In Scott v. Collecto, Inc., the plaintiff filed a complaint in state court alleging a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and common law negligence based on the defendant’s use of a letter vendor to...more
A U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Florida recently granted a motion for summary judgment filed by debt collector, I.C. Systems, finding that the plaintiff failed to provide any evidence of an inadequate...more
Join us for an enlightening episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, where we dissect the intricate world of debt collection, reflecting on the past year and forecasting future trends. This episode, hosted by Chris Willis,...more
We are pleased to share our annual review of regulatory and legal developments in the consumer financial services industry. With active federal and state legislatures, consumer financial services providers faced a challenging...more
2/1/2024
/ Automotive Loans ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Bankruptcy ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Debt Collection ,
Digital Assets ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Mortgages ,
Student Loans ,
Tribal Loans ,
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
The debt purchaser in In re McIntosh argued that because it was enforcing a debt that was not listed correctly on the debtor’s bankruptcy schedules, it was entitled to assume the debt had not been discharged. The U.S....more
1/30/2024
/ Bankruptcy Code ,
Bankruptcy Court ,
Chapter 7 ,
Credit Cards ,
Creditors ,
Debt ,
Debt Buyers ,
Debt Collection ,
debt-buy ,
Debtors ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Florida ,
Motion for Sanctions ,
PACER
On January 2, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed an amicus curiae brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to reverse a district court’s decision finding that a debt collector lacked the...more
1/23/2024
/ Amicus Briefs ,
Automatic Stay ,
Bankruptcy Code ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Creditors ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Scienter ,
Statutory Violations
In a change of course, the Utah court of appeals has reversed the dismissal of a plaintiffs’ suit against a debt collector based on its alleged failure to register as a collection agency prior to filing collection suits....more
On December 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it had reached a settlement with medical debt collector Commonwealth Financial Systems, Inc. (Commonwealth) in its lawsuit over alleged illegal debt...more
12/19/2023
/ Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Medical Debt ,
Settlement
On November 16, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released its Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) Annual Report detailing the CFPB’s 2022 activities related to debt collection practices. This...more
11/21/2023
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Credit Reporting Agencies ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Medical Debt
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a summary order affirming a district court’s holding that an emailed response to the plaintiff’s email did not constitute an “initial communication” under the Fair Debt...more
Earlier this year, a district court for the Middle District of Florida upheld a jury award of $225,000 in punitive damages in a debt collection case finding the defendant’s conduct “reprehensible” based on the physical harm...more
11/9/2023
/ Bankruptcy Code ,
Chapter 7 ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Creditors ,
Debt Buyers ,
Debt Collection ,
Debtors ,
Dischargeable Debts ,
Dish Network ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
FCCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Jury Awards ,
Punitive Damages ,
Unsecured Debt
A U.S. District Court in the Western District of Wisconsin recently denied both the defendant and plaintiff’s summary judgment motions in a Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) case, holding that the reasonableness of the...more
10/27/2023
/ Consumer Reporting Agencies ,
Cross Motions ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
Debtors ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Identity Theft ,
Reasonableness Factors ,
Summary Judgment
New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (NYC DCWP) recently released a notice of proposed amendments to its debt collection rules. The proposed amendments are detailed, lengthy, and include expanded...more
10/25/2023
/ City of New York ,
Consumer Reporting Agencies ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
Electronic Communications ,
Financial Assistance Policies ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Medical Debt ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Time-Barred Debt
Recently, the New Jersey appellate division held that a debt purchaser is not liable under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (NJ Fraud Act) for failing to obtain a license under the New Jersey Consumer Finance Licensing Act...more
10/18/2023
/ Class Action ,
Consumer Fraud ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Buyers ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Midland Funding ,
New Jersey ,
Payment Plans ,
Private Right of Action ,
State Licenses ,
Summary Judgment
On September 15, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey denied the defendant’s summary judgment motion holding instead that a bank levy against the plaintiff served as a basis for standing to assert a claim...more
9/26/2023
/ Article III ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Levy ,
New Jersey ,
Standing ,
Statutory Violations
As U.S. consumer solar energy use increases, so does potential exposure under state consumer protection statutes. A recent decision by the California Court of Appeals in the case of Hagey v. Solar Service Experts, LLC...more
9/18/2023
/ California ,
Clean Energy ,
Consumer Protection Act ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Homeowners ,
Installment Agreements ,
Non-Parties ,
Payment Plans ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
The Rosenthal Act
In Hansen v. Mountain America Federal Credit Union, the plaintiff became delinquent on a credit card account with her credit union. The credit union then assigned the debt to a third-party collection agency. Following the...more
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed a district court’s dismissal of a suit holding that the plaintiff had not suffered a concrete injury, and therefore, lacked standing to assert a claim under the Fair Debt...more
In Gebreseralse v. Columbia Debt Recovery, LLC, the plaintiff, a tenant under a residential lease agreement, vacated the premises early due to concerns over the property’s condition. In response, the property management...more
On August 22, a district court judge in the Western District of New York denied the defendants’ motions to dismiss a case brought by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) alleging violations of the Fair Debt...more
On August 18, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York granted the plaintiff’s motion for class certification for alleged violations of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) relating...more
A United States district court in Kentucky recently granted defendants’ motion to dismiss a case arising under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) for lack of personal...more
8/8/2023
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Reporting Agencies ,
Consumer Reports ,
Debt Collection ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Lending ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Personal Jurisdiction ,
Tenants
On August 1, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld a trial court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of a debt buyer holding that claim preclusion barred the plaintiff’s claims brought under the Fair...more
In our latest episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, Chris Willis and his colleagues Stefanie Jackman, Joe Reilly, and Jonathan Floyd discuss the CFPB’s advisory opinion related to collection of time-barred debt. The...more
On July 26, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released the summer edition of its Supervisory Highlights report, providing a high-level overview of alleged unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or...more
7/28/2023
/ Automated Clearing House (ACH) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Military Lending Act ,
Mortgages ,
Payday Lending Rule ,
Supervisory Highlights ,
UDAAP