James Anthony Michel

James Anthony Michel is a consumer protection attorney helping people get relief from debt, and pursuing debt collectors who violate the law. I have been fighting for the interests of regular people since I became a lawyer in 1996.

In my early days, I represented employees in discrimination cases and tenants in lawsuits against landlords. In 2008, in response to the global financial crisis, I turned my focus toward consumers seeking debt relief in bankruptcy court, obtaining discharges of all kinds of debt and preventing foreclosures of people’s homes.

I responded to the student loan debt crisis by helping borrowers get into affordable payment plans, and by litigating private student loan cases in court. Since 2014, I mainly fight debt cases in state and federal court, because bankruptcy is not the best solution for most of my current clients.

This is especially true for people whose debt consists mostly of student loans, because there are programs which make federal loans affordable and there are ways to minimize the impact of private student loans. People who contact me initially seeking bankruptcy protection often find that I can help them ward off aggressive debt collectors without the need of a bankruptcy petition.