A law firm not specializing in debt collection activity is not a “debt collector” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act because it was not “regularly” engaged in debt collection, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.  The case is Reyes v. Steeg Law.

Plaintiff Nicole Reyes filed a class

In a concise opinion, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois recently held that a dunning letter did not violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requirement to state “the amount of the debt,” despite omitting safe harbor language recommended by the Seventh Circuit.  

In Tena

In a recent decision, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted a debt collector’s motion to dismiss a debtor’s breach of contract claim in a putative class action, leaving for adjudication the debtor’s claims under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”).  The case is Burdette-Miller v. Williams & Fudge,

We are pleased to announce that Troutman Sanders attorneys Jonathan Floyd and Ethan Ostroff will be presenting during the Receivables Management Association International 22nd Annual Conference at the Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jonathan will be on a panel speaking on, “Time- Barred Debt Collection – Compliance Strategies by Circuit,” on

Plaintiffs have won one in the ongoing litigation wars over whether the identity of the original creditors in debt collection letters is material, and hence should be included. 

On January 2, the United States District Court for the District of Utah granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs-debtors, finding that the defendant-debt collector committed

In a recent opinion, the District of Connecticut dismissed cross-motions for summary judgment filed by a debtor and a debt collector for claims arising under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.  The case is Garcia v. Law Offices of Howard Lee Schiff, P.C., No. 3:16-cv-791 (D. Conn. Dec.

Who should decide the “gateway” issue of arbitrability? That is, should a court or an arbitrator decide whether a particular issue is subject to arbitration?  According to the Fourth Circuit, it depends on the agreement to arbitrate.  

On January 4, the Fourth Circuit issued an opinion in Novic v. Credit One, No. 17-2168,

The Northern District of Illinois recently granted summary judgment in favor of a debt collector in Trischler v. MRS BPO LLC, holding that collection letters effectively stated the amount of the debt.

Consumer plaintiff Jacob Trischler incurred some credit card debt, which was subsequently assigned to MRS for collection by the original creditor. MRS

On December 17, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled in favor of a debt collector in Taubenfliegel v. Miller & Milone, P.C., granting a motion for summary judgment regarding the naming of the creditor in a collection letter.

Plaintiff Elizabeth Taubenfliegel alleged violations of Section 1692g of

Due to the U.S. Government partial shutdown, the Federal Trade Commission announced a temporary suspension of all of its investigations, including those into debt collection activities. As a result, the FTC has stated that its investigators cannot conduct normal fact-finding and attorneys cannot engage in settlement negotiations at this time. In particular, during the