On January 25, the United States District Court for the District of Kansas granted partial preliminary approval to the class settlement in Lengel v. HomeAdvisor, Inc., No. 15-2198-KHV. The plaintiff, Emerald Lengel, brought a class action lawsuit in January 2015, alleging that HomeAdvisor, her then-potential employer, violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Lengel
CFPB Indicates Online Complaint Portal Upgrades are Coming
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau maintains an online portal for consumers to submit complaints across a wide variety of regulated industries, including credit reporting, background screening, and debt collection. The CFPB has announced that it will upgrade its online portal system in early 2017. The CFPB has released a preview document, which states that the
FTC Settles with Nationwide Debt Relief Provider
On February 27, the Federal Trade Commission filed a stipulated order, which includes a $9 million judgment, against another debt relief provider, United Debt Counselors, LLC, its owners, and officers (collectively “United”) for violating the FTC Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule. This serves as another warning from the FTC that debt relief companies need
District of Arizona Grants CenturyLink’s Spokeo Motion in FCRA Class Case
The District of Arizona recently granted a Spokeo motion filed by CenturyLink, holding that plaintiff Lydia Bultemeyer lacked standing to bring a purported class action under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
In her suit, Bultemeyer alleged that CenturyLink violated the FCRA when it accessed her credit report when she visited the company’s
Join Us at the NAPBS 2017 Mid-Year Legislative & Regulatory Conference
We are pleased to announce that Troutman Sanders partners David Anthony, Cindy Hanson, Ron Raether, and Ashley Taylor will be featured panelists at the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (“NAPBS”) 2017 Mid-Year Legislative & Regulatory Conference to be held March 20-21 in Arlington, Virginia.
In an interview-style format, David will have
CFPB Issues Monthly Complaint Snapshot on Credit Reporting
On February 28, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its monthly snapshot highlighting consumer complaints about credit reporting. A copy of the CFPB’s report can be found here.
Debt collection, student loan, and credit reporting were the top three most-complained about consumer financial products and services, representing about 60 percent of complaints submitted in
Defendant Requests Rehearing En Banc of Ninth Circuit’s Finding of Willful FCRA Violation
As we previously reported, on January 20, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision of first impression in Syed v. M-I, LLC, a putative class action, when it held that a prospective employer willfully violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by including a liability waiver in its background check disclosure form. The
Debt Collector Granted Summary Judgment in FDCPA Case
Plaintiff Yvette Palmer filed a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case against defendant debt collector, Enhanced Recovery Company (“ERC”), for ERC’s alleged concealment of its identity as a debt collector while attempting to collect a debt and to obtain information to collect debt. ERC filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing
FTC Issues Letter to CFPB on 2016 Debt Collection Efforts
On February 13, the Federal Trade Commission sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director Richard Cordray summarizing its 2016 debt collection activities for inclusion in the CFPB’s annual report to Congress on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
In its letter, the FTC describes “its aggressive law enforcement activities against abusive, unfair, and
Ninth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment in Favor of Defendants in TCPA Text Messaging Case
The Ninth Circuit recently affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendants in an action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act regarding text messages about a gym membership.
In Van Patten v. Vertical Fitness Group, LLC, Plaintiff-Appellant Bradley Van Patten visited a Gold’s Gym franchise to obtain information about