Caller says he's Mr. Fontana from the Reason Law Firm, he knew specific details about my past transactions and my account number. He said I bounced a check, gave me the check number and the date that the transaction happened. I called my bank, the check number was invalid, and for the 3 months surrounding the date of the supposed bounced check, I didn't bounce anything in my account. I called him on it and he laughed and said he would refer my account for leagal action... scammer

# 845 678 1288 keeps calling me.  Is it legit 0r a scam?

If they say i could go 2 jail if i dont pay them is it true?  Because i do have some debts. I mean, who doesn't?

I keep getting same calls.  0n my caller i d it says unavailable but the number they leave is same

Hey you scum of the earth debtors, instead of complaining about a legit company trying to collect YOUR debts why don't you just pay them and stop lieing through your teeth about how and i quote many of you lowlives "I aint bounce no check man!" I'm sure it gets old real fast the lies you people tell these collectors. I worked for a similar company a few years ago and believe me i heard it all. Some of the lies you people make up are shameless like the man who said his mother died then later when i called him back it was his son who died. Also stop using the bad economy excuse, the economy didn't write your check a***ole! 99 percent of the debts collected are real and the other 1 percent it turns out is usually a mistake which is cleared up right away. This company and others are not scams and if they were they would have been shut down long ago. Stop bitching you dirtbags and pay your debts!!

It is obvious to me also that "i believe everything i read online" is from this firm- they go onto all the complaint sites and try to justify what they are doing as right.  It is very obvious to me that the also have never fallen on hard times. Not everyone doesn't pay their bills because they do not want to, maybe they just truely cannot.  I think these people should be stopped and am in the process of dealing with them myself, I will not be talked to the way they talked to me and my husband and I will not pay them one red dime- they refuse to help and overtalk you no matter what you ask or try to say. I cannot really say what I think of all of them there. They have no concience and I hope they can all sleep good at night knowing the horrible things they say to people can cause some of us sickness and even hospitalization.  So Rephen Law Firm- as you read my message know one thing is for sure- I WILL NOT TAKE IT LIKE OTHERS HAVE, I AM GOING TO DO SOMETHING LEGALLY ABOUT IT!. Scammers and loosers are what you all are.

Why would you be reading this unless you had a complaint against this "law firm" and why would you put down those on here that do?  I you ask me it sounds like you yourself are a memeber of this firm and you are trying to make yourself seem more legit by acting as someone else and vouching for yourself.  YOU ARE THE SCAMMER!!!!!!!

Wow scam not working on the phone so you come on here to spew your CRAP? Hilarious! At least we know the site is working.

The real criminals are the incompetent CA's like you who have to come on here to cover up the fact that you're constantly violating FDCPA. Now, who belongs in jail? Effing crook!

Wow its always amazing to me what idiots you people are, lets see i'll bounce a check refuse to resolve it and than claim these lawyers are a scam, if they have been in business as long as people have been complaining about them and they were a scam don't you think some one would have closed them down at this point? Also when did passing bad checks become legal in this country? you losers are the people driving this country to it knees right now closing small business and large one's cause you repeatedly refuse to take responsibility for your action. also check your state laws most states are now putting scum like you in jail for 90 days minimum for check fraud. idiots.

A debt collector claiming to be ?Erica Shaw or Erica Shah,? a ?legal processor? from a ?law firm? called ?Rephen Law Firm? (which she purposely pronounced ?Restin? to avoid identification online) has attempted to collect a debt she claims is $220 for a bounced check with the original amount of $70. Their phone number is 845-678-1296.

1)    She refused to give information about the alleged ?law firm.?
2)    She refused to give information about the original debt.
3)    She claimed the additional funds from the original debt amount were for their ?processing fees? and interest.
4)    She threatened to take me to court, sue me and take legal action against me if I did not pay the debt and their ?fees? in full with an unreasonable time limit.
5)    She refused to send the debt information in writing or on the law firm?s letterhead.
6)    She became irate, accused me of doing illegal activity, and became verbally abusive on the phone when I questioned the fees and requested the information in writing.
7)    She attempted to justify the fees under the ?Uniform Commercial Code? and refused to tell me what part of it she was citing or how my state, FL, had adopted it.
8)    She became irate and refused to tell me the address where I could send them a letter requesting no contact.
9)    She said their only method of payment was Western Union and at first refused a payment plan I proposed. She eventually said yes to a payment plan but refused to offer any means by which to document the original debt or document my payments with receipts.

It is obvious from the overwhelming number of online complaints made to debt/credit complaint forums (e.g., ripoffreport.com, pissedconsumer.com, etc.) that they are an illegitimate operation.

It also appears if they have set up a phony website to garner information from consumers threatened by them in order to appear legitimate: http://mharveyrephenlaw.com/.

I have reported them to the Federal Trade Commission and urge other consumers to do the same here: https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/FTC_Wizard.aspx?Lang=en

DO NOT GIVE THEM A DIME.
TELL THEM TO STOP HARASSING YOU.
REPORT THEM TO THE FTC.

I GOT A CALL FROM THIS NUMBER FROM A MAN NAMED JAMES ADLER. HE SAID THAT MY FATHER AND GRANDFATHER NEEDED TO CALL HIM BACK OVER A LEGAL MATTER, AND THAT IT WAS SOMETHING AGAINST THEM. I TOLD HIM IM THE POWER OF ATTORNEY, AND ASKED WHAT IT WAS ABOUT AND HE REFUSED TO TELL ME. IF SEEING EVERYTHING ON HERE RIGHT THAN HOW DO YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT TO DO ABOUT THIS. HE SAID THEY ARE OUT OF NEW YORK BUT ARE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. HOW DO YOU FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS PLACE & SEE IF IT'S FOR REAL?

Cant say this enough!! SCAM!!!! They called our house after my wife found out that it was a scam and they called her names I would not repeat. Mr James Adler (Yeah right) and Ms London also called back and said they know we live by a store that we do live by. Called her a name and hung up. He wont talk to me and we have got the police involved. This is not legit. If you look at your credit report and see you do owe the money and you paid these people then guess what....you still owe the money and you got scamed. I guess they could be out of the country although there speech is very american but who knows if we will ever find them. Our family will be praying for both of them tonight.

You break the law by writing bad checks and Rephen is the crook for making you pay?? That's fresh. You don't know the law and clearly have little respect for it so you should not be lecturing others on it.  You CAN be prosecuted and you CAN be sued for the money you owe. Moneygram and Western Union are the safest way in the world to send cash.  Why should one accept any other form of payment from a person who has done nothing but prove they are NO GOOD for checks or credit of any kind.

This ***hole is nothing but a Crook!!  He says he is going to have you arrested and tries to scare you into paying him.  Don't be intimidated by him.... I have read a lot about him and every one says the same about him.  It's pretty strange that he wants only western union or money gram don't you think??  Brad should be put out of business!

Christina,
       Look over your bank records and if you bounced checks then take care of them, stop making excuses for your bad behavior.

I have been recently harrassed from this same number. I sometimes get a "Mary" "Mrs. Tooker" and I actually got Brad Rephen this last time when I called to request the address where I could send written correspondence. The answer I got? And I quote "I am not interested in being your pen pal lady!" Then he asked if I was saying that I was agreeing to pay the debt once I received verification and when I told him I couldn't agree to anything I had no knowledge of he told me, and I quote again, "Then I will have no choose but to have you prosecuted criminally." These guys will continually say 'due to Uniform Code such and such' and never give you a straight answer. PLEASE DON'T GIVE THESE PEOPLE ANY INFORMATION! I'm literally shaking I'm so scared about the stuff I've read on this company.

Linda,
    Why don't you use some common sense? You just acknowledged that you spoke to the agency that owns the debt and that they personally advised you that they had retained the law firm. Obviously once it goes there the costs are not going to be the same. If they were than they would have never retained a law office in the first place.

I also have a story regarding this "business".  I called an office, Security Check, to clear up a legitimate debt I had with them.  I paid the returned check I owed them and then they told me that 2 of my other returned checks had been sent to Rephen Law Firm.  They told me the amount I owed on the 2 checks.  I actually called 888-715-3940 and spoke with a Ms. Facome (who said she handled the Virginia area).  My original check was $26.22 with a $50.00 service fee, which I knew I owned and was trying to take care of).  I asked when this came to their office, that I had never heard from this office regarding a debt and Ms. Facome told me well, sorry you didn't pay any attention to the letter we sent (I have still to this date never received any correspondence from this law firm.  She told me that I had to pay $176.62 to clear this check up.  I asked, very nicely, what was the other costs added.  She stated 2 $30 merchant fees, a $30 state fee and a $60 collection fee.  She stated that no attorney fees had been added......yet!  I asked for an address to send this to, she said I had to Moneygram or Western Union.  Gave me no physical address.  Said when I sent the Western Union, to call 845-678-1267 with the receipt number.  When I tried to get her to explain the misc fees, she was very rude.  I told her that I didn't understand fees, because Security Check told me that they did not add any additional fees.  Ms. Facome said the $176.22 was what I owned and I could either pay it or be taken to court.  I again asked her to explain what and who the fees were for, she very rudely stated she would explain one more time and after repeating the fees, she stated that she had spent enought time on the phone with me and was going to hang up.  I told her (and I know she heard me), "please do not hang up on me.  That is rude and I am trying to take care of this matter."  Then I heard her hang up.  I spoke to another law firm/collection agency and was told that these kinds of law offices can add fees and do not have to tell you.  Since I knew I owed the $76.22 bill, I went ahead and paid the bill. The person doing the Western Union transaction was having a difficult time, so again, I had to call Ms. Facome.  She was again rude, asking if this was the first western union this person had done.  After reading everyone elses problems with this company, I think I will request a copy of the debt for the 2 checks.  If I'm not mistaken, doesn't a law office or debt collector HAVE to send you a copy of the debt you owe?  Thanks to everyone who has posted here and given others important info.

My husband and I have been dealing with these people for a few months now. They refuse to send us a validation letter and refuse to respond to the letter we sent them telling them to cease and desist calling and all communication must be done through writing. For "Attorneys" they sure do break a lot of laws, as my attorney has pointed out rather ruefully.

We have dealt with "Mr. Cain" who refuses to give us a first name, and will not talk to our attorney. He will hang up when he calls, or not return his messages. Yes, for "lawyers" they sure don't know the law.

They never once identified themselves as collectors, which is all they really are. They never once gave a mini Miranda, which is required by the fair debt law. They have called us more than once in a day, and when all this is brought to their attention, they sputter something out and hang up.

I've already reported them to the FTC, but they are not registered with the ACA or the BBB, which sets off a few alarms for me at least. Every debt collection agency I've ever had to deal with before (All two of them) have been registered with at least ONE of those companies if their legit.

I got a call from a female who claims she was with Rephen Law firm.  She said that I owe a balance of $8000.00 in payments.

I had almost the exact same experience, a "Mr. Cain" from "Rephen Law Firm" called me out of the blue claiming I owed $191.28 for a personal check written SEVENTEEN MONTHS before I was ever even contacted about my so called "debt"! The call itself was suspiscious enough, he would not provide the physical mailing address of his "Law Firm" or even his first name (NOT EVEN A FAKE ONE!)! Anyway, at first I thought it was legit, until he told me he was not able to withdrawl the money from niether my checking or saving account, he told me I had to pay through a moneygram order within twenty four hours or face legal charges! I paid the moneygram within three hours of speaking with "Mr. Cain" and as soon as I did I started really thinking about how suspiscious and odd this guy was acting for a laywer. As soon as I returned home I searched the internet for this "Law Firm" and found incredible ammounts of VERY negative complaints (some perhaps even bordering on criminal)! So, I canceled payment on the moneygram and the customer service agent actually told me these people get away with this type of scam all the time! I don't understand how SNAKES like this "Mr. Cain" can get away with robbing hard working people blind and not be put behind bars! I have already retained COMPETENT legal counsel regarding this matter, and I STRONGLY urge anyone who is contacted by this "Mr. Cain" or anyone else claiming to be with "Rephen Law Firm" to do the same. Do not be taken advantage of! I hope this comment will be helpful. ~ M.

Mr. Fontana left a voice mail message on my cell phone. He claims to be calling from a law firm. When I returned his call, I was on a very short break at work. I didn't have much time and he was EXTREMELY rude. He wouldn't give me info because I didn't have a "reference number" for him. He kept asking my name. I told him I was in a hurry. He yelled "I am an attorney" and then he promptly hung up on me. Very very strange. Makes me very nervous. I have no idea what this could be about.

I got a call today from a Mr. Fontana. My situation is IDENTICAL to yours.  He refuses to send me any info. on this so called debt, so I'm requesting validation by certified mail tomorrow.  He tried telling me that I have 72 hours to take care of it---with no proof!  He can go right ahead and litigate it, because he won't get a dime from me without some sort of validation.

i got two phone calls from this man named Mr. Cain from Rephen Law Firm...he told me I had an outstanding check for 119.00. And he knew alot of my information...he told me I wrote it to T-Tech incorporated...I dont even know who that is!!! This man was very rude and told me if I did not pay that i would be sued for not paying... I then called my bank and they said they dont see that check number trying to clear...they told me it was December 29th 2007 when I wrote the check... then I looked through all my bank statements and could not find anywhere where a check with that number even tried to clear...i dont know what is going on...i was scared at first but when i got on the internet and started researching and found all these comments....just like what i am going through...i kind of chilled out i am still mad! The number that called my was 845-678-1275 and Mr. Cain was he's name where's his first name?!?!

I got the same call, when I returned the call it seamed fishy but I did my research and found that he WAS provided all of my information and after speaking with my atty he did sugest that i settle out because the gym has no way of knowing what the headquarters are doing. I was concerned because they never called me and now I owe a lot more, but I held out for a couple months afraid to call. I went to the gym and they told me that they couldn't do anything because on the back of the contract there is something that states that we will still be charged after contract is over. If you ask me I think Work out World is the creeps who got me in this problem.

This man called my house and said I was being sued for an outstanding debt.  I had a gym membership taken directly out of an account....well, I switched banks, so I closed the account and paid the last few months due on the gym mebership with a personal check. The man who called said I had ten days to straighten this out and he wanted me to fax him the check that I paid with.  Well, I started getting suspicious and googled his number and come to find out, he is a scam artisit. How sad is this???  I should have known what was going on when I called back his office and they answered the phone "Law Offices". And then when I gave him my name he had all the information in like two seconds. He almost have me fooled, but almost doesn't count!! Use caution with creeps like this.

We just got a call at our business asking for the owner of the business. When the secretary asked which one the man did not have the answer. He said that he could not give out that info. He said his name is Mr. Fontana & he is with a law firm & one of the owners needs to call him. When she asked again for which one he asked her if one of them lived at ? & he gave one of their addresses. The secretary not knowing better said yes one of them lives at that address. Who is this man ? That is the # 845-678-1268 & he says he is Mr Fontana. He needs to be stopped. For some reason this man is trying to scam people & we all need to find out why.

I tried contacting the local authorities about "Fontana" and they could care less to help me. They said that they would not and could not do anything about the calls because there has NOT been a crime commited. He will keep calling my house!!! He has called several times and left messages.

I got a call today about from Rephen Law Firm saying that I was in serious trouble and I had to pay immediately. I have no unpaid debts and everything I have is current!! I did not give him any information and I will be contacting the local authorities.

Same MO  left message that he was from law firm