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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) recently issued advisory guidance on the enforcement of time-barred mortgage loans.  A time-barred mortgage loan is one where the statute of limitations has expired.  The statute of limitations for mortgage loans are typically created by state law, and vary by jurisdiction.  In some cases, they create an affirmative defense for the consumer that prohibits a debt collector from suing to collect the debt. … Continue Reading

On March 23, 2023, the CFPB filed a complaint and proposed judgment against Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC (“PRA”), one of the largest debt collectors in the United States.  If entered by the court, the proposed judgment would require PRA to pay $12.18 million to allegedly harmed consumers and $12 million to the CFPB as a civil penalty.… Continue Reading

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recently joined the Eleventh Circuit (and a growing majority of courts) in rejecting the “Hunstein theory” of liability under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).  In Shields v. Professional Bureau of Collections of Maryland, Inc., the Tenth Circuit affirmed a lower court’s dismissal of FDCPA claims for lack of standing, confirming that a debt collector’s use of an outside mail vendor does not constitute an actionable, concrete injury.… Continue Reading

It’s official!  We have our first-ever federal court opinion evaluating the requirements of Regulation F!  Okay, maybe “evaluating” isn’t the right word.  “Reading Regulation F out loud” is more like it.

  • The Question: Does Regulation F require debt collectors to use the CFPB’s model validation notice (“MVN”) to comply with the FDCPA?
… Continue Reading

A new decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in two consolidated cases analyzes the requirements for Article III standing in a FDCPA case.  It also addresses what a debt collector must show to establish that it maintained procedures reasonably adapted to avoid an error as required by the FDCPA’s bona fide error defense. … Continue Reading

The CFPB filed a complaint earlier this week in a New York federal district court against three companies that purchase defaulted debts (Corporate Defendants) and three individuals who are owners and/or officers of the Corporate Defendants (Individual Defendants).  (Click here to read the statement from United Holding Group, LLC, one of the Corporate Defendants, about the lawsuit.)… Continue Reading

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has published a notice on its website concerning delays that debt collectors and buyers seeking to comply with the new licensing requirement in the state’s Debt Collection Licensing Act are currently experiencing.

The new law, passed in September 2020, requires debt collectors and buyers to apply for a DFPI license by December 31, 2021. … Continue Reading

Last week, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) brought its first enforcement action against a debt collector and debt buyer for violating the state’s Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL).  The DFPI’s Desist and Refrain Order and Order Assessing Penalties (totaling $375,000) charges F & F Management Inc. (F&F) with violating the CCFPL by (1) engaging in unfair acts and practices, and (2) and violating the CA Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (Rosenthal), the CA Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act (CCRAA), and the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). … Continue Reading

A Utah federal district court recently ruled in two cases that the Petition Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides immunity to debt collectors from FDCPA claims.  The two cases are Holmes v. Crown Asset Management, LLC and Reyes v. N.A.R. Inc. and Olson Associates, P.C.  Both decisions were issued by Judge Howard C.… Continue Reading

Last month, in a very troubling decision of first impression, a unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reversed the lower court’s dismissal of the plaintiff’s FDCPA claim, instead ruling that the plaintiff stated a claim where the plaintiff alleged that a debt collector’s transmittal of the plaintiff’s personal information to the vendor it used to generate and send collection letters “constituted a communication ‘in connection with the collection of any debt’ within the meaning of [FDCPA Section 1692c(b)].” … Continue Reading