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If you're a Virginia business owner dealing with an MCA mess — confessions of judgment, UCC-1 liens, personal guarantees, daily ACH debits draining your account — you need a firm that lives and breathes this world. Virginia's 12% usury cap (Va. Code §6.2-303) gives you real state-level protection, but the deepest defense power comes from New York law expertise. Here are the three best options in 2026.
Here's what you need to know: Delancey Street is not a law firm. They coordinate with a nationwide network of licensed attorneys who do the actual fighting — COJ challenges, usury defenses, UCC lien disputes, funder negotiations. Their attorney network is built around New York’s dual usury framework — which governs the vast majority of MCA contracts regardless of whether your business operates in Northern Virginia, Richmond, Virginia Beach, or Roanoke. This is what they do.
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 Virginia State Corporation Commission, and use the NY AG’s $1 billion Yellowstone Capital settlement as precedent. Over $100M settled. No upfront fees.
Not an MCA defense specialist — and they'll tell you that straight up. Handles general unsecured business debt. No COJ challenges, no usury defenses. If your Virginia business debt is traditional unsecured debt, they're a proven option.
Not an MCA defense specialist either. Handles business debt and IRS/state tax resolution — they've been doing it for over 25 years. If your Virginia business also has tax obligations, they can handle that side while a firm like Delancey Street handles the MCA fight.
Let's cut to it. MCA defense is about one thing — stopping funders from destroying the business you built. We're talking confessions of judgment, UCC Article 9 liens, personal guarantee enforcement, and daily ACH withdrawals that bleed your account dry.
Virginia’s regulatory framework provides some important protections. The state caps interest at 12% per annum under Va. Code §6.2-303, and confessions of judgment are permitted only under strict procedural requirements (Va. Code §8.01-433). The Virginia Bureau of Financial Institutions regulates lending activities. But MCA funders structure products as purchases of future receivables to avoid usury caps, and most contracts designate New York as the governing jurisdiction.
The agreement you signed is written entirely in the lender's favor — we have yet to see a single MCA contract that is fair. That's why you need an attorney who knows how to attack the contract from the outside: usury challenges under both Virginia and NY law, procedural defects in COJ filings, unconscionability arguments, and the growing body of case law reclassifying MCAs as loans.
Here's what happens — and it happens fast. Your bank account gets frozen. A UCC lien gets filed with the Virginia State Corporation Commission. Maybe personal assets get seized if you signed a guarantee. Defaulting on an MCA is governed by UCC Article 9 provisions, and it moves on a completely different timeline.
Northern Virginia's government contractors, Richmond's restaurants, Hampton Roads's maritime businesses — all vulnerable to the cash flow destruction caused by aggressive daily ACH withdrawals. You need a defense attorney before the funder takes everything off the table.
Virginia permits confessions of judgment under Va. Code §8.01-433, but with strict procedural requirements. Here's the key: many COJs can be challenged for procedural defects. And MCA funders often file COJs in New York — but the 2019 CPLR §3218 reform banned NY courts from enforcing COJs against out-of-state defendants like you.
Strategy 1: Challenge the COJ in court. Attack procedural defects under both Virginia and New York law. If filed in NY after August 2019, it's voidable.
Strategy 2: Negotiate post-default. Lenders prefer repayment over litigation. Use that as a weapon. Offer a lump-sum settlement — 30–50% of the balance.
You took a second MCA to pay the first. Now the daily payments eat 30% of your revenue. Under UCC § 9-607, lenders can stack UCC-1 liens on receivables filed with the Virginia State Corporation Commission — which makes it impossible to get new financing of any kind.
Strategy 1: Consolidate via Ch. 11. Chapter 11 filed in the Eastern or Western District of Virginia lets you pause collections and reclassify MCAs as unsecured debt. Virginia's 12% usury cap gives you additional reclassification arguments.
Strategy 2: Use your cash flow reality as a weapon. Provide bank statements showing unsustainable withdrawals. Virginia's seasonal tourism businesses and government contractors with payment delays are well-positioned to demonstrate hardship. Paint a clear picture: settle now, or risk getting $0.00.
Here's what nobody tells you: lenders assume you're lying about your finances. Every single time. That's why you need a firm that knows how to present the evidence in a way funders can't ignore.
Let's talk numbers. MCA contracts routinely mask APRs exceeding 100%. Virginia caps interest at 12% per annum (Va. Code §6.2-303), and New York's criminal usury threshold is 25%. Both are far exceeded. The NY AG's $1 billion judgment against Yellowstone Capital showed exactly how exposed funders are right now.
Strategy 1: Usury as a defense. Do the math. A $50K advance at a 1.4 factor rate — roughly 150% APR — exceeds both Virginia's 12% cap and New York's 25% criminal usury threshold. The contract may be void.
Strategy 2: Sue for unconscionability. Virginia courts recognize unconscionability. A 200% APR on a struggling Virginia Beach restaurant can be challenged as substantively unconscionable — especially when the borrower was in financial distress at signing.
Here's why this matters: most MCA funders sit in New York. Nearly all contracts designate New York as the governing jurisdiction. That means a Virginia business owner in Arlington, Richmond, or Norfolk is fighting under the same rules as one in Manhattan.
Virginia's 12% usury cap (Va. Code §6.2-303) gives you strong state-level protection. New York's dual framework adds more: civil interest capped at 16% and criminal usury at 25%. Cross that line and the contract is void. For Virginia business owners, both state and NY law give you powerful weapons.
The CFPB has classified merchant cash advances as “credit” under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act — another signal that these products are functionally loans regardless of how the contract labels them.
The difference between a good MCA defense attorney and a bad one is the difference between settling your $200K in debt for $80K and losing your business. Three questions matter:
1. Do they actually do MCA defense? Ask about COJ challenges, usury defenses, and settlement percentages. If they can't answer with specifics, keep looking.
2. Are real attorneys involved? You need attorneys who file motions, challenge UCC liens, and draft enforceable settlement agreements.
3. What's the fee structure? Legitimate firms charge 18–25% of enrolled debt, collected only after results. Upfront fees violate FTC guidelines — walk away.
Of these three firms, only Delancey Street does real, attorney-coordinated MCA defense — COJ challenges, usury defenses, UCC lien disputes. The other two handle broader categories of business debt.
The only firm on this list that does real MCA defense: COJ challenges, usury defenses, UCC lien disputes, emergency motions. Over $100M settled. No upfront fees. All 50 states including Virginia.
Not an MCA defense specialist — and they'll tell you that straight up. Handles general unsecured business debt. If your Virginia debt is traditional unsecured debt, they're a proven option.
Not an MCA defense specialist either. Handles business debt and tax resolution. If your Virginia business also has tax obligations, they can handle that side while a firm like Delancey Street handles the MCA fight.
We get it. COJ filed against you. Bank account frozen. Delancey Street's attorney network fights MCA funders with usury defenses, COJ challenges, and settlement negotiation. Over $100M settled. This is what we do.
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