A pro se plaintiff’s lawsuit brought pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was dismissed by the District of New Jersey for lack of standing in Kraft v. Phelan Hallinan Diamond & Jones, P.C., U.S. Dist. LEXIS 126323 (D. N.J. July 30, 2019). Plaintiff Warren R. Kraft inherited real estate from his deceased
A new court decision raises important compliance issues for creditors who use an internal debt collection unit: whether separately naming the unit in a document also naming the creditor in its main business name can cause confusion, giving rise to a claim under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
On September 4, a U.S. d
On August 28, a district court judge in the Southern District of Indiana denied a defendant debt collector’s motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim. Plaintiff David F. Driver sued LJ Ross Associates, Inc. (“LJRA”), claiming that a collection letter violated the
On June 19, Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed a new law, H.P 553 – L.D. 748, that provides relief for consumers suffering from “economic abuse.” Going into effect on September 19, 2019, the new law provides a set of procedures for debt collectors and credit reporting agencies to follow when consumers present evidence
Some good news for debt collectors recently came out of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. In Sparks v. EquityExperts.org, LLC, the Sixth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for EquityExperts.org, LLC (“Equity Experts”), rejecting the consumers’ allegations that Equity Experts violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by collecting its
The Southern District of Indiana recently issued a positive decision for debt buyers and collectors defending Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuits premised on a directly communicating with a consumer who had previously notified the creditor she was represented by an attorney.
In Pennell v. Global Trust Management, LLC, No. 1:18-cv-01698-JRS-DLP, 2019 U.S. Dist.
On August 14, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, along with the Office of the Arkansas Attorney General, filed a proposed settlement with Andrew Gamber, Voyager Financial, and SoBell (collectively “Defendants”). This settlement follows a complaint the CFPB and Arkansas filed against Defendants in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, alleging
Debt collectors beware: On August 12, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that a debt collector violates section 1692f(8) of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by displaying an unencrypted “quick response” (or “QR”) code on the face of an envelope containing a debt collection letter that, when scanned,
On June 25, a group of twenty education organizations and individuals sent a letter to Congress urging it to regulate the use of income share agreements, or “ISAs” – an increasingly popular means of financing higher education. The letter was sent to the House Financial Services Committee and Senate Finance Committee, requesting legislation “that provides
On July 30, a district court judge in the Southern District of California granted a defendant debt collector’s motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim. The Court held that the collection letters sent by Capital Management Services, LP (“CMS”) did not constitute violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act