Introduction

On July 11, 2024, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida appointed Jared J. Perez as temporary receiver (the “Receiver” and the “Receivership”) over, in relevant part, (1) Start Connecting LLC, d/b/a USA Student Debt Relief, and (2) Start Connecting SAS, d/b/a both USA Student Debt Relief and Start Connecting (the “Receivership Entities”). See Federal Trade Commission v. Start Connecting LLC, et al., Case No. 8:24-cv-1626-KKM-AAS (M.D. Fla.). Douglas R. Goodman, Doris E. Gallon-Goodman, and Juan S. Rojas are also defendants in the enforcement action, along with the Receivership Entities.

Given the allegations made by the Federal Trade Commission, as described in more detail below, the Receiver recommends that all consumers who engaged USA Student Debt Relief contact their student loan servicers both directly and as soon as possible to determine whether their accounts are in good standing as well as their current monthly payment amounts and total balances. Failure to do so could result in missed payments and default. Do not rely on representations made by USA Student Debt Relief.

We designed this website to provide convenient access to information about the Receivership and the underlying enforcement action, including important updates and select District Court documents. We will add additional information as it becomes available.

Brief Summary of the Case

According to the Temporary Restraining Order issued on July 11, 2024, “[i]n numerous instances, [d]efendants have made material misrepresentations regarding their student loan debt relief services, published fake reviews and testimonials, employed unfair practices toward monolingual Spanish-speaking consumers, taken illegal advance fees, engaged in illegal telemarketing, and used false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements to obtain or attempt to obtain customer information of a financial institution.” TRO at p.2 ¶ B. The Federal Trade Commission alleges that this conduct violated the FTC Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule, and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. The Commission also alleges that the defendants produced gross revenues of at least $6.47 million since July 2021. The Receiver’s preliminary analysis of available information indicates that the defendants’ alleged practices impacted thousands of student loan borrowers throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.

For more information, please review the Complaint and other documents available on the pages of this website entitled “Court Filings” and “Receiver’s Reports.”

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