Recent Trends in Class-Action Consumer Finance Litigation - The Consumer Finance Podcast
On July 18, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit rejected the notion that plaintiffs can “manufacture” Article III standing by identifying “self-inflicted harm” such as “expenditure of money and wasted time to correct an otherwise...more
The Supreme Court has granted certiorari to review a $40 million class action trial judgment for statutory and punitive damages under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and its forthcoming decision later this Term will likely be...more
On Monday, a divided panel of the Ninth Circuit rejected what is perhaps the most common allegation asserted by plaintiffs as a way of achieving standing under FCRA: that, as a result of some alleged misconduct, their credit...more
We spend most of our time at FCRAland studying those rights included in the Fair Credit Reporting Act, as it was established in 1970. Yet Congress has amended FCRA over the years, including by adding additional statutory...more
On August 29, the Seventh Circuit reentered the multi-front fray that has broken out among lower courts in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2016 decision in Spokeo v Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540 (2016). ...more
On February 16, 2018, the 6th Circuit, in Hagy v. Demers & Adams (882 F.3d 616 (6th Cir. Feb. 16, 2018)), found that a former borrower did not have standing to assert a claim under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In deciding to deny certiorari to review Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, No. 17-806 (U.S. 2017), the U.S. Supreme Court has declined to reconsider the standing principles it announced in its landmark 2016 Spokeo...more
Earlier this month, in a case pending in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Home Depot avoided a class action suit under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The lawsuit accused the company of...more
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California recently dismissed a putative class action alleging violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), finding that the named plaintiff lacked standing to...more
By now, most everyone has heard it from a friend who, heard it from a friend who, heard it from another about the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2016 decision in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins. It is the case being cited across the country in...more
We have another court decision relying on the Supreme Court's recent Spokeo decision that found a class action plaintiff did not meet the injury-in-fact requirement under Article III of the United States Constitution. In...more
Last week, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of two Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) class actions on Spokeo grounds. The cases, which were consolidated for appeal, were filed by the same plaintiff against two...more
An $11.7 million judgment awarded against credit reporting company Experian in a 69,000-member class action brought under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) was vacated by the Fourth Circuit in Dreher v. Experian...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held that the plaintiff’s allegations that Experian denied him access to information to which he was entitled under the Fair Credit Reporting Act was insufficient to establish...more
The U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has held that a class representative who failed to allege a concrete injury from incomplete or incorrect information on his credit report did not satisfy the standing...more
On May 11, 2017, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a $12 million judgment against Experian Information Solutions, Inc. (“Experian”) in a class action against the credit reporting bureau alleging violations of the...more
A New Jersey District Court followed Spokeo’s Article III standing analysis and dismissed claims by three putative class representatives against Michaels Stores. Plaintiffs claimed that Michaels’ online employment application...more
Recently, the Third Circuit widened the gates for certain data-breach plaintiffs, holding that alleged violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) constitute injuries-in-fact sufficient for Article III standing. In...more
Spokeo-based challenges are now common in class actions alleging statutory violations. But disagreements remain concerning when Spokeo mandates dismissal for lack of Article III standing. Last week, two different federal...more
The ripple effects persist as lower courts continue to apply the Supreme Court’s holding in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540, 1547 (2016), which established a new “standing,” threshold for plaintiffs seeking to assert...more
On October 5, 2016, two district courts came to opposite conclusions on whether putative class action plaintiffs had standing to bring claims based on prospective employers’ failure to comply with Fair Credit Reporting Act...more
On October 12, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit denied a petition for an en banc rehearing of its September 12 decision in Galaria, et al. v. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (Nos. 15-3386/3387). In...more
Apparently, even a “no decision” decision by the U.S. Supreme Court can still establish precedent. Relying on a Spring 2016 SCOTUS decision, a federal magistrate judge in California dismissed a proposed class action...more
In May of this year, in Robins v. Spokeo, the Supreme Court ruled on the important issue of standing for plaintiffs asserting statutory claims for damages in federal court. Some observers thought the decision would guide...more
In its recent decision in Galaria v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co., no. 15-3386 (6th Cir. Sept. 12, 2016). Co., No. 15-3386 (6th Cir. Sept. 12, 2016), a divided Sixth Circuit panel held that plaintiffs had standing to assert...more