About
Barron, Newburger & Sinsley, PLLC, ("BNS") is an Austin-based firm with four offices in three states. In 1983, Barbara Barron and Manny Newburger were two young lawyers sharing office space with another firm. Twenty-five years later, they lead a multi-state firm with an international reputation in the credit and collections industry along with Barbara Sinsley.
BNS also handles matters in the areas of commercial litigation and bankruptcy. The firm employs seven attorneys with offices in Austin and the Dallas Metroplex in Texas as well as in Tampa, Florida and Scarsdale, New York.
With the increasing pressure placed on the credit and collections industry to heal and defend itself, industry members look to BNS to assist them in doing so. Attorneys in the firm have represented or given educational programs to the leading trade groups in the field, including the Commercial Law League of America, DBA International, the National Association of Retail Collection Attorneys, the National Association of Credit Management and the U.S. Foreclosure Network.
The firm's attorneys have been widely quoted in well-known publications such as Lawyers Weekly USA, the National Law Journal, the Wall Street Journal, Business Week, InsideARM, the Washington Post, and they have written articles for a wide variety of legal and industry-related magazines and journals such as Debt3, The Texas Bar Journal, the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, the Commercial Law Bulletin and the Texas Journal of Consumer Law. Manny Newburger and Barbara Barron are the authors of Fair Debt Collection Practices: Federal and State Laws and Regulations, one of the leading treatises on fair debt collection practices in the United States. Barbara Sinsley, one of the firm's principals, serves as General Counsel for DBA International and has been recognized as one of the Top 5 Women in the Collection Industry. Stephen Sather has been recognized as a Top-Ranked Foreclosure Attorney by Business Week magazine. Manny Newburger, another principal, has been recognized with the President's Cup from the Commercial Law League and the Don Kramer Award from NARCA, two of the top awards in the industry.
BNS attorneys hold board certifications from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Consumer and Commercial Law (Manny Newburger and Ed Walton), Civil Trial Law (Ed Walton) and Business Bankruptcy (Stephen Sather). Additionally, Barbara Barron, Manny Newburger and Stephen Sather have been recognized as Texas Super Lawyers by Law and Politics Magazine as seen in Texas Monthly.
The firm's attorneys had some impressive credentials prior to their joining BNS. Ed Walton is the former District Attorney of Kaufman County. Barbara Barron is a former Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas. Barbara Sinsley worked as in-house corporate counsel in the credit and collections industry. Temple Ingram is a former law clerk to former U.S. District Judge William Sessions.
Several of the firm's attorneys have taught at the university level. Manny Newburger teaches consumer protection law at the University of Texas Law School and also teaches Legal Issues for Engineering Managers at the Center for Lifelong Engineering Education at the University of Texas at Austin. Barbara Barron has taught business law at the University of Texas School of Business.
BNS uses its experience to guide clients through compliance with consumer collection laws, to resolve litigation, and to advise clients on complex transactions. A material portion of the firm's practice consists of corporate training to promote compliance with consumer protection laws such as the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The firm has multiple clients in India and Manny Newburger has traveled to both India and the Philippines to conduct training on U.S. consumer law and compliance. Another unique service which the firm offers is litigation "triage" in which consumer claims are quickly evaluated for their settlement prospects to minimize costs to clients. BNS has also consulted on acquisitions of collection industry members involving tens of millions of dollars. All of the senior members of the firm have experience in class action litigation.
The firm also has a substantial bankruptcy section. Its bankruptcy attorneys have handled cases of national significance, representing at various times debtors, creditors, trustees and creditors committees. They defend and consult on cases involving violations of the discharge injunction and the automatic stay on a national basis and are among the few attorneys in the country with experience in class actions prosecuted in Bankruptcy Court. Barbara Barron and Stephen Sather have written numerous articles on the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. Their work for the State Bar of Texas produced a reference manual that was extremely popular among bankruptcy attorneys. Additionally, Stephen Sather is the author of A Texas Bankruptcy Lawyer's Blog, a blog featured on the American Bankruptcy Institute's website with a wide readership that includes Texas bankruptcy judges.
BNS looks forward to future expansion of its work across the country and across the world as well as continuing to provide assistance to current and future clientele.