A debt settlement attorney specializes in negotiating with creditors to reduce the amount of debt the individual must repay. They will contact each one of the creditors and each collection agency to stop the late fees, penalties, and premiums building up on all accounts. The debt settlement attorney will establish agreements so the credit card companies and collection agencies will contact the attorney instead of the consumer. It is also the responsibility of the debt settlement attorney to obtain the consumers credit report and work to remove any misleading, unsubstantiated, or incorrect items. This is a very important service that should be utilized by the consumer to restore credit ratings and create a plan for future financial management.Using a debt settlement attorney is vastly different from credit counseling. It can be risky to your credit, but if your credit is already de fullfast stroyed you may have little to lose and more to gain by settling outstanding debt. Debt settlement is much more aggressive than credit counseling, and it can get you out of debt in half the time of credit counseling. Many states have laws regulating debt negotiation companies. To see if your state permits debt settlement, contact your state Attorney General.If you ignore the debt long enough, you stand a good chance of never hearing from the creditor again. Seven years after the debt is written off, the negative listing disappears from your report altogether. But if you pay the debt sometime before the end of that period, the seven year cycle starts all over again. Not exactly what one would call an incentive. It’s like getting time added to your sentence for good behavior.Fortunately, creditors make their money by collecting the debts, not by reporting negative credit information.