On July 16, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) proposed revised debt collection regulations for third-party debt collectors and debt buyers. The rules seek to clarify the required initial disclosures by debt collectors, disclosures for debts in which the statute of limitations may be expired, substantiation of consumer debts, debt payment procedures,
CFPB Adds Narrative to Complaint Database
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has announced a new proposal that will allow consumers the option to share a narrative of “what happened” in the CFPB’s public-facing Consumer Complaint Database. According to the CFPB, this new feature would “empower consumers to publicly voice their complaints about consumer financial products and services” and “provide important context
CFPB Sues Credit-Card Collection Lawsuit Mill
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit on July 14, 2014, in Atlanta federal court against a Georgia-based firm, Frederick J. Hanna & Associates, and its three principal partners for operating an alleged “debt collection lawsuit mill that uses illegal tactics to intimidate consumers into paying debts they may not owe.” The CFPB claimed
7th Circuit Ruling Provides Further Support That Supreme Court’s Comcast Decision Does Not Preclude Individual Damages Inquiries
In IKO Roofing Shingle Products Liability Litigation, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a denial of class certification in a products liability multidistrict litigation on the grounds that the plaintiffs’ two damages theories complied with the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, even though these theories would not allow
NY Department of Financial Services Releases Revised Debt Collection Rules
On July 16, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) proposed revised debt collection regulations for third-party debt collectors and debt buyers. The rules seek to clarify the required initial disclosures by debt collectors, disclosures for debts in which the statute of limitations may be expired, substantiation of consumer debts, debt payment procedures,
Texas Federal Court: No Summary Judgment for Plaintiff in FDCPA Settlement Letter Dispute over Time-Barred Debt
On June 27, 2014, Magistrate Judge Orlando L. Garcia of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas recommended denial of a plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment in an FDCPA action implicating settlement letter language for time-barred debt. The case, Schreve v. First National Collection Bureau, Inc., involved time-barred debt that
Rulemaking on Prepaid Debit Cards Delayed by CFPB
Contrary to industry expectations, the CFPB announced on Wednesday, June 11, 2014 that it would be delaying its prepaid card regulations until the end of the summer. The announcement came during a presentation by CFPB Director Richard Cordray to the Senate Banking Committee. The rule had been expected this month.
This follows a pattern of
Retailers Plan to Take Debit-Card Fee Dispute to U.S. Supreme Court
Counsel for the National Association of Convenience Stores, the National Retail Federation, and the Food Marketing Institute, among other retailers, indicated this week that they will file a petition for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court for review of a March 2014 D.C. Circuit decision involving debit card “swipe fees.”
In 2011, the Federal
ACA Files Amicus Brief in Settlement Offer Dispute before the Sixth Circuit
On May 7, 2014, ACA International, the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, submitted an amicus curiae brief in an important Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) dispute over settlement-letter language for time-barred debts. The plaintiff received a collection letter from the debt collector offering an opportunity to settle a debt after Michigan’s six-year limitations
Trucking Company Settles FCRA Class Action for $870,500
On Thursday, May 29, 2014, defendant New England Motor Freight (“NEMF”) agreed to a $870,500 settlement of a putative class action claim under the Fair Credit Reporting Act pending in New Jersey federal court. The class complaint alleged that NEMF had purchased consumer reports for potential job applicants from various wholesalers without first asking for