District Judge William J. Nealon of the Middle District of Pennsylvania issued two recent decisions holding that both a Quick Response (“QR”) code and a bar code appearing through the glassine window of an envelope containing a collection letter violate section 1692f(8) of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which prohibits “using any language or
Auto Finance, Credit/Debt Practices, and Identity Theft Top Consumer Protection Complaints
On July 29, the Consumer Federation of America and the North American Consumer Protection Investigators released their annual survey of consumer complaint data from state and local consumer agencies, which is based on 280,000 claims to thirty-seven agencies from twenty-one states and the District of Columbia.
Just as in 2013, the most common complaints arose
Debt Collection and Credit Reporting Litigation and Related Complaints to CFPB Continue to Increase; TCPA Lawsuits Decline
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuits increased 16 percent from June 2014 to June 2015, according to a report issued by WebRecon. The report also noted that FDCPA lawsuits increased from 885 to 1,129 from May to June this year. According to the report, Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuits also increased 22.7 percent from
FCC’s TCPA Order Immediately Challenged in Court
As Troutman Sanders LLP previously reported, earlier this month the Federal Communications Commission issued a sweeping 147-page Declaratory Ruling and Order expanding the definition of an automatic telephone dialer system (ATDS), clarifying revocation of consent, and providing limited exceptions for reassigned numbers, health care, and financial calls and text messages. Since then, three entities
FTC Extends “Debt Collection Dialogues” Road Tour to Dallas and Atlanta
As previously discussed in our June 15 post titled “New York DFS Clarifies Debt Collection Requirements,” the Federal Trade Commission co-hosted the first “Debt Collection Dialogue” in Buffalo, New York, together with the New York Attorney General’s Office. As part of that event, FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Jessica Rich and
Senator Schumer Introduces Bill to Criminalize Certain Robocalls
On June 25, Senator Schumer of New York introduced a bill poetically titled the Act to Quell Unnecessary, Intentional, and Encroaching Telephone Calls Act of 2015 (the “QUIET Act”) that would criminalize the knowing use of telemarketing robocalls without the prior express consent of the recipient.
Under the QUIET Act, it would be illegal to
Do Statutes Of Limitation Apply To The CFPB After All?
On July 14, a federal judge in Atlanta denied Frederick J. Hanna & Associates’ motion to dismiss in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Frederick J. Hanna & Associates PC, which the CFPB filed against the law firm arising out of alleged violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Consumer Financial Protection Act.
Congress Trying Again To Reform or Eliminate the CFPB
On July 22, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government approved a spending bill for the 2016 fiscal year that would change the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) leadership structure by replacing the CFPB director with a five-member commission.
The bill also would bring funding for the CFPB’s budget under the annual
Eleventh Circuit Reinstates Class Action in Federal Court Notwithstanding State Prohibition On Class Actions Under The Statute At Issue
Although most states have consumer protection laws that provide for private rights of action, certain states also hold that such remedies cannot be invoked and pursued on behalf of a class. However, when such a case is filed in federal court, such state-based restrictions conflict with the class action mechanism that is set forth under
Eleventh Circuit Holds That the FDCPA Applies to Statement Made In Court Documents Directed to a Consumer’s Attorney
On June 30, in Miljkovic v. Shafritz and Dinkin, P.A., the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held in a case of first impression that representations made by an attorney in court filings during the course of debt-collection litigation are actionable under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) but that