Synopsis
THIS CASEBOOK contains a selection of U. S. Court of Appeals decisions that analyze, interpret and apply provisions of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The selection of decisions spans from 2014 to the date of publication. The FDCPA regulates the conduct of "debt collectors," defined to include "any person who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another." Id. § 1692a(6). Among other things, the FDCPA prohibits debt collectors from using "any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt," and from using "unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any debt." Id. §§ 1692e-1692f. The statute provides a non-exhaustive list of conduct that is deceptive or unfair (e.g., falsely implying that the debt collector is affiliated with the United States, id. § 1692e(1)). Debt collectors who violate the FDCPA are liable for actual damages, statutory damages of up to $1,000, and attorney's fees and costs. See id. § 1692k(a). In re Dubois, 834 F. 3d 522 (4th Cir. 2016). The definition of debt collector, which is contained in § 1692a(6), is comprised of two parts. The first part defines the classes of persons that are included within the term "debt collector," while the second part defines those classes of persons that are excluded from the definition of debt collector. The first part, defining those who are included, provides in relevant part: The term "debt collector" means any person [1] who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or [2] who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another. Notwithstanding the exclusion provided by clause (F) of the last sentence of this paragraph, the term includes any creditor [3] who, in the process of collecting his own debts, uses any name other than his own which would indicate that a third person is collecting or attempting to collect such debts. 15 U.S.C. § 1692a(6) (emphasis added). Stated more simply, this provision defines a debt collector as (1) a person whose principal purpose is to collect debts; (2) a person who regularly collects debts owed to another: or (3) a person who collects its own debts, using a name other than its own as if it were a debt collector. Henson v. Santander Consumer USA, Inc., 817 F. 3d 131 (4th Cir. 2016). The second part of § 1692a(6) defines the classes of persons that are excluded from the definition of debt collector, so that a person who meets one of the definitions of debt collector contained in the first part of § 1692a(6) will not qualify as such if it falls within one of the exclusions.
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