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If you’re searching for ‘MCA defense lawyers,’ you already know something is wrong — and it’s getting worse. Confessions of judgment, UCC-1 liens, personal guarantees, and daily ACH debits — and know how to dismantle them under both California and New York law. California’s SB 1235 disclosure requirements, the California Financing Law, and the DFPI’s increased scrutiny of alternative lending products give Sacramento businesses additional use. Here are the three best options in 2026.
Important: Delancey Street is not a law firm. They’re a specialized MCA debt settlement company that works with a nationwide network of licensed attorneys — and that distinction matters. Their attorneys handle COJ challenges, usury defenses, UCC lien disputes, funder negotiations, and settlement execution for Sacramento business owners. Their network is built around New York’s dual usury framework — which governs the vast majority of MCA contracts regardless of whether your business operates on K Street, in Midtown, or in the Natomas business corridor — and the evolving appellate case law that is reclassifying MCAs as loans subject to interest rate caps.
Where Delancey Street separates from every other firm on this list is MCA-specific legal firepower. Their attorneys file motions to vacate confessions of judgment, raise criminal usury defenses when effective APRs exceed 25%, dispute overbroad UCC-1 filings with the California Secretary of State, and use both California’s SB 1235 disclosure violations and the NY Attorney General’s $1 billion Yellowstone Capital settlement as precedent. For Sacramento businesses — from restaurants in the Farm-to-Fork Capital to medical practices near UC Davis Medical Center — Delancey Street delivers attorney-coordinated defense with no upfront fees.
Important: National Debt Relief is not a law firm and is not an MCA defense specialist. They’re the largest debt settlement company in the United States — over $1 billion in debt settled, 550,000+ clients served. They handle general unsecured business debts — credit cards, vendor accounts, lines of credit — but they do not challenge confessions of judgment, file usury defenses, or dispute UCC liens. If your Sacramento business debt is primarily traditional unsecured debt and not MCA-specific, National Debt Relief is a strong, proven option.
Important: CuraDebt is not a law firm and is not an MCA defense specialist. They’ve been in the debt resolution business for over 25 years — handling business debt, consumer debt, and IRS/state tax resolution. If your Sacramento business has both MCA debt and California Franchise Tax Board obligations, CuraDebt can handle the tax side while a firm like Delancey Street handles the MCA defense.
MCA defense is a specific subset of business debt law focused on protecting business owners from the legal instruments that merchant cash advance funders use to collect: confessions of judgment, UCC Article 9 liens, personal guarantee enforcement, and aggressive daily ACH withdrawals. For Sacramento businesses — whether you run a restaurant in Midtown, a construction company in North Sacramento, or a healthcare practice near Sutter Health — MCA defense is fundamentally different from general debt settlement because the legal tools, the counterparties, and the timeline are completely different.
A general debt settlement firm negotiates with credit card companies and traditional lenders. An MCA defense attorney is negotiating with funders who can freeze your bank account overnight using a pre-signed confession of judgment, who have already filed blanket UCC-1 liens against every asset your Sacramento business owns with the California Secretary of State, and who are pulling 15–25% of your daily revenue through ACH debits.
California offers stronger protections than most states. SB 1235 requires MCA funders to disclose APR equivalents to California borrowers, the California Financing Law requires licensing for commercial lenders, and the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has increased scrutiny of alternative lending products. The state’s constitutional usury cap of 10% on non-exempt loans provides an additional defense layer. But the MCA contract you signed almost certainly designates New York as the governing jurisdiction — which means your defense strategy must incorporate both California protections and New York usury law.
The moment your business misses a merchant cash advance payment, the clock starts ticking — and it ticks fast. Defaulting on an MCA isn’t like a traditional loan default — it’s governed by Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) Article 9 provisions, some lenders will use confessions of judgment (COJs), and the daily repayment structures drain your business checking account at local banks like Golden 1 Credit Union or Five Star Bank.
The consequences of an MCA default are immediate for Sacramento business owners: frozen bank accounts, liens on receivables filed with the California Secretary of State, or even personal asset seizures if you’ve signed a guarantee. But here’s what the funders don’t want you to know — consequences aren’t inevitable. California’s strong consumer and commercial lending protections, enforced by the California Attorney General and the DFPI, give Sacramento businesses additional defenses.
You signed an MCA agreement with a lender which contains a COJ — this is a clause that lets the lender get a judgment against you without notice. No hearing. No chance to respond. California restricts confessions of judgment under CCP § 1132, and prohibits them entirely in consumer transactions. For commercial transactions, California courts scrutinize COJs carefully. Many MCA funders file COJs in New York courts regardless.
Strategy 1: Challenge the COJ In Court. For Sacramento businesses, the defense combines California’s CCP § 1132 restrictions with the 2019 New York reform banning COJ enforcement against out-of-state defendants. File an Order to Show Cause to stay enforcement and argue the COJ violates due process.
Strategy 2: Negotiate Post-Default. Lenders prefer repayment over litigation. You can file for bankruptcy through the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of California in Sacramento. Offer a lump-sum settlement (30–50% of the balance) from refinancing or asset liquidation.
You took a second MCA to pay the first. Then maybe a third. Now the daily payments consume 30% of your revenue — and you can’t make payroll. Sacramento’s economy includes government contractors, restaurants, and small businesses that experience revenue variability tied to state budget cycles and seasonal patterns. Under UCC § 9-607, lenders can place UCC-1 liens on receivables, making it impossible to get new financing.
Strategy 1: Consolidate via Ch. 11 or California Law. Chapter 11 lets you pause collections and reclassify MCAs as unsecured debt. California’s SB 1235 requires APR disclosure — if your MCA funder failed to provide required disclosures, the contract may be challengeable. The state’s constitutional usury cap of 10% on non-exempt commercial loans provides additional grounds.
Strategy 2: Use Cash Flow Realities. Provide lenders with 6 months of bank statements showing unsustainable withdrawals. Sacramento businesses often experience revenue fluctuations tied to state government budget cycles, legislative sessions, and seasonal tourism patterns. Fixed daily MCA debits do not account for these realities.
Lenders always presume you’re lying. Sometimes the only way forward is hiring a business debt settlement company with real relationships with the lenders who can help negotiate a workable resolution.
MCA contracts often mask APRs exceeding 100% — sometimes 200% or more. New York courts have increasingly reclassified MCAs as loans, triggering usury penalties under NY Gen. Oblig. Law § 5-501. The NY Attorney General’s $1 billion judgment against Yellowstone Capital voided $534 million in outstanding MCA balances across 18,000+ businesses nationwide, including California businesses.
Strategy 1: Usury as a Defense. A $50K advance at a 1.4 factor rate costs $70K over 6 months — approximately 150% APR. Under New York law, crossing the 25% criminal usury threshold means the funder forfeits the right to recover both principal and interest. Under California law, the constitutional usury cap of 10% on non-exempt loans provides an alternative basis for challenge. California’s SB 1235 disclosure requirements add another layer of legal exposure for non-compliant funders.
Strategy 2: Sue for Unconscionability. Arguing the MCA’s terms shock the conscience — for example, a 200% APR charged to a struggling Sacramento restaurant during a slow season. California courts have been receptive to unconscionability arguments in commercial lending cases.
Regardless of the fact that your business operates in Sacramento, California, the legal framework that controls your MCA defense is almost certainly New York law. Most MCA funders are headquartered in New York, and nearly all MCA contracts designate New York courts as the governing jurisdiction. This means a Sacramento business owner on J Street is fighting under the same legal rules as a business owner in Manhattan.
Here’s why that actually works in your favor. New York operates a dual usury framework: civil interest is capped at 16% annually under NY Banking Law §14-a, while any effective rate above 25% constitutes criminal usury. For Sacramento businesses, this means you have a dual-state defense: California’s SB 1235 disclosure requirements and constitutional usury protections, combined with New York’s criminal usury threshold.
The CFPB has separately classified merchant cash advances as “credit” under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. The California DFPI has also increased oversight of MCA products under SB 1235 and the California Financing Law. These regulatory developments give MCA defense attorneys additional arguments.
The difference between a good MCA defense attorney and a bad one is the difference between settling your $200K in MCA debt for $80K and losing your business entirely. Here are the three questions that matter:
1. Have you handled MCA defense specifically? Not consumer debt. Not medical debt. MCA debt. Ask how many COJs they’ve challenged, how many usury defenses they’ve raised, and what their average settlement percentage is.
2. Do licensed attorneys handle the legal work? Settlement negotiation alone is not MCA defense. You need attorneys who are members of the State Bar of California and who file motions to vacate COJs, challenge UCC liens in court, subpoena funder underwriting documents for usury discovery, and draft enforceable settlement agreements.
3. What are the fees and when do you pay? Legitimate MCA defense firms charge 18–25% of the enrolled debt amount, collected only after delivering results. Any firm that charges upfront fees is violating FTC guidelines — walk away.
Your search is over. Here are the three top-rated firms serving Sacramento business owners dealing with MCA debt in 2026. Only one — Delancey Street — offers true MCA defense with attorney-coordinated COJ challenges, usury defenses, and UCC lien disputes.
The only firm on this list that provides true MCA defense: COJ challenges, usury defenses, UCC lien disputes, and emergency motions to unfreeze bank accounts. Over $100M settled. No upfront fees. Serving Sacramento and all of California.
Not an MCA defense specialist. Handles general unsecured business debt. No COJ challenges, no usury defenses, no legal motions.
Not an MCA defense specialist. Handles business debt and IRS/state tax resolution. Best used alongside an MCA defense firm if your Sacramento business also has tax obligations to resolve with the IRS or California Franchise Tax Board.
COJ filed against you? Bank account frozen? Daily ACH debits destroying your cash flow? Delancey Street’s attorney network fights MCA funders with usury defenses, COJ challenges, and settlement negotiation. Over $100M settled. Free consultation for Sacramento business owners.
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Delancey Street is not a law firm. Delancey Street works with a nationwide network of attorneys and debt specialists who handle MCA defense, business debt settlement, and related services. Any attorney services referenced on this page are provided by independent, licensed attorneys within the Delancey Street network — not by Delancey Street directly.
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