From: Sanford, North Carolina

NACBA’s July 2009 Member of the Month and NACBA State Chair liaison for the Military, Angela Martin, is a sole practitioner.  Angela is truly a solo, working with no paralegal or secretary.  In 2008, Angela left her position as Chief of Legal Assistance, XVIII Airborne Corps in Fort Bragg, North Carolina to open her practice and “help consumers fight back against bad guys” by fighting against debt abuse. She has a passion for justice and has dedicated herself to pursuing it.

Under Angela’s leadership, the XVIII Airborne Corps Legal Assistance Office operated the only consumer law program in the Department of Defense which provided in-court representation for clients as plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts. The cases consisted primarily of litigation under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act and the North Carolina analog. Other cases arose from violations of the Truth-In-Lending Act, Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices, other North Carolina Consumer Protection Statutes, North Carolina Landlord/Tenant statutes, and the Servicemembers’ Civil Relief Act. Aside from monetary damages awarded to the clients, the litigation resulted in general managers and employees being fired, credit reports cleaned, security clearances granted or reinstated, automobile liens paid off, debts erased, evictions stayed and home foreclosures stopped.

When asked to describe her most significant work, Angela mentioned what she calls her most “notorious” case, a state court action that she brought to stop Unifund from selling her client’s house for a $7,000 debt.  She sued Unifund and the law firm, but then also brought in a 1983 action and sued the sheriff and the Clerk of Court as well.  She was noticed for her work: “I think this just might be the fastest way to get known around the courthouse, especially after all of the clerks had to stay and get lectured about the procedures that should have been followed.”

Angela has been active in NACBA, serving as NACBA’s State Chair for the Military. She first got involved with NACBA after having been invited to speak on a panel about the Servicemembers' Civil Relief Act at NACBA’s 15th Annual Convention in Philadelphia. She then joined NACBA after becoming great friends with the late Ken Banks, a great attorney and NACBA member.  She realized that consumer advocates and bankruptcy attorneys are a natural fit.  Angela has also been an active participant at NACBA’s Capitol Hill Meetings in Washington, DC.  At the 2009 Capitol Hill Meeting, Angela brought a large entourage of young people to accompany her delegation to the meetings on Capitol Hill.  Needless to say, they made quite an impression at their legislative meetings, all sporting their NACBA “Save our Homes” buttons.

Angela attended seven undergraduate schools (served in military for ten years) before receiving her B.A. (Political Science, Magna Cum Laude) from the University of South Carolina-Aiken in 1997.  She traveled 96 miles each way to attend the University of Georgia School of Law, from which she received her J.D. in 1999. Her “claim to fame” was that during this time, she received only three speeding tickets and in her third year of law school - for the final ticket - she demanded a jury trial and settled for fines!

Angela’s penchant for fighting on behalf of consumers revealed itself early in her career. Right after taking the bar, she went with her husband to Germany, where they lived for three years.  She got into a lengthy dispute with BestBuy over their extended warranties (or breach thereof).  Her first demand letter gave them a warning: “Please be advised that I am a licensed attorney, living in Germany, with no clients and my husband is currently deployed.  I have nothing but time.”  Two years later she received a check from them on the eve of filing a lawsuit claiming Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Trade Practices.  The folder of documents still sits on her shelf as a reminder that sometimes, consumer disputes take time. 

Angela is a U.S. Army veteran (Military Intelligence Corps: Czech and Persian-Farsi linguist) 1984-1994 and she was employed as a civil servant in the U.S. Army JAG Corps 2002-2008, serving in Hanau, Germany (V Corps), Fort Stewart, Georgia (Third Infantry Division) and Fort Bragg, North Carolina (XVIII Airborne Corps).  Ms. Martin serves on the Executive Board of the Legal Assistance for Military Personnel Committee of the North Carolina State Bar and the Advisory Council for the Legal Aid of North Carolina. She is a member of the bars of North Carolina, Georgia and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Angela is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates and the North Carolina Bar Association.

Angela and her husband, Virgil, who retired from the Army after 25 years of service, have four children and two grandchildren. 

Angela serves on the Executive Board of the NC State Bar LAMP (Legal Assistance for Military Personnel Committee) and is President of the Legal Aid of North Carolina – Fayetteville Advisory Board.  She takes pro bono debt defense cases from Legal Aid and gets some great Fair Debt cases at the same time.

Angela’s advice to NACBA Members? “Think outside of the box, especially when a client or potential client comes in after having been sued by a debt collector.  Think hearsay!  The debt collector will have an uphill claim trying to admit the business records of someone else.  Other bankruptcy attorneys here in NC are having fun helping their clients fight back against bad guys.  You should too!”