Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: Recent Federal and State Debt Collection Developments
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
A New York federal district court has denied a motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed in January 2022 by the CFPB against three companies that purchase portfolios of defaulted debts (Corporate Defendants) and three individuals...more
On January 10, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a complaint in federal district court against three affiliated debt-buying businesses and the individuals who founded and operated them for "knowingly...more
On November 17, a majority of the active judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an order sua sponte to rehear Hunstein v. Preferred Collection and Management Services, Inc., en banc. The order...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in McAdory v M.N.S. Associates, LLC and DNF Associates, LLC, in a 2-1 decision, that companies that engage third parties to collect consumer debts they acquired when the...more
The CFPB has issued a new report on tradelines reported by third-party debt collectors as reflected on credit reports compiled by nationwide consumer reporting agencies. The third-party collector tradelines consist of those...more
On June 14, 2019, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed HB 996, which amends Chapter 392 of the Texas Finance Code dealing with debt collection. The amendments are effective September 1, 2019. ...more
On May 7, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (the Proposed Rulemaking) to implement portions of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)....more
Last Friday, the CFPB announced that it had filed yet another meaningful attorney involvement lawsuit against a debt collection law firm – Forster & Garbus, P.C. It’s notable enough that the Bureau continues to pursue these...more
Companies whose primary business purpose is to collect debts—whether or not they actually participate in the debt collection activities—suffered a setback recently. Despite a debt purchaser’s not having any direct contact...more
“Debt buyers”—entities that purchase debt from original creditors or other downstream assignees—often view themselves as being different from “debt collectors”—entities that act to collect debts from obligors. ...more
Barbato v. Greystone Alliance, LLC, No. 18-1042 (3d Cir. Feb. 22, 2019), Krause, J. – The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently held that an entity, which acquired debt for the principal purpose of...more
Persons or entities that engage third parties to collect consumer debts they acquired when the debts were in default, known as "passive debt buyers," are "debt collectors" subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act...more
Recent Third Circuit Decision holds consumer debt buyer subject to the FDCPA - In Barbato v. Greystone Alliance, LLC, 2019 WL 847920 (3d Cir. Feb. 22, 2019), the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals considered whether...more
Entities that acquire debt for the “purpose of . . . collection” but outsource the actual collection qualify as “debt collectors” under the FDCPA’s “principal purpose” definition....more
In Loja v. Main Street Acquisition Corporation, the plaintiff filed a lawsuit in federal district court for alleged FDCPA violations against Main Street Acquisition Corporation and the law firm it retained to file a state...more
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently held in Dorrian v. LVNV Funding, LLC, that “passive debt buyers” are not “debt collectors” required to be licensed under the Massachusetts Fair Debt Collection Practices Act...more
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court narrowly interpreted “debt collector” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to exclude debt purchasers engaging in collection efforts for their own accounts....more
Supreme Court: Bank That Buys Debt for Its Own Account Is Not Debt Collector - The U.S. Supreme Court recently held that a bank that collects on debts it has bought and holds “for its own account” is not a debt collector...more
The United States Supreme Court unanimously held that an entity’s efforts to recover payment of a debt purchased from a third party for its own account is not subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (the “Act”). ...more
Debt buyers generally are considered “debt collectors” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”). However, on June 12, 2017, the Supreme Court decided Henson v. Santander Consumer USA Inc., which resolved an...more
On June 12, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States (the “Court”) issued a decision clarifying who qualifies as a “debt collector” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1692, et seq. In the...more
The U.S. Supreme Court, in its June 12, 2017, decision, Henson v. Santander Consumer USA, Inc., resolves and clarifies key questions with respect to the applicability of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA") in a...more
In Justice Gorsuch’s first written opinion, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld a ruling by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals that declined to expand the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act’s (“FDCPA”) definition of “debt...more
On behalf of a unanimous Supreme Court, Justice Neil Gorsuch delivered his first opinion on June 12 to determine whether debt purchasers fall within the statutory language under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)...more