In a partial victory for NACBA, the U.S. District Court in Connecticut has granted a preliminary injunction protecting NACBA members from enforcement of Bankruptcy Code section 526(a)(4), the "gag rule" preventing attorneys from counseling clients about incurring debts prior to filing bankruptcy cases. The court, like all others that have decided the issue, found the provision to be unconstitutional.

Unfortunately, the court ruled against NACBA on whether attorneys are debt relief agencies, and on the "disclosure", contract, and advertising provisions applying to debt relief agencies. (The court did find the advertising provisions unconstitutional with respect to attorneys who do not represent debtors.) NACBA will be appealing these issues to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, where an amicus brief has already been filed in another case on the first issue.

The district court opinion can be found on here.