Spergel has been filing consumer proposals in Canada since 1989, which makes it one of the longest running Licensed Insolvency Trustee firms in the country. It also holds the strongest consumer review record of any insolvency firm I have looked at: 4.9 out of 5 across 2,626 Trustpilot reviews. If you are in Ontario in particular, it is hard to research a consumer proposal without their name coming up, and this review explains why, and where the limits are.
Need help with debt?
Make sure filing is actually the right step
A consumer proposal leaves a record that outlasts the payments. If your income can still cover the principal, a debt management program avoids that entirely. Consolidated Credit Canada will tell you free of charge which side of that line your numbers fall on.
I will say upfront that the thing worth scrutinising with Spergel is not whether they are legitimate. They plainly are, and I verified it at source. It is whether a consumer proposal is the right instrument for you at all, because that is the decision that actually changes your outcome.
Spergel at a glance
| Registered name | MSI Spergel Inc, formerly Mandelbaum Spergel Inc |
| Type of firm | Licensed Insolvency Trustee |
| Founded | 1989, over 35 years of operation |
| Scale claimed | More than 100,000 Canadians helped |
| Head office | 200 Yorkland Boulevard, Suite 1100, Toronto |
| Ontario coverage | Over 20 offices across the province |
| Other provinces | BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, Nova Scotia |
| Trustpilot | ★★★★★ 4.9 out of 5 from 2,626 reviews |
Is Spergel legit in Canada?
Yes, and this one is straightforward to verify. MSI Spergel Inc appears in the Government of Canada’s own Licensed Insolvency Trustee registry, which is the authoritative list. That registry names individual trustees at each office, which is the check worth doing for any firm claiming to file on your behalf.
Alongside that, the firm has operated since 1989, received Better Business Bureau Accredited Business status in 2021, and appears in the CAIRP member firm directory. Its Trustpilot record of 4.9 across 2,626 reviews is, on volume and score together, the strongest in this category that I have checked.
If the designation itself is unfamiliar, our explainer on what a Licensed Insolvency Trustee does and who needs one covers why only an LIT can file.
Reviews and trust signals, checked October 2026
| Trustpilot score | ★★★★★ 4.9 out of 5 |
| Volume | 2,626 reviews |
| Five star share | 94% |
| One star share | under 1% |
| BBB | Accredited Business status received 2021 |
| Federal registry | Listed as a Licensed Insolvency Trustee firm |
For context on why volume matters, I have looked at firms in this category scoring 2.8 on 21 reviews and 3.7 on 19. A sample of 2,626 is a different kind of evidence entirely. One bad quarter cannot move it, and a handful of unhappy filers cannot define it.
Sources: Trustpilot and the Government of Canada Licensed Insolvency Trustee registry, both checked 21 October 2026.
Which consumer proposal company is best in Ontario?
This comes up constantly and deserves a straight answer rather than a ranking. In Ontario specifically, Spergel has the densest office network of the firms I have reviewed, with more than 20 locations across the province on top of its Toronto head office. If sitting across a desk from someone matters to you, that is a practical advantage.
But I would not choose a trustee on office count, and here is why. Licensed Insolvency Trustee fees for consumer proposals and bankruptcies are set by a federally regulated tariff, not by the firm. Spergel will not be cheaper or dearer than a competent competitor for the same filing. Most firms now run files remotely as well, so proximity matters less than it did a decade ago.
What actually differs between trustees is responsiveness, how clearly the options get explained before you commit, and whether anyone tells you honestly that you might not need to file at all. Take more than one free consultation and judge on that. For the wider Ontario picture, our Ontario debt relief guide sets out the full range of options and what provincial law caps on fees.
Need help with debt?
Worth pricing the lighter option first
If five years of payments would clear your principal, a debt management program usually costs less overall and leaves no insolvency record. A free assessment tells you whether that applies before you file anything.
What Spergel offers
- Consumer proposals. A legally binding settlement with unsecured creditors, usually over up to five years.
- Personal bankruptcy. For cases where repaying a meaningful portion is not realistic.
- CRA tax debt help. Worth flagging, because unpaid tax debt is one of the few balances people assume cannot be included in a proposal. It generally can be.
- Debt consolidation and credit counselling. The routes that stop short of filing.
- Wage garnishment and collection call relief. Filing triggers a stay of proceedings that halts most collection activity.
- Corporate insolvency, handled through their corporate arm.
The CRA piece is the one I would single out. Tax debt behaves differently from credit card debt in collection terms, and the agency has powers most creditors do not. If that is your situation, our guide on reducing credit card and CRA tax debt covers the ground. If collection calls or garnishment are the immediate pressure rather than the total owed, see Ontario debt collection laws for what collectors may and may not do.
Pros and cons
👍 In their favour
- 4.9 out of 5 from 2,626 reviews, the strongest record in this category
- Operating since 1989, verifiable in the federal registry
- Over 20 Ontario offices, the densest provincial coverage reviewed here
- Quebec coverage, which several national competitors lack
- Handles CRA tax debt and corporate files, not just consumer
- Fees are tariff regulated, so no pricing games
👎 Against
- No presence in New Brunswick, PEI, Newfoundland or the territories
- The site does not state plainly whether the first consultation is free
- As an insolvency practice, filing is the product on offer
- Office count is not a reason to choose, since the tariff is identical
- If your income can service the debt, filing is heavier than you need
What a consumer proposal actually costs you
Not in dollars, since the tariff handles that, but in consequences. A proposal is recorded on your credit file and stays there for three years after you complete the payments, which on a five year plan means roughly eight years from filing. A bankruptcy is heavier still.
Set against that, a debt management program through a non-profit counsellor carries no insolvency record at all. The trade is that it does not reduce your principal, only the interest. So the honest test is arithmetic: total what you owe, divide by what you can genuinely pay each month, and if the answer comfortably clears inside about five years, you are probably not an insolvency case.
We set that comparison out properly in debt consolidation versus a consumer proposal, and reviewed the counselling route in our look at Consolidated Credit Canada.
Spergel against the other trustees
| Spergel | Bromwich+Smith | BDO Debt Solutions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating since | 1989 | 2002 | 1958 |
| Trustpilot | 4.9 from 2,626 | 2.8 from 21 | 3.7 from 19, dormant |
| Quebec coverage | Yes | No | Yes |
| Ontario density | 20+ offices | 9 offices | Part of a 100+ network |
| Fees | Federal tariff | Federal tariff | Federal tariff |
On the review record Spergel is clearly ahead, though it is worth remembering those samples are not comparable in size. Our full writeups cover Bromwich+Smith and BDO Debt Solutions if you want the detail.
Who Spergel suits
A good fit if: you are in Ontario and want a nearby office, you have CRA tax debt in the mix, you have established that filing is the right route, or you simply want the firm with the deepest verifiable track record.
Look elsewhere if: you are in New Brunswick, PEI, Newfoundland or the territories, or your income could still support repaying the principal, in which case a counselling route is lighter.
Frequently asked questions
Is Spergel legit in Canada?
Who is Spergel?
Which consumer proposal company is the best in Ontario?
What are the disadvantages of a consumer proposal?
Does Spergel handle CRA tax debt?
How much does Spergel charge?
Where does Spergel operate?
Company details, licence status and ratings were verified on 21 October 2026 from the Government of Canada Licensed Insolvency Trustee registry, the firm’s own published pages and its Trustpilot listing. Ratings change, so check current figures before deciding.
Mark Turner is a retired financial writer that now enjoys blogging about different financial topics, such as commodities, inflation, debt, retirement, alternative investments and Canadian politics.
