Paralegal firms offer help for those involved in debt collection cases

In an obscure attempt to help those in need of legal help but unable to afford the fees associated with an attorney, a recent trend has popped up among paralegal firms, offering consumers that are representing themselves in a debt collection case "non-legal" help. According to the website insideARM.com, these offerings, which have even been advertised in a video advertisement on YouTube, are "ostensibly positioned as non-legal help for those in legal proceedings who can’t afford proper legal help. [These] paralegal … firms are offering their services to consumers who need to get their paperwork in order and file court documents and need someone to guide them through this," Patrick Lunsford wrote. The firms claim that they are not lawyers and are unable to offer legal advice - however these services can offer assistance and legal document preparation. However, the question is raised as to how effective these services may be - and how well represented one would be in court - if these firms are not a group of lawyers and therefore unqualified to stand up for their clients in court.