August 2015

On August 4, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois held that legal pleadings can violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

In Marquez, et al. v. Weinstein, Pinson, P.S., et al., the plaintiffs argued that a law firm and its client violated § 1692e of the FDCPA by including

On August 25, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its monthly consumer complaint snapshot, which included a focus on complaints regarding credit reporting.  According to the snapshot, the CFPB has handled 105,000 credit reporting complaints, making them the third most popular type of complaint received by the CFPB.  The CFPB received nearly 7,000 credit

The Department of Defense has published an interim rule in the Federal Register requiring government contractors and subcontractors to report a larger number of data breach incidents than had been previously required.

The rule specifically covers cyber incidents that have an “actual or potentially adverse effect” on a covered contractor information system, on covered defense

A Florida state court has weighed in on whether strict or substantial compliance is required when providing borrowers with a notice of default. In Green Tree Servicing, LLC v. Erin C. Milam et al., the Court has agreed with decisions from other states that a lender’s notice of default is sufficient when it substantially

The California Appeals Court overturned a Los Angeles Superior Court decision holding that California’s Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) was unconstitutionally vague because of its overlap with California’s Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act (CCRAA).  Connor v. First Student, Inc., 2015 Cal. App. LEXIS 699 (Cal. App. 2d Dist. Aug. 14, 2015). 

In the

On August 24, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the authority of the Federal Trade Commission to bring cases against companies that experience a data breach.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the FTC could proceed with a lawsuit alleging that the hotel chain Wyndham Worldwide Corp. violated the unfairness and deception prong

On July 10, the Federal Communications Commission enacted major changes and clarifications to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (“TCPA”).  Approved on a contentious 3-2 vote by the FCC commissioners, the FCC released its Declaratory Ruling and Order (FCC 15-72) (“the FCC’s Order”) formally stating its interpretation of numerous provisions of the

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that New York City’s Department of Consumer Affairs has the authority to regulate law firms’ conduct related to purchasing and collecting consumer debt.

In Eric M. Berman, P.C., et al. v. City of New York, et al., the Second Circuit vacated a 2009 district court ruling

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released its Household Debt and Credit Report this month.  The report, which uses anonymous credit data to generate a nationally representative sample, found that consumers’ overall indebtedness increased $2 billion to $11.9 trillion in the second quarter of 2015.

This number was aided by the increased number of

On August 24, 2015, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the authority of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to bring cases against companies that experience a data breach.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the FTC could proceed with a lawsuit alleging hotel chain, Wyndham Worldwide Corp., violated the unfairness and deception prong