On May 9, 2014, U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright introduced H.R. 4624 to amend the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act to prohibit a court from awarding costs to a prevailing defendant in the absence of a finding that an action was brought in bad faith.
This legislation is in response to the United States Supreme Court’s
The Indiana Court of Appeals addressed an issue of first impression by holding that out-of-state companies must have an Indiana location before they need to obtain a license under Indiana’s Uniform Consumer Credit Code (IUCCC). Therefore, a collection agency with its principal place of business in another state is only required to obtain a license
The two principal owners of Rincon Debt Management – Jason R. Begley and Wayne W. Lunsford – will surrender more than $3.3 million worth of assets that will be used to provide refunds to victims under a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. In addition to the permanent ban from the debt collection business
On April 30, 2014, New York State’s chief judge, Jonathan Lippman, announced that he would institute new court rules and protocols aimed at the issue of obtaining default judgments against debtors. These rules offer more protection to debtors.
In a speech, the judge claimed that many debtors are never served papers and only learn a
On Thursday, May 1, 2014, the White House issued a report outlining initiatives to supposedly better protect privacy in light of the growing realm of big data, the term used to describe a collection of large and complex data sets. The report, titled “Big Data and Privacy: A Technological Perspective,” was presented to the President
A recently passed bill by the West Virginia Legislature requires debt collectors to make new disclosures in initial letters to consumers. Effective June 6, 2014, section 46A-2-128(f) of the West Virginia Consumer Credit Protection Act (WVCCPA) is amended to require the initial written communication with a consumer to disclose the subject debt is beyond the
On April 15, 2014, a federal judge in New Jersey approved the settlement of a class-action suit against a law firm that allegedly violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Plaintiffs claimed that Mattleman, Weinroth & Miller, whose principal office is in Cherry Hill, NJ, and Executive Credit Management, located in Stanhope, NJ, had
In a speech at the Consumer Bankers Association, CFPB Deputy Director Steve Antonakes discussed the nonbank segments of the financial services industry where the CFPB recently has expanded its supervision, including debt collection, student loan servicing, and large nonbank auto lenders.
Antonakes cited the receipt of more than 20,000 consumer complaints in March 2014 as
On March 27, 2014, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) issued two declaratory rulings regarding the definition of “prior express consent” under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). In the first ruling, Cargo Airline Association obtained an exemption under the TCPA’s “prior express consent” restriction on autodialed and prerecorded telephone calls and text messages to wireless
Earlier today a bipartisan bill was introduced into the US House of Representatives which would require the CFPB to create an advisory panel of small financial services companies similar to other boards the Bureau has created. The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Small Business Advisory Board Act, introduced by Rep. Robert Pittenger, R-N.C., and