FDCPA Defense

SEPTEMBER 26, 2017

You are probably tempted to answer “yes” it can, because you know the Act defines a “debt collector” to include an entity that is collecting on behalf of itself or on behalf of third parties. But a closer look at the activities performed by employees of the bank in question may reveal that it is not, in fact, collecting on its own behalf.

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FDCPA Defense

APRIL 17, 2019

The CFPB is expected to announce proposed debt collection rules in the near future that may incorporate the theory. The “meaningful attorney involvement” doctrine evolved out of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. the “FDCPA”). How did everything go wrong for creditors’ rights attorneys? 1692, et seq. In Clomon v.

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FDCPA Defense

MAY 11, 2017

Grappling with the meaning of the so-called “meaningful involvement” doctrine is one of the most elusive and frustrating compliance challenges for collection attorneys and their clients. What exactly must a collection attorney do to ensure they are “meaningfully involved” in a file before sending a collection letter to a consumer?

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FDCPA Defense

JANUARY 8, 2020

If a law firm sends a letter seeking to collect the correct amount, from the correct consumer, on behalf of the correct creditor, can the consumer still sue, claiming the firm violated the FDCPA because no attorney was “meaningfully involved” in preparing the letter? The Sixth Circuit recently held the answer is “no” in Buchholz v.

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FDCPA Defense

FEBRUARY 1, 2018

Attorneys and other entities that regularly engage in collection work for community associations may be subject to the requirements of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. as well as analogous state laws governing the consumer collection process. The issue in Ho v. And this it did not do, directly or otherwise.

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FDCPA Defense

JANUARY 22, 2017

(This post is adopted from the materials presented at the CAI Law Seminar in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 20, 2017) Demystifying the FDCPA Class Action For HOA Attorneys Consumer attorneys have been filing FDCPA class actions against collection attorneys for decades, and the pace of those filings has increased sharply in the past ten years.

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FDCPA Defense

AUGUST 22, 2016

There, the collection law firm defendant communicated with plaintiff on a number of occasions, and each time the firm identified itself as a “debt collector,” as required by section 1692e(11) of the FDCPA. In addition, a collector’s statement must be “material” in order to be actionable under the FDCPA. Hollins Law Firm , _F.3d

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FDCPA Defense

MARCH 23, 2015

The FDCPA prohibits a collector from placing “any language or symbol” on a debt collection envelope, other than the collector’s address. A collector cannot even put its own name on the envelope, unless the collector is certain the name does not indicate that the company is in the debt collection business. 980, 982 (N.D.

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FDCPA Defense

NOVEMBER 10, 2015

Were these comments made during the course of a collection phone call, or in a letter sent to the collector? It is strange that Congress never bothered to define the term “dispute” in the FDCPA, given the important role that disputes play in the statute’s framework. See Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, CFPB Annual Report 2015.

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FDCPA Defense

MAY 27, 2014

The CFPB and the FTC have forcefully argued that debt collectors should make an affirmative disclosure to consumers when they are seeking to collect debts that cannot be judicially enforced, and that the failure to make this disclosure may violate the FDCPA. The CFPB apparently believes that sometimes the answer is “yes.”

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FDCPA Defense

MARCH 2, 2014

The Dodd-Frank Act gave the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) sweeping authority to prohibit the use of “unfair, deceptive or abusive” acts or practices (“UDAAPs”) in connection with the collection of consumer debts. The Asset Consent Decree also reflects the FTC’s hostility to collecting time-barred debts.

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FDCPA Defense

NOVEMBER 11, 2014

Section 1692g requires that within five days of the “initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt” a collector must send the consumer a written notice containing, inter alia , the amount of the debt, and the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed. See 15 U.S.C. 1692g(a)(1), (2). Kaplan , 109 F.3d

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FDCPA Defense

JULY 20, 2013

in response to criticism that debt buyers did not have adequate documentation to support the collection lawsuits they were filing against California consumers. Scope Of The Act The Act only applies to debt buyers: it does not apply to creditors, collection agencies or collection attorneys. Code § 1788.52. a) and (b) of the Act.

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FDCPA Defense

FEBRUARY 20, 2012

The CFPB claims to have the right to obtain privileged documents from all “supervised institutions” as well as from any “service provider” (such as a law firm or collection agency) who performs material services for a supervised institution. The Bureau specifically noted that plans to exercise supervisory authority over collection law firms.

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FDCPA Defense

JANUARY 28, 2012

Limits on Direct Liability Before examining vicarious liability under the FDCPA, it is important to remember that Congress significantly limited the scope of direct liability under the Act. For example, generally speaking, the Act applies only to “debt collectors” who regularly attempt to collect debts that are “due another.”

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FDCPA Defense

MAY 6, 2014

In addition, given the “variety of sources of information to assess the creditworthiness of prospective borrowers,” the Bureau asserted that “debt collectors may well deceive consumers if they make representations about the nature or extent of improved creditworthiness that result from paying debts in collection.” It is hard to say.

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FDCPA Defense

JUNE 9, 2012

To the contrary, courts around the country have recognized that an allegedly false or misleading statement does not violate the FDCPA unless the statement is "material." Quick Collect, Inc. , 2009) (collection complaint that described an unpaid credit card debt as "money loaned" did not violate section 1692e); Peters v.

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FDCPA Defense

DECEMBER 12, 2012

The number of class actions filed against the credit and collection industry continues to rise, and FDCPA class actions remains a favorite among consumer attorneys. Although it is easy for a consumer to file a class action, getting a class certified is no walk in the park.

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