In Unangst v. Evans Law Associates, P.C., — F.Supp.2d —-, 2011 WL 2855318 (N.D.N.Y., 2011), Judge Sharpe declined to exercise jurisdiction over the debt collection counter-claim in a pending FDCPA action, explaining:
While not directly ruling on the issue, the court notes Unangst’s argument and finds persuasive the line of cases which have held that even if supplemental jurisdiction were found, there are strong policy reasons that would support declining the exercise of supplemental jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(4). See Leatherwood, 115 F.R.D. at 50; Sparrow v. Mazda Am. Credit, 385 F.Supp.2d 1063, 1071 (E.D.Cal.2005); Fentner, 2008 WL 4147346, at *3. Specifically, opening the door for defendants to counterclaim against FDCPA plaintiffs for the underlying debt could discourage plaintiffs from bringing their FDCPA claims in the first place, which would be contrary to the stated purposes of the FDCPA.