Compliance

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of a defendant in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case on a legal technicality, sending the case back to the District Court for further proceedings. The defendant had withdrawn one of its arguments …

A Magistrate Judge in a District Court in Alabama has granted a defendant’s motion to dismiss after it was sued for allegedly violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by sending a second collection letter during the validation period that offered a settlement and informed the plaintiff that the account …

The Illinois Senate yesterday joined the state’s House of Representatives in unanimously passing a bill that decreases the post-judgment interest rate that can be charged on unpaid debts and lowers the timeframe that judgment holders have to collect. The Consumer Fairness Act of 2019 now heads to Gov. J.B. Pritzker …

A bill has been introduced in the Senate that would amend both the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to enhance consumer protections related to medical debt. Senate Bill 1581 was introduced yesterday by Sen. Jeff Merkley [D-Ore.] and is being co-sponsored by Sen. Richard …

In another one of those “if you get a letter from a debt collector saying you need to contact them, please do so” cases, a District Court judge in Indiana has dismissed a case against a collector that was accused of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act because it …

A District Court judge in New Jersey has granted a defendant’s motion for summary judgment after it was sued for allegedly violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by including an invitation for the plaintiff to contact the defendant via telephone in an initial collection letter, creating confusion over the …

The Oregon House of Representatives yesterday passed a bill that would alter the amount of interest that a healthcare facility or debt collector can charge on unpaid medical debt, ensure that collectors are following state collection guidelines when collecting on medical debt, and open up charity care and financial assistance …

Foster & Garbus released the following statement today, after being sued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for allegedly violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act: Forster & Garbus, LLP (F&G) denies the allegations set forth in the CFPB’s complaint. F&G fully cooperated with the CFPB during the course of …

A consumer advocacy is speaking out and expressing concerns about call blocking services that phone carriers may soon have the power to start offering without requiring consumers to opt in to receive them. In this respect, the credit and collection industry may have found a potential ally in worrying that …

When given multiple “meaningful” offers to settle a lawsuit, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has sent up a warning flare to all plaintiffs and their attorneys that they should accept it, lest they lose the big payday they were hoping for. A copy of the ruling in the case …