Welcome to our mini-website for Oregon consumer law. The attorneys of Baxter & Baxter, LLP, are dedicated advocates for consumers. Baxter & Baxter, LLP, is a Pacific Northwest consumer protection law firm with offices in Oregon and Washington. To visit our firm’s main website, visit www.baxterlaw.com.

The Oregon consumer protection lawyers of the Consumer Litigation Group represent individuals in cases with false credit reports, identity theft cases, unlawful debt collection cases, and consumer fraud cases. The Portland Oregon bankruptcy attorneys, Hillsboro, Oregon bankruptcy attorneys, Oregon City bankruptcy attorneys, and Vancouver Washington bankruptcy lawyers of the Bankruptcy Practice Group represent individuals in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Our mission of committed and zealous consumer advocacy is unrivaled, and our track record of excellence and professionalism is recognized nationwide.

This site includes an aggregation of news stories about business, finance, and politics that bears upon our consumer protection and bankruptcy practice. We hope you will find the stories interesting and useful. For more information about our firm, please visit our main website at www.baxterlaw.com.

“We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for relief under the Bankruptcy Code.”

Bret Knewtson
Law Office of Bret Knewtson

Today I am writing about my friend and colleague, Bret Knewtson. Bret is an outstanding attorney and member of the legal community. I will never forget the speech he gave as the outgoing Chair of the Oregon State Bar Consumer Law Section. In that speech, he talked about how lawyers have a great duty to be members of the legal community and serve.

Much of Bret’s website deals with bankruptcy, but he is also known in Oregon as the leading authority on defending against credit card lawsuits. He has led the charge in aggressively defending consumers against time-barred breach of contract lawsuits which are filed outside of the statute of limitations.

From his website “Bret Knewtson is a 2003 graduate of Lewis and Clark Law School. He has specialized in personal and small business bankruptcy protection for three years. Mr. Knewtson is always available to answer his clients’ chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcy questions.
As a member of the Consumer Law Section, Mr. Knewtson has helped to pass legislation increasing Oregon’s exemption amounts for debtors and other consumer protection laws.”

You can contact Bret at:

Law Office of Bret Knewtson
3000 NW Stucki PL STE 230
Hillsboro OR 97124
503.846.1160
knewtsonlaw.com

Best regards,
Justin Baxter
Baxter & Baxter, LLP

Unlawful Trade Practices

Consumers can become the victims of bad business practices in any number of ways during the typical purchase of consumer goods and services, such as an automobile. Typical situations include failure to disclose prior damage, misrepresentations about the condition or history of a vehicle, and misrepresentations about the terms of the contracts.

The Oregon legislature passed a comprehensive consumer protection statute known as the Unlawful Trade Practices. That law prohibits businesses from making false or misleading statements when they have reason to know that their statements are false.

Other laws, like the federal Magnuson Moss Warranty Act give consumers additional rights under their warranties for consumer goods, such as automobiles. The federal Truth in Lending law requires lenders or their representatives to disclose the credit terms of a loan in uniform terms so that a consumer can compare the cost of credit from various sources.

Warning!

There is no three day right to unwind a car deal in Oregon! Some states allow a consumer to return their car within a certain time period after the purchase. There is no such law in Oregon. Unless a three day unwind provision is written into the contract, a consumer cannot unilaterally return the car without a valid legal basis.