A decision by a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Wisconsin may provide an interesting defense for debt collectors who are sued by plaintiffs who will not acknowledge incurring the debts at issue. In Burton v. Kohn Law Firm, S.C., Burton sued…
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals has issued its decision in Taylor v. Fin. Recovery Services, Inc., affirming that a debt collector’s letters did not violate the FDCPA by failing to state affirmatively that interest was not accruing. Taylor…
Holding that “Congress cannot override [the] baseline requirement of Article III of the U.S. Constitution by labeling the violation of any requirement of a statute a cognizable injury,” the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ordered dismissal…
The Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Banking have entered into their first joint consent order with a collection agency. American Accounts & Advisers, Inc. agreed to a civil penalty of $200,000 of…
A line of cases developing within the Third Circuit highlights the need for the Supreme Court to grant the pending petition for a writ of Certiorari in Oliva v. Blatt, Hasenmiller, Leibsker & Moore, LLC. The crucial question to be…
Section 1692g of the FDCPA requires that “within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall . . . send the consumer a written notice” of the…
A lawsuit is an asset. May a creditor execute upon a judgment against a debtor to take away the debtor’s FDCPA cause of action? The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has held that it may not.…
On November 1, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals declined to elevate form over substance, affirming a ruling from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida dismissing a consumer’s FDCPA claim that a law firm’s collection…
Section 1692e(11) of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act forbids: the failure to disclose in the initial written communication with the consumer and, in addition, if the initial communication with the consumer is oral, in that initial oral communication, that…
A false statement by a debt collector must be “material” to be actionable under the FDCPA. This principle has been recognized by the United States Courts of Appeals for the Second, Third, Fourth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits. On…