Maine Equal Justice advocates for fairness in the marketplace and policy solutions to protect and strengthen the rights of low-income Mainers. We stand against and oppose dishonest and harmful practices in the financial marketplace. We promote laws that protect consumers, which can help level the playing field.
Maine has led the nation in passing bold and impactful consumer protections. During the 2007-2008 financial crisis, Maine’s foreclosure advocates uncovered the robo-signing scandal. As a result, many homeowners defeated foreclosure efforts and kept their homes. In 2016, Maine passed a law that provides renter protections for survivors of domestic violence.
In 2019, Maine’s consumer advocates, including Maine Equal Justice helped pass the Student Loan Bill of Rights, perhaps the strongest law of its kind in the country. In the same year, Maine instituted accountability measures to keep for-profit colleges from scamming students, passed a law making it illegal for landlords to punish tenants who refuse their sexual advances, enacted a law prohibiting debt collectors from collecting debt incurred by an abuser in the name of a survivor, started requiring mortgage servicers to act in good faith when interacting with homeowners, and eliminated multiple loopholes in foreclosure law that denied Mainers stability and finality after the draining ordeal of losing a home.
Fact Sheet - LD 913 - Act To Enact The Maine Data Collection Protection Act prevents tentant blacklists from coming to Maine. The benefits of moving court records online shouldn’t come at the expense of housing, employment, and credit opportunities for low-income Mainers.
Maine Equal Justice and its partners represent people with low income in housing, lending, debt collection, energy and utilities law. Maine Equal Justice is working to: protect elderly homeowners when it comes to their property taxes, make sure consumer protections in the fair debt collections act stay in place, make sure hospitals do not try to collect medical debts from people who can’t afford to pay those bills, prevent people, especially tenants, from being punished for standing up for their rights.
Do you have questions about your own rights as a consumer? Please see our direct legal assistance page.
More information and resources on solutions for consumers is coming soon.
Maine Equal Justice focuses its work on many of the issues that affect people’s daily lives – access to adequate health care, housing, transportation and childcare; food and income security; and higher education and training. Maine Equal Justice is a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization. Our EIN is 04-3346273. 