanent tag will get a phone call from an officer and you would be very surprised how fast they will respond. If they do not respond, the dealer can have its license to sell cars suspended, they can be fined, etcetera. You should also file a complaint wiht the NC Attorney General (copy and paste this link) https://ncdoj.gov/file-a-complaint/motor-vehicle-complaint/

Q. I need a listing of lawyers in Mecklenburg county that can consult me on a debt collection suit

February 1, 2023

A: You don't mention if you are trying to collect from someone, or if you are defending a collection against yourself, or if this is a business collection matter. If you are defending against a personal collection you could start out with consumer bankruptcy attorneys (many also defend collections and handle unfair debt collection cases). If you are trying to find a lawyer to collect against someone who owes you money a "collections" lawyer would be the one. If this is a business dispute, a business attorney would do. Use the Find A Lawyer feature on this site to start or use Google. There is no pre-created "list" and we are not allowed to refer you specifically to any attorney. This is a question and answer site.