On January 13, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the District Court’s grant of class certification in a case where plaintiffs allege violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In Powers v. Credit Management Services, the defendant filed standard-form complaints and discovery requests against the plaintiffs in state court to collect past
Filing Time-Barred Proof of Claim May Have FDCPA Implications
On December 8, the Southern District of Indiana released a decision relating to the interplay between the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and bankruptcy. In Grandidier v. Quantum3 Group, LLC, the District Court denied a motion to dismiss a plaintiff’s complaint relating to the supposed filing of a time-barred proof of claim in the
Fourth Circuit Holds Filing an Assignment of Judgment Qualifies as Action Taken in Connection with Collection of a Debt
In Powell v. Palisades Acquisition XVI, LLC, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the filing of an assignment of judgment in a debt collection action qualifies as debt collection activity that triggers the requirements of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”). In so holding, the Fourth Circuit overturned the decision of
Seventh Circuit Affirms Dismissal of FDCPA Lawsuit Under The Rooker-Feldman Doctrine
In Harold v. Steel, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed dismissal of a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) suit based on the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. In the case, a small claims court in Marion County, Indiana, entered a judgment against Kevin Harold for a little more than $1,000. He
Supreme Court Declines to Revisit Third Circuit’s Decision That Debtors Are Not Required to Dispute a Debt Prior to Filing an FDCPA Lawsuit
On November 10, the Supreme Court declined to review an appeal by debt collection law firm Phelan Hallinan & Shmieg LLP over a Third Circuit decision in a class action that held that debtors are not required to dispute a debt under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act before filing an FDCPA lawsuit.
On June
E.D.N.Y Rejects Third-Party Disclosure Claims and Follows Zortman Approach for FDCPA “Communications”
On November 13, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled that a debt collector’s voicemail message did not violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act when it never mentioned that plaintiff owed a debt or conveyed any information about the debt, despite being overheard by the plaintiff’s son. In Zweigenhaft
FDCPA Class Certified in a Seemingly Individualized Dispute over Repayment Options Calculation
In Alexander v. Coast Professional, Inc., No. 12-cv-1461, (E.D. Pa. Sept. 5, 2014), the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania certified a class of Pennsylvania residents with defaulted student loans serviced by Coast Professional. The class action under the FDCPA is based on the allegations that Coast Professional failed to
Federal Court Affirms Debt Collector’s Right to Collect Pre-Judgment Statutory Interest After Charge-Off by Original Creditor
On September 18, in Peters v. Financial Recovery Services, Inc., the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri held that neither the federal Truth in Lending Act (TILA) nor the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) prohibit a debt collector from charging state statutory pre-judgment interest after charge-off. In reaching that
Plaintiffs Alleging TCPA and FDCPA Claims May Be Able to Circumvent Arbitration Where Calls Were Intended for an Unrelated Third Party
In Porter v. Dollar Financial Group, Inc., 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 122865, a Northern District of California court denied the defendant’s motion to compel arbitration based on the plaintiff’s allegation that the debt collection calls at issue were intended for a third party, and thus were not related to the contract containing the arbitration
CFPB and FTC File Amicus Brief Urging Application of FDCPA Beyond Initial Debt Collection Notice
On August 20, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission jointly filed an amicus brief in Hernandez v. Williams, Zinman & Parham, P.C. The case concerns the interpretation and enforcement of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and is currently on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.