Bourne v. Mapother & Mapother, P.S.C.

998 F. Supp. 2d 495, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17759, 2014 WL 555130
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. West Virginia
DecidedFebruary 12, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. 1:12-04086
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 998 F. Supp. 2d 495 (Bourne v. Mapother & Mapother, P.S.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. West Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bourne v. Mapother & Mapother, P.S.C., 998 F. Supp. 2d 495, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17759, 2014 WL 555130 (S.D.W. Va. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

DAVID A. FABER, Senior District Judge.

Pending before the court is defendants’ motion for summary judgment (Doc. No. 27). For the reasons that follow, the motion is granted in its entirety.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Defendant Mapother & Mapother, P.S.C. (“Mapother”) is a law firm based in Louisville, Kentucky that engages in debt collection. Complaint at ¶ 2. Defendant Steven Mulrooney is a Mapother attorney. Id. at ¶ 3. Plaintiff, Richard Bourne, had two delinquent accounts with the Norfolk & Western Poca Division Federal Credit Union which were referred to Mapother for collection services. Complaint at ¶¶ 4-7. Plaintiff, contesting these debts on the basis that they were fraudulently created by employees of the credit union, notified Ma-pother on October 14, 2011 that he was represented by an attorney. Id. at ¶ 8; Doc. No. 28-1 at 9. Plaintiff alleges that despite this notice of representation, defendant made numerous telephone calls to plaintiffs residence between January 2012 and August 2012 in an attempt to collect the aforementioned debts.

Mapother does not deny making phone calls to the phone number 304-589-6655, plaintiffs home phone number. In fact, defendants provide evidence of twenty-seven calls made between January and August of 2012. See Doc. No. 28-3 at 12. Defendants assert that they were attempting to contact Maxine Bourne, plaintiffs aunt, with regards to the collection of a judgment entered against her for the balance due on her credit card account. The mix-up apparently arose when TRAK America, an agency that refers delinquent accounts to law firms, sent information concerning Maxine Bourne’s delinquent credit card account to Mapother. The primary telephone number given by TRAK America for Maxine Bourne was 304-589-6655, plaintiffs home telephone number. The unrefuted evidence supports defendants’ contentions concerning who Ma-pother was trying to reach at the called number. See Doc. No. 28-2, depo. of Jeffrey Kelly; Doc. No. 28-3, affidavit of Kevin Gillinghham.

All of the phone calls were made by Mapother’s auto dialer, an automated software system that places calls to debtors. Doc. No. 28-2 at 3. Plaintiff only answered one of the phone calls made by Mapother’s auto dialer because he recognized Mapother’s number on the caller identification based on his previous dealings with Ma-pother concerning the debts he claims were fraudulently created. Doc. No. 28-5 at 2, depo. of plaintiff. Plaintiff never spoke to a Mapother representative, and he never identified himself as Richard Bourne. Id. Additionally, Mapother did not leave any messages on plaintiffs answering machine. Id.

On June 28, 2013, plaintiff filed a complaint against defendants in the Mercer County Circuit Court of West Virginia. Plaintiff alleged violations of the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act [500]*500(“WVCCPA”), negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and invasion of privacy. On August 6, 2013, defendants removed the case to this court on the basis of diversity jurisdiction. Plaintiff did not contest removal, and the court has made an independent determination that the court has jurisdiction. The instant motion for summary judgment was filed by defendants on September 24, 2013, seeking summary judgment on all counts.

II. Summary Judgment Standard

In evaluating summary judgment motions, Rule 56(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that “[t]he court shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Material facts are those necessary to establish the elements of a party’s cause of action. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A genuine issue of material fact exists if, in viewing the record and all reasonable inferences drawn therefrom in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, a reasonable juror could return a verdict for the non-movant. Id.

The moving party has the burden of establishing that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party’s case. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Even if there is no dispute as to the evidentiary facts, summary judgment is not appropriate where the ultimate factual conclusions to be drawn are in dispute. Overstreet v. Kentucky Cent. Life Ins. Co., 950 F.2d 931, 937 (4th Cir.1991). If the moving party meets its burden, then the non-movant must set forth specific facts that would be admissible in evidence that demonstrate the existence of a genuine issue of fact for trial. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548.

III. Analysis

A. Count I — WVCCPA Claims

Count I of plaintiffs complaint alleges that defendants’ actions violated various provisions of the WVCCPA. See Complaint at ¶¶ 10-12. More specifically, plaintiff alleges violations of sections 46A-2-125, 46A-2-125(d), and 46A-2-128(e) of the West Virginia Code. “The WVCCPA is a ‘comprehensive consumer protection’ law that incorporates elements of the Uniform Consumer Credit Code, the National Consumer Act, and older West Virginia statutes.” Countryman v. NCO Financial System, Inc., Civil Action No. 5:09-cv-0288, 2009 WL 1506720 at *2 (S.D.W.Va. May 27, 2009) (Johnston, J.)(quoting Casillas v. Tuscarora Land Co., 186 W.Va. 391, 412 S.E.2d 792, 794 (1991)). The Act provides a statutorily created cause of action against debt collectors and provides that aggrieved debtors may recover actual damages, attorney’s fees, and a statutory penalty of “not less than one hundred dollars and not more than one thousand dollars.” W. Va.Code. § 46A-5-101(1). This $1,000 maximum penalty was set in 1974 and indexed to the consumer price index. Id. § 46A-5-106. Today, therefore, the maximum penalty is approximately $4,652. A separate penalty may be imposed for each WVCCPA violation.1 See Sturm v. Providian Nat’l Bank, 242 B.R. 599, 603 (S.D.W.Va.1999) (Haden, C.J.).

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals has consistently stated that the WVCCPA is to be given a broad and liberal construction:

[501]*501The purpose of the [WVCCPA] is to protect consumers from unfair, illegal, and deceptive acts or practices by providing an avenue of relief for consumers who would otherwise have difficulty proving their case under a more traditional cause of action. As suggested by the court in State v. Custom Pools, 150 Vt. 533, 536, 556 A.2d 72

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
998 F. Supp. 2d 495, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17759, 2014 WL 555130, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bourne-v-mapother-mapother-psc-wvsd-2014.