The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of consumers’ claims that a debt collector's separate reporting of debts accrued for medical services, rather than aggregated together, violated the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a defendant that relies on potential punitive damages to satisfy the amount in controversy for removal under the federal Class Action Fairness Act meets that requirement if it shows that the proffered punitive/compensatory damages ratio is reasonably possible.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently affirmed a lower court’s denial of a debt collector’s motion to compel arbitration, holding that the defendant had failed to provide “clear and definite” evidence of the parties’ intent that it benefit from the arbitration provision at issue.
The Illinois Appellate Court, First District, recently held that a homeowner was barred from challenging a foreclosure where the deed to the property had vested to a third party.
The Court of Appeals of California, First District, recently reversed entry of judgment on the pleadings in favor of a mortgage loan servicer and the named trustee under the deed of trust against claims raised by a borrower alleging violations of California’s Homeowners’ Bill of Rights.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of allegations that a mortgage lender colluded with an insurance company and insurance agent to inflate the rate of the borrowers’ force-placed hazard insurance policies in violation of various consumer protection statutes, RICO, and the common law.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently decided that a fix was needed to the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act. But its decision in Barr v. American Assn. of Political Consultants, Inc. provides no TCPA relief for legitimate businesses that use technology to communicate with their customers.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that, under the federal Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) statute of limitations provisions, a quiet title action brought by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae is a "contract" claim with a six-year statute of limitations, and not a "tort" claim subject to a three-year statute of limitations.
The Court of Appeals of California, First District, recently held that the Federal Trade Commission's "Holder Rule" limitation on recovery applies to attorney fees, such that a plaintiff’s total recovery on a Holder Rule claim — including attorney fees — cannot exceed the amount paid by the plaintiff under the contract.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of a borrower’s complaint under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act arising from a judicial foreclosure proceeding in Oregon, holding that the defendants were not attempting to collect a debt within the meaning of the FDCPA when only foreclosure was sought and not a deficiency judgment.
The Appellate Court of Illinois, Second District, recently held that jurisdictional defects in service of process that did not affirmatively appear on the face of the foreclosure court record protected the rights of an innocent third-party foreclosure against the claims of the borrower.
Joining similar rulings by the Eighth and Tenth Circuits, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently held that each violation of the FDCPA gives rise to a separate claim governed by its own statute of limitations period.