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. The consumer bears the burden of proving that all of the requirements of Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have been satisfied, and this includes proving that they are an adequate class representative.

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FDCPA Defense

AUGUST 16, 2012

If you are a collection professional working for a creditor, debt buyer, collection agency or collection law firm, and you have not yet added the website for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to the favorites on your web browser, it is high time that you do so. The CFPB has been publishing lots of information this year, and has laid out some details of how it plans to directly or indirectly regulate virtually all aspects of the collection industry.

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FDCPA Defense

JUNE 9, 2012

When a consumer disputes their debt, an accepted and conservative practice is for the data furnisher to promptly report the dispute to the consumer reporting agencies. But under what circumstances will the failure to report a dispute give rise to a violation of section 1692e(8) of the FDCPA? For example, what if a consumer or their attorney simply calls or writes and states "I dispute this" without providing the collector with any substantive information regarding the basis for the dispute?

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FDCPA Defense

FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Does the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) have the power to tell debt collectors to turn over their attorney-client privileged communications? The answer may depend on who you ask. 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.

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Speaker: Erika R. Bales, Esq.

When we talk about “compliance and security," most companies want to ensure that steps are being taken to protect what they value most – people, data, real or personal property, intellectual property, digital assets, or any other number of other things - and it’s more important than ever that safeguards are in place. Let’s step back and focus on the idea that no matter how complicated the compliance and security regime, it should be able to be distilled down to a checklist.

FDCPA Defense

JANUARY 28, 2012

Consumers and their attorneys are constantly seeking to expand the pool of potential FDCPA defendants using principles of vicarious liability. Debt buyers are being sued based on the conduct of their agencies and law firms. Lawyers and agency owners are being sued based on the conduct of their clients and their collectors. Even original creditors, who are not subject to the FDCPA, are being drawn into FDCPA litigation under various theories of recovery.

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