On March 22, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment in Henderson v. United Student Aid Funds, Inc., 2017 WL 766548 (S.D. Cal. Feb. 28, 2017), and remanded the matter back to the Southern District of California to determine if a student loan lender could be vicariously liable for…
On February 25, 2019, the United States Supreme Court accepted appeal from the Third Circuit’s decision in Rotkiske v. Klemm et al., No. 16-1668 (3d Cir. May 15, 2018). The Court is now primed to answer whether the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) encompasses the “discovery rule”—which tolls the…
On February 8, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina granted its motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) against 10 debt collection companies and six individuals operating out of New York and North Carolina. The FTC alleged…
The issue of whether the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) applies to non-judicial foreclosure proceedings is now squarely before the U.S. Supreme Court. Following oral arguments last week in the case Obduskey v. Wells Fargo, et al., No. 17-1307, the Justices will be tasked with deciding whether non-judicial foreclosures qualify…
On December 28, 2018, the Massachusetts Division of Banks (“Division”) entered into a consent agreement with a licensed debt collector to resolve allegations that it had engaged in debt collection practices that were not compliant with applicable state law. The consent agreement follows a compliance examination of the company. The…
On December 11, 2018, the Massachusetts Division of Banks (“Division”) entered into a consent agreement with a California small loan company and licensed debt collector to resolve allegations that the company had collected interest in excess of the maximum amount permitted under state law. The consent agreement follows a compliance…
On December 4, 2018, one of the nation’s largest debt buyers and its subsidiaries reached a settlement with 42 states and the District of Columbia (see, e.g., announcements here and here). The settlement closes the states’ multi-year investigation into the company’s collection and litigation practices, including alleged violations of the…
On November 1, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the New York Attorney General’s Office announced their lawsuit against a New York-based debt collection operation, which alleges that the debt collection entities tricked people into agreeing to pay more money than what they allegedly owed in violation of Section 13(b) of the…
On September 28, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had reached a settlement with loan debt relief operators in connection with the coordinated federal-state enforcement initiative to target deceptive student loan debt relief scams, called “Operation Game of Loans.” According to the FTC, the operators violated the federal law by allegedly…
On September 21, 2018, the Attorney General for the State of Washington announced a lawsuit against three debt collection agencies and their owner, alleging that they violated the state’s Collection Agency Act, RCW 19.16.100 et seq., and the state’s Consumer Protection Act, RCW 19.86.010 et seq. The complaint, filed in…
On September 21, New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood announced a stipulated court order against three entities and individuals for illegal debt collection practices (collectively, “defendants”), which permanently bans the defendants from the debt collection industry and requires collective payment of almost $27 million in restitution and damages. The court…
On September 20, New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood announced a lawsuit against nine student loan debt relief companies, their financing company, and two individuals with leadership roles in several of the companies (collectively, “defendants”). The lawsuit alleges that defendants violated the Federal Credit Repair Organization Act, 15 U.S.C. §…
On September 7, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a settlement with a Georgia debt collection company and its principals over alleged illegal collection practices. In October 2017, the FTC filed an action against the defendants alleging violations of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTC Act), 15 U.S.C. §§ 45(a), 53(b),…
On July 13, 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced a settlement with a debt collection company and its CEO for allegedly illegal debt-collection acts and practices. According to the CFPB, the company collected on consumer debts using various debt collection companies that allegedly engaged in unfair and deceptive practices in violation of…
On July 13, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it settled allegations that a Kansas-based debt collector and its CEO engaged in unfair and deceptive acts and practices in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The CFPB alleged that,…
On June 13, 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced its settlement with a South Carolina corporation and its subsidiaries over allegations that the companies engaged in improper debt collection and credit furnishing practices. According to the consent order, the CFPB found that the companies made improper in-person and…
On June 14, 2018, the California Attorney General announced that it had entered into a settlement with a company holding nearly 35,000 private student loans across California. In the complaint, which was filed on June 13, 2018, the Attorney General alleged that the company had engaged in unlawful debt collection…
At the end of May 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released an analysis of consumer debt collection complaints highlighting several issues that often arise in those complaints. In light of Acting Director Mulvaney’s comment in his January 2018 staff memo that debt collection complaints made up the majority…
On June 4, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a settlement with a North Carolina debt collection company and its principals over alleged illegal collection practices. In August 2017, the FTC filed an action against the defendants alleging violations of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15…
On May 15, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued an important decision regarding the statute of limitations under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 U.S.C. § 1692, et seq. In Rotkiske v. Klemm, No. 16-1668 (3d Cir. May 15, 2018), on appeal…