As a last resort, Pinnacle Financial Consulting LLC advised their clients they needed to file bankruptcy petitions to save their homes, the Lawrence (Mass.) Eagle Tribune reported yesterday. "When their loan modification efforts fail, sometimes just days before the distressed homeowner's home is scheduled to be sold at foreclosure, defendants pressure distressed homeowners into paying defendants thousands of dollars to file bankruptcy on their behalf in order to delay the foreclosure sale," according to a lawsuit the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office filed against Pinnacle Financial. But about a quarter of the bankruptcy cases prepared by Pinnacle Financial were defective, according to court records filed in connection with the complaint. "Defendants' bankruptcy filings on behalf of consumers are often incomplete or consist of erroneous paperwork, ultimately resulting in the dismissal of the bankruptcy proceedings," the lawsuit alleged.
