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Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Collector Liability

By: Derek Hawkins//August 1, 2017//

Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Collector Liability

By: Derek Hawkins//August 1, 2017//

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7th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Ronald Oliva v. Blatt, Hasenmiller, Leibsker & Moore LLC

Case No.: 15-2516

Officials: WOOD, Chief Judge, and BAUER, POSNER, FLAUM, EASTERBROOK, MANION, KANNE, ROVNER, WILLIAMS, SYKES, and HAMILTON, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Collector Liability

The issue in this appeal is whether a collector of consumer debts that violated the venue provision of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1692i(a)(2) (“the FDCPA” or “the Act”), can avoid liability on the ground that it was relying on Newsom as controlling circuit precedent interpreting the statute when it committed the violation. The answer is no.

We decided this question in Suesz when we overruled the circuit precedent in question and declined the defendant debt collector’s request to make that ruling effective only prospectively. 757 F.3d at 649–50. That result is also required by the Supreme Court’s decision in Jerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich LPA, 559 U.S. 573, 576 (2010), which held that the FDCPA’s statutory safe harbor for bona fide mistakes does not apply to mistakes of law. Under Suesz and Jerman, the defendant cannot avoid liability for a violation based on its reliance on circuit precedent or any other bona fide mistake of law. We vacate the judgment of the district court and remand for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Vacated and Remanded

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.

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