Words matter, especially in debt collection communications. As a collector recently learned the hard way, debt collectors should attempt to use words precisely in order to comply with the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act.
In Hackler v. Tolteca Enterprises, Inc., plaintiff Sadie Hackler rented a home in Texas. After she moved out, her landlord charged
The United States Supreme Court has agreed to consider a challenge to the constitutionality of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). On Friday, January 10, 2020, the Supreme Court issued orders from the justices’ conference, which included an order for oral argument in Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants – a case involving a
On December 19, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his intent to advance a legislative proposal to license debt collectors operating within the state. Announced as the 8th proposal of the 2020 State of the State agenda, it “would give the state new tools to regulate debt collectors – stopping unscrupulous practices and strengthening our
In December, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia refused to submit to arbitration a dispute alleging violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act because plaintiff Keith Hobbs provided a declaration stating that he did not visit defendant Apollo Interactive, Inc.’s website. In doing so, the Court kept alive a TCPA
On December 17, a magistrate judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California granted judgment in favor of defendant debt collector Enhanced Recovery Company (“ERC”), thereby dismissing plaintiff Rene Ortiz’s pro se claims for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The ruling was
Creditors and debt collectors are often held to high standards when it comes to consumer protection laws. On December 17, however, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued a Memorandum Opinion in In re: Charles V. Cook, Sr., No. 1:14-bk-36424, evincing that debtors’ counsel can be subject to
In Dancel v. Groupon, Inc., No. 19-1831 (7th Cir. Oct. 9, 2019), the Seventh Circuit split with the Eleventh Circuit regarding jurisdictional discovery to prove federal subject matter jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act (“CAFA”).
This case involved a claim brought by Christine Dancel regarding the unauthorized use of Dancel’s image in Groupon
Constitutional challenges to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act may be coming to a head. In a series of rulings this year, courts around the country have struck down an exception to the TCPA’s prohibition against auto-dialed calls to cell phones. Several litigants have filed petitions asking the United States Supreme Court to review these decisions.
How many plaintiffs does it take to form a class action lawsuit? When it comes to satisfying Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(a)’s “numerosity” requirement, the traditional rule of thumb has been that 40 plaintiffs generally are enough, while 20 are too few. The range in the middle tends to be a closer call. Courts
On November 25, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced settlements with a military travel lender, its principal, and the servicer of its loans. The now defunct Edmiston Marketing, LLC, operating under the name of Easy Military Travel, provided financing to military servicemembers and their families for the purchasing of airline tickets. The CFPB determined that