- Posts by Michael W. Smith
CounselMichael is a skilled trial attorney as well as an experienced appellate attorney, briefing and arguing cases involving issues such as the admissibility of promissory notes, alternative methods to prove standing to foreclose, and ...
In the latest development in Hunstein v. Preferred Collection and Management Services, Inc., Case No. 19-14434, the full Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated the previous panel’s opinion and will rehear the case en banc at a later date. In the original Hunstein opinion, the court reversed the dismissal of an action brought under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) that alleged a debt collector had violated the third-party disclosure provisions of the FDCPA by using a third-party mail vendor. The decision sent shockwaves through the debt collection ...
In a decision that could throw the debt-collection industry into turmoil, on April 21, 2021, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals released its opinion in the case Hunstein v. Preferred Collection & Mgmt. Servs., Inc., No. 19-14434, 2021 WL 1556069 (11th Cir. Apr. 21, 2021). The crux of the opinion is the court’s holding that a debt collector faces potential liability under the FDCPA for transmitting a consumer’s personal information to any third-party not explicitly designated by the statute. The potential implications of this decision are far-reaching.
The underlying facts ...
In Carol Tims v. LGE Community Credit Union, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a credit union’s account agreement with one of its customers was ambiguous about which account balance calculation the bank would use in assessing overdraft fees on the customer’s account, which exposed the credit union to potential liability under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act.
The matter came to the Court on appeal after the trial judge dismissed the consumer’s complaint. The Court first addressed the history of overdraft fees, highlighting the rise of Electronic Fund Transfer ...