Bass v. I.C. Sys., Inc.

316 F. Supp. 3d 1047
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Illinois
DecidedJuly 11, 2018
DocketCase No. 17 C 3594
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 316 F. Supp. 3d 1047 (Bass v. I.C. Sys., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bass v. I.C. Sys., Inc., 316 F. Supp. 3d 1047 (illinoised 2018).

Opinion

MATTHEW F. KENNELLY, District Judge:

*1049Henry Bass contends that a debt collector, I.C. System, Inc. (ICS), attempted to collect $79.35 in "collection agency fees" on top of the outstanding debt he owed, but the contract that gave rise to Bass's debt did not actually authorize the collection fee. He alleges that ICS, in doing so, violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Both parties have moved for summary judgment.

Background

Bass, an Illinois resident, was a customer of T-Mobile, a cellular phone service provider. In his contract with T-Mobile, Bass agreed to pay "collection agency fees." D.E. 1, Pl.'s Ex. D ¶ 14 (T-Mobile Terms & Conditions). Though the contract did not specify the amount of the fees, it stated that "collection agency fees are liquidated damages intended to be a reasonable advance estimate of our costs resulting from late payments and nonpayments by our customers; these costs are not readily ascertainable and are difficult to predict or calculate at the time these fees are set." Id. Bass was delinquent on his account, so T-Mobile referred a balance of $856.89 and a fee of $79.35 to ICS. ICS then notified Bass it was attempting to collect both amounts. Bass did not pay ICS.

Bass filed the present lawsuit in May 2017. ICS moved to dismiss Bass's suit, a motion the Court denied. Both parties have moved for summary judgment.

Discussion

Bass alleges that the contract that he had with T-Mobile did not authorize the $79.35 fee that T-Mobile assessed and that even if it did, the contractual term imposing the fee is unenforceable because, as he contends, it is a punitive liquidated damages clause. For these reasons, Bass contends, ICS was not authorized to attempt to collect the fee. He contends that by attempting to collect the fee, ICS violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

First, Bass contends ICS violated FDCPA by making a "false, deceptive, or misleading representation." 15 U.S.C. § 1692e. The statute provides numerous categories of potential misrepresentations. Bass argues that ICS's conduct falls into two of these categories: "the false representation of the character, amount, or legal status of any debt," id. § 1692e(2)(A), and "the threat to take any action that cannot legally be taken." Id. § 1692e(5). Bass also argues that ICS violated 15 U.S.C. § 1692f, which prohibits a debt collector from using "unfair or unconscionable means" to collect a debt, including "the collection of any amount...unless such amount is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt[.]" Id. § 1692f(1).

The resolution of Bass's claims turns on the contract imposing the fee. If the T-Mobile contract does not actually authorize the fee or is otherwise unenforceable, then ICS attempted to collect a debt that wasn't authorized (in violation of section 1692f ) and falsely represented the status of the debt (in violation of section 1692e ). If the contract does authorize the fee and is otherwise enforceable, then ICS acted consistently with the FDCPA.

*1050On a motion for summary judgment on a claim on which the moving party bears the burden of proof, the movant "must lay out the elements of the claim, cite the facts which it believes satisfies these elements, and demonstrate why the record is so one-sided as to rule out the prospect of a finding in favor of the non-movant on the claim." Hotel 71 Mezz Lender LLC v. Nat'l Ret. Fund , 778 F.3d 593, 601 (7th Cir. 2015). When the parties have cross-moved for summary judgment, as here, the Court reviews one party's motion, taking all facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, then does so for the other party's motion, taking the facts in favor of the opposite party. R.J. Corman Derailment Servs., LLC v. Int'l Union of Operating Eng'rs, Local Union 150, AFL-CIO , 335 F.3d 643, 648 (7th Cir. 2003).

The Court organizes its discussion of the parties' briefing by issue: whether Bass has standing; whether the FDCPA may apply to ICS; whether either party is entitled to summary judgment on the merits of Bass's claims; and whether ICS is entitled to summary judgment on its affirmative defense.1

I. Standing

Under Article III, a plaintiff may sue in federal court only if "(1) [the plaintiff] suffered an injury in fact, (2) that is fairly traceable to the challenged conduct of the defendant, and (3) that is likely to be redressed by a favorable judicial decision." Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins , --- U.S. ----, 136 S.Ct. 1540, 1547, 194 L.Ed.2d 635 (2016). ICS contends that Bass failed to establish the first element of standing: because he never made a payment in reliance on ICS's communications, he did not suffer an injury.

ICS raised this argument in its reply brief, so Bass lacked an opportunity to respond. But the Court finds that Bass has standing to bring his FDCPA claims, because the FDCPA protects consumers from harms beyond erroneous payments to debt collectors. Congress is "well positioned to identify intangible harms that meet minimum Article III requirements[.]" Id. at 1549. In the FDCPA, Congress acted to "protect consumers against debt collection abuses," 15 U.S.C. § 1692(e), by "prohibit[ing] certain abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt collection practices." Marx v. Gen. Revenue Corp. , 568 U.S. 371, 374 n.1, 133 S.Ct. 1166

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Bluebook (online)
316 F. Supp. 3d 1047, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bass-v-ic-sys-inc-illinoised-2018.