South Dakota Debt Collection Law: Great Faces. Great Places.

David Edwards, Breit Law Office, P.C.

Today, The National List published the white paper on debt collection law in South Dakota, written by David L. Edwards of Breit Law Office, P.C. The firm was founded by Donald H. Breit in 1975 and steadily grew into a leading collection practice in the state. They have been a member of The National List of Attorneys since 1986 and are also members of The National Association of Retail Collection Attorneys (NARCA), the Minnesota State Bar Association, and the South Dakota State Bar and Second Circuit Bar Associations.

Breit Law Office practices throughout the entire State of South Dakota and specializes in account collection and judgment enforcement. Through their work they meet many “Great Faces in Great Places,” exemplifying the state slogan. Their attorneys also provide the benefits of a full service law firm with emphasis in commercial law, real estate transactions, lien foreclosure, personal injury and criminal defense. Mr. Breit remains as counsel, while his son, Robert J. Breit, focuses his practice on debt collection. The firm’s other lawyers, Glenn J. Boomsma and David L. Edwards, contribute substantial experience in collection and commercial law. About 33 percent of their practice is related to debt collection.

The author, David L. Edwards, specializes in collection law, contract disputes, and a wide variety of commercial transactions. He is a member of the South Dakota State Bar Association, and is admitted to practice in South Dakota federal and bankruptcy courts. He attended law school at the University of South Dakota and the University of Colorado. He had been working in the debt collection industry for 11 years.

“South Dakota imposes sales tax on attorney’s fees, which is not unique, but often an important consideration for creditors to keep in mind,” David told us. From the paper we learned that in South Dakota, there is no special licensing or bonding requirement to practice in debt collection.

“With regard to commercial and consumer collections, the South Dakota legislature has not enacted a state consumer protection act or a fair debt collection act. Accordingly, the rules of civil procedure and case law provide the legal guidelines for collections and there are generally no more stringent requirements than those set forth in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or similar federal laws.” However, South Dakota’s garnishment law is more restrictive to creditors garnishing wages than the federal law.

Through his practice in debt collection, David has learned “to be very cautious about treating cases with boilerplate forms. Each case, in particular foreclosure actions, seems to be unique and requires special attention to detail.” He enjoys “the variety of legal issues that are encountered from case to case, and finding client solutions.”  David lives in Sioux Falls with his wife and 3 boys, ages 15, 8 and 5. Outside of work, he enjoys coaching youth hockey and baseball.

The National List thanks David for submitting this paper and for telling us something about himself and his firm. You can access the paper at http://www.nationallist.com/white_papers/southdakota.