Consumer Finance

In Olney v. Progressive Cas. Ins. Co.,  2014 WL 294498 (S.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Curiel rejected a TCPA defendant's arguments against the Soppett "called party" analysis. Plaintiff, a resident of California, sues on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated. Defendant is an Ohio corporation that provides insurance policies with its principal place of business in Ohio.  Plaintiff alleges that, beginning in July 2013,… Read More

In Riding v. Cach LLC, 2014 WL 198764 (C.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Lew found an FDCPA claim premised on collection of a state court lawsuit only partially barred by the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. The Court notes that Plaintiff provides different grounds as the basis for his FDCPA claims. Specifically, Plaintiff's FDCPA §§ 1692d, 1692e, and 1692f claims are based on (1) Defendants' pursuit of… Read More

In Michaels v. Micamp Merchant Services, 2014 WL 235474 (M.D.Fla. 2014), Judge Dalton affirmed the Magistrate Judge's recommendation that a Florida resident with a Florida area-code cellular telephone number who received calls on that number while temporarily in Pennsylvania from an Arizona defendant could not bring the Action in a Florida District Court. Plaintiff initiated this action on December 16, 2013, alleging… Read More

In Wills v. Optimum Outcomes, Inc., 2014 WL 220707 (D.Utah 2014), Judge Warner found that a TCPA Plaintiff failed to state a claim against a medical debt collector because the Plaintiff had given his cellular telephone number in a letter to the Creditor. At some point in the past, Plaintiffs received services from InterMountain Healthcare, which in turn hired Defendant to collect… Read More

Today, we made our 1,000th post, demonstrating the weblog's longevity and continuity, as well as the Firm's commitment to keeping the consumer finance industry properly informed of legal developments in disclosure laws, the FDCPA, the FCRA, and the TCPA.  What started as an electronic form-file has developed into an extensive, specialized research tool for industry.  Thank you for constantly taking… Read More

In Couser v. Pre-paid Legal Services, Inc., 2014 WL 197717 (S.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Burns found that a TCPA Class Action Plaintiff might state a claim against an alleged agent hired by the Defendant to promote its business, but suggested that the case might be proper for a stay under the Primary Jurisdiction doctrine. This is a Telephone Communications Protection Act… Read More

In Munoz v. Express Auto Sales,--- Cal.Rptr.3d ----, 2014 WL 131195 (Cal.Super.A.D. 2014), , the Los Angeles County Appellate Division set forth how an automobile dealer can cure Rees-Levering violations under Civil Code 2984. Pursuant to a second amended complaint filed November 1, 2012, plaintiffs alleged that defendant violated the ASFA by failing to properly itemize the sources of the… Read More

In Crehin v. ARS Nat. Services, 2014 WL 104073 (C.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Wilson found that a collection agency had a permissible to pull an alleged debtor’s credit report, notwithstanding the debtor’s dispute as to whether or not he was not a debtor. However, one of the permissible purposes for obtaining an individual's credit report is if the entity requesting the… Read More

In Himes v. Client Services Inc., --- F.Supp.2d ----, 2014 WL 24258 (D.N.H. 2014), Judge Barbadoro rejected the contention that the FDCPA requires production of sworn account ledgers during the validation process. Finally, Himes alleges under § 1692g(b) that Schiff's method of validation is insufficient because the defendants never produced a sworn accounting ledger, affidavit, or signed loan agreement to prove… Read More

In Farber v. JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., 2014 WL 68380 (S.D.Cal. 2013), Judge Curiel found that mortgage servicers were subject to the Rosenthal Act, but found that only certain conduct might be actionable.  The facts were as follows: In September 2010, Farber sold the Property by way of a “short sale” with Defendant receiving approximately $1,139,345.00. (Id. ¶ 21.) In… Read More

In In re: Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC, Telephone Consumer Protection Act Litigation, here, Judge Houston held that the Plaintiff had adequately pleaded vicarious liability under the TCPA, and refused, at the pleadings stage, to strike Plaintiff’s prayer to recovery attorneys’ fees under the TCPA to the extent permitted by Code of Civil Procedure § 1021.5. In opposition, plaintiffs contend their… Read More

In Bates v. Dollar Loan Center, LLC, 2014 WL 60472 (D.Nev. 2014), Judge Dawson denied a TCPA defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment on the issue of whether an ATDS was used.  The facts were as follows: This is a class action complaint. Defendants are “all involved in the business of high-interest, short-term loans (i.e. ‘payday loans').” (# 1; 2:24–25). Fur-ther,… Read More

In Mendoza v. Ad Astra Recovery Services Inc., 2014 WL 47777 (C.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Snyder ordered a TCPA class action to arbitration.  The facts were as follows: On September 9, 2013, plaintiff Miguel Mendoza filed this putative class action against defendant Ad Astra Recovery Services, Inc. (“Ad Astra”) on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated. Plaintiff asserts claims… Read More

In Daniels v. Comunity Lending, Inc., 2014 WL 51275 (S.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Hayes found Plaintiff’s FDCPA and TCPA claims not adequately pleaded. The FDCPA applies to debt collectors, but not to creditors. See Mansour v. Cal–Western Reconveyance Corp., 618 F.Supp.2d 1178, 1182 (D.Ariz.2009). Under the FDCPA, a “debt collector” is “any person who uses any instrumentality of inter-state commerce or… Read More

The FTC announced today that nine auto dealers agreed to settle deceptive advertising charges, and the agency is taking action against a 10th dealer, in a nationwide sweep focusing on the sale, financing, and leasing of motor vehicles.  As to California dealers, the FTC announced: Casino Auto Sales of La Puente, Calif., and Rainbow Auto Sales, of South Gate, Calif., allegedly… Read More

In Legg v. Voice Media Group, Inc., --- F.Supp.2d ----, 2014 WL 29594 (S.D.Fla. 2014), Judge Cohn found that a TCPA Plaintiff adequately pleaded use of an autodialer as well as that the Plaintiff could and did revoke consent to receive text messages.  This putative class action arose from the allegedly improper transmission of text messages by Defendant Voice Media… Read More

In Bradley v. Franklin Collection Service, Inc.--- F.3d ----, 2014 WL 23738 (11th Cir. 2014), the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit found that charging a percentage-based collection fee violates the FDCPA unless the instrument creating the obligation allowed it: Section 1692f prohibits unfair or unconscionable means of collection. Subsection (1) of this section specifically prohibits “collection of any amount… Read More

In Murphy v. DCI Biologicals Orlando, LLC, 2013 WL 6865772 (M.D.Fla. 2013), Judge Honeywell found that a blood bank did not violate the TCPA by sending text messages to a prior blood donor who had provided his cellular telephone number in connection with giving blood.  Murphy was paid for donating his blood through a blood plasma center in Orlando, DCI… Read More

In Markovic v. Appriss, Inc., 2013 WL 6887972 (S.D.Ind. 2013), Judge Magnuss-Stinson found that a Plaintiff properly pleaded a TCPA case by alleging that calls used up minutes on his plan. Appriss contends that Mr. Markovic's Complaint must be dismissed because he has failed to allege that he was specifically charged for the allegedly unlawful call he received from Appriss.… Read More

In Betancourt v. Green Tree Servicing, LLC, 2013 WL 6644560 (M.D.Fla. 2013), Judge Moody ordered a TCPA claim to arbitration. This case involves similar claims to those in Ownings v. T–Mobile USA, Inc., 3:12–CV–1385–J–12, 2013 WL 4401824 (M.D.Fla.2013), where the court held that Plaintiff's TCPA and FCCPA claims were significantly related to a cellular contract service agreement. In that case,… Read More