Whose Second Chance?

Some of the country's largest financial firms have been accused of harassing consumers over debts that courts have canceled. Troy Norton, 84, a retired prison guard who lives in Bismarck, Ark., claims in a lawsuit filed in June in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Hot Springs that he was a victim of improper collection attempts by Bank of America Corp. (BAC) and two collection agencies. He obtained a discharge of certain debts in June, 2006, after medical bills prompted him to seek Chapter 7 protection. Court documents show that he received eight collection letters from the bank on credit-card debt of $4,218 that a judge had canceled.

In a July motion to have the case dismissed, Bank of America denied acting unlawfully. A spokeswoman declined to discuss the suit, which is pending.