A rundown of recent top FCRA, TCPA and FDCPA cases from ACA.
12/02/2022 10:15 A.M.
3.5 minute read
Each week, ACA International’s compliance team covers relevant case summaries for ACA members. Members may also submit cases for consideration to our compliance team at [email protected].
Here are the cases covered Nov. 29 – Dec. 2:
Nov. 29:
Todorov v. Receivables Performance Mgmt: Collector’s Counsel Ordered to Pay Double Costs for Wrongful Removal
The counsel for a collection agency removed an FDCPA case and then moved for summary judgment, arguing that the complaint demonstrated the consumer suffered only a procedural violation of the FDCPA, which was insufficient to confer Article III standing. The court found the removal was improper and ordered the counsel to pay double costs and fees.
Continue reading the case summary here.
Radford v. Equifax: Court Held That FDCPA Lawsuit Was Not Time-Barred
A consumer found that his debt, which was previously settled and paid in full, was being reported as open and past due. The consumer disputed the debt with the CRAs, but the debt collector continued to report the debt. The consumer sued the debt collector, and it moved to dismiss the consumer’s FDCPA claims as time barred.
Continue reading the case summary here.
Nov. 30:
Becvar v. DCN Holdings: Court Vacates Default Judgment for Invalid Service
A consumer sued a debt collector for allegedly calling his mother and intentionally revealing his private information to collect a debt. The consumer attempted to serve the debt collector at two different addresses, but the debt collector avoided service. The consumer served the debt collector through the secretary of state, as permitted by Florida law and default judgment was entered against the debt collector. The debt collector moved to have the judgment vacated, claiming the service was not valid.
Continue reading the summary here.
Plater v. Phoenix Financial: Court Dismissed FCRA Claim Disputing Validity of Debt
If a consumer disputes the underlying legality of a debt, a furnisher is not required to address this issue as part of its investigation of a dispute.
Continue reading the summary here.
Dec. 1:
Evans v. Ocwen: 11th Circuit Remands Case to Determine Whether Consumers Had Standing
Some consumers appealed their case to the 11th Circuit, after the district court dismissed their case for failure to state a claim. The 11th Circuit remanded the case to determine whether the consumers had Article III standing as it had not been determined by the district court.
Continue reading the summary here.
Neria v. Wells Fargo Bank: Court Awards Statutory Damages for One FDCPA Claim
As a matter of law, a debt collector is not liable under the FDCPA for the use of a registered trade, fictitious or assumed name. There is no clear statutory definition of a collection activity to guide a court in assessing whether a loan servicer’s allegedly wrongful conduct was collection activity under the FDCPA, and an array of actions can be held to be collection activities.
Continue reading the summary here.
Thomas v. LVNV Funding, LLC: Failure to Note Dispute Violated the FDCPA
An Illinois district court held that the defendants violated the FDCPA as they reported the plaintiff’s debt to a CRA without noting the debt’s disputed status.
Continue reading the summary here.
Dec. 2:
Hill v. Nationstar Mortgage: Issues of Fact Preclude Dismissal of FDCPA Claims Based on State Law Requirements
Because a consumer’s factual allegations supported an inference that the trustee for the mortgage deed enforced a security interest when it foreclosed on her home, the consumer adequately pleaded that the trustee subjected her to a “collection activity” which is an essential element of a claim under the FDCPA.
Continue reading the summary here.
Graziano v. Schelling: Court Finds Plaintiff Stated a Claim
A court denied a defendant’s motion to dismiss, finding that the plaintiff’s amended complaint was not a shotgun pleading because it sufficiently separated each defendant such that the instant defendant could identify which allegations were being asserted against him.
Continue reading the summary here.
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