Bad internet reviews are the bane of business owners everywhere. Consumers flock to social media to air their grievances with companies, typically without fear of meaningful reprisal. This practice often leaves many corporate entities wondering what to do to deter this type of consumer sharing. When faced with this question – after reading less than
On October 11, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill requiring “data brokers” to register with, and provide certain information to, the California Attorney General on or before January 31st following each year in which a business meets the definition of a data broker. A “data broker” means a “business that knowingly
On January 23, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of the class action complaint filed by plaintiff Muhammad M. Butt against FD Holdings, LLC d/b/a Factual Data in the case styled, Butt v. FD Holdings, LLC, d/b/a Factual Data. A copy of the Court’s opinion can be
Wire fraud cases, arising from what the Federal Bureau of Investigation calls “business email compromise,” are on the rise. In 2018, the FBI reported that business email compromise and other internet-enabled theft, fraud, and exploitation resulted in $2.7 billion of financial loss. See FBI – IC3 Annual Report Released. Surprisingly, even sophisticated parties and
On January 9, 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued its decision in Williams v. First Advantage Lns Screening Solutions, a case watched closely by the background screening industry. In Williams, the Court affirmed a $250,000 compensatory damages award and reduced a $3.3 million punitive damages award to
We are pleased to announce that Troutman Sanders’ attorneys David Anthony and Ethan Ostroff will be presenting during the RMAI Annual Conference at the Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The RMAI Conference is the premier event for the receivables management industry. Debt buyers, originating creditors, collection agencies, law firms, brokers and affiliates
Shortly before the end of the year, two bills, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier in 2019, that seek to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) were amended and reported out by the House Committee on Financial Services for consideration by the full House.
H.R. 3622, titled “Restoring Unfairly Impaired Credit
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida has awarded summary judgment in favor of a furnisher on a consumer’s claims brought under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The dispute arose out of credit reporting on the account. The plaintiff asserted that the furnisher violated credit reporting standards by inaccurately identifying
On November 7, the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee addressed the issue of whether it is a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act for a creditor to report a charged-off account with a monthly payment due. In Ruvye Cowley v. Equifax Info. Servs., LLC, et al., the Court
Trina Davis brought both individual and putative class claims against Einstein Noah Restaurant Group, Inc. (herein “Einstein”), the parent company of popular bagel chain Noah’s Bagels, and Caribou Coffee Company, Inc. She alleged the companies violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and related California statutes, arguing the consumer report disclosure form she signed to complete