Jones v. Advanced Bureau of Collections LLP

317 F.R.D. 284, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114533, 2016 WL 4499456
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Georgia
DecidedAugust 26, 2016
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 5:15-CV-16(MTT)
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 317 F.R.D. 284 (Jones v. Advanced Bureau of Collections LLP) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jones v. Advanced Bureau of Collections LLP, 317 F.R.D. 284, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114533, 2016 WL 4499456 (M.D. Ga. 2016).

Opinion

ORDER

MARC T. TREADWELL, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Plaintiff Randolph Jones, Jr. filed this putative class action on behalf of himself and other similarly situated class members. Jones has moved to certify the class. (Doc. 52). The motion is GRANTED.

I. BACKGROUND

Jones seeks certification under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(b)(3) of his Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) claim against Defendants Advanced Bureau of Collections LLP (“Advanced Bureau”), Kenneth M. French, Evelyn L. Trimble, David R. Aid-rich, Lee Ann Barrett, Mia H. Ferruzo-O’Brien, and Tammy Patat. (Docs. 52; 62-1 at 2).

Advanced Bureau, a debt collector acting on behalf of Jones’s medical provider, mailed Jones a collection letter — the “A Notice”— which Jones received on February 11, 2014. (Docs. 1 ¶¶ 38, 40-41; 1-1 at 2; 53-3 at 42:9-43:5). This letter stated:

Unless you notify this office within 30 days after receiving this notice that you dispute the validity of this debt or any portion thereof, this office will assume this debt is valid. If you notify this office within 30 days from receiving this notice, this office will obtain verification of the debt or obtain [288]*288a copy of a judgement and mail you a copy of such judgement or verification. If you request this office within 30 days after receiving this notice, this office will provide you with the name and address of the original creditor if different from the current creditor.

(Id.). Jones alleges that “French, Trimble, Aldrich, Barnett, Ferruzo-O’Brien, and Patat personally designed, implemented, directed, and supervised [Advanced Bureau’s] collection practices and policies including the text of and the procedure for use of the Feb. 11th Letter.” (Doe. 1 ¶ 51).

Jones contends that the A Notice violated the FDCPA because it “failed to inform [him] that in order to obtain verification of the alleged debt and/or the identity of the original creditor[,] the request must be ‘in writing”’ in violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1692e(10) and § 1692g(a)(4)-(5). (Docs. 1 ¶ 50; 52-1 at 2). The Defendants disclosed during discovery the names and addresses of 14,989 debtors who received the A Notice between January 23, 2014 and January 22, 2015 — the twelve month period before this lawsuit was filed. (Doe. 54-1 ¶ 5). After Jones’s counsel reviewed the list for duplicates and nonpersons, the final list consisted of over 11,500 names. (Docs. 51-1-51-11; 54-1 ¶ 9). Jones now proposes the following class definition in his motion to certify the class:

All persons, within twelve months prior to the date of filing of this action until the date of this Court’s Order certifying this class, resided in Georgia and received (1) a form collection letter similar to Plaintiffs collection letter dated February 11, 2014 [Doc. 1-1]; and (2) those persons whose collection letters were sent but were not returned by the postal service as undelivered or undeliverable.

(Doc. 52-1 at l).1

II. DISCUSSION

A. Class Certification Standard

Fed. R. Civ. P. 23 governs the certification and management of class actions in federal courts. To maintain a class action, Rule 23(a) requires the putative class to satisfy four prerequisites, and the class action may proceed only if it is one of the three types identified in Rule 23(b). Vega v. T-Mobile USA, Inc., 564 F.3d 1256, 1265 (11th Cir.2009) (citation omitted). A plaintiff must also establish the implied requirement of Rule 23 that “the proposed class [be] ‘adequately defined and clearly ascertainable.’” Little v. T-Mobile USA Inc., 691 F.3d 1302, 1304 (11th Cir.2012) (citation omitted). The burden of establishing the propriety of class certification lies with the moving party. Busby v. JRHBW Realty, Inc., 513 F.3d 1314, 1322 (11th Cir.2008) (citing Valley Drug Co. v. Geneva Pharm., Inc., 350 F.3d 1181, 1187 (11th Cir.2003)). The moving party “must affirmatively demonstrate his compliance with the Rule — that is, he must be prepared to prove that there are in fact sufficiently numerous parties, common questions of law or fact, etc.” Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, 564 U.S. 338, 350, 131 S.Ct. 2541, 180 L.Ed.2d 374 (2011).

The Court must conduct a “rigorous analysis” to ensure Rule 23’s prerequisites are satisfied prior to certifying a class. Vega, 564 F.3d at 1266 (citations omitted). “Although the trial court should not determine the merits of the plaintiffs' claim at the class certification stage, the trial court can and should consider the merits of the case to the degree necessary to determine whether the requirements of Rule 23 will be satisfied.” Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted); see also Amgen Inc. v. Conn. Ret. Plans & Trust Funds, — U.S. —, 133 S.Ct. 1184, 1194-95, 185 L.Ed.2d 308 (2013).

Specifically, Rule 23(a) requires a plaintiff to show:

(1) the class is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable; (2) there are questions of law or fact common to the class; (3) the claims or defenses of the representative parties are typical of the [289]*289claims or defenses of the class; and (4) the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class.

Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(a). “These four prerequisites of Rule 23(a) are commonly referred to as ‘numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequacy of representation, and they are designed to limit class claims to those fairly encompassed by the named plaintiffs’ individual claims.’ ” Valley Drug, 350 F.3d at 1188 (quoting Prado-Steiman v. Bush, 221 F.3d 1266, 1278 (11th Cir.2000)).

Jones is pursuing certification under Rule 23(b)(3), which permits class certification if “the court finds that the questions of law or fact common to class members predominate over any questions affecting only individual members, and that a class action is superior to other available methods for fairly and efficiently adjudicating the controversy.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(b)(3).

B. Analysis

The Defendants oppose class certification on the grounds that the class is not ascertainable; that numerosity, commonality, typicality, and predominance are not satisfied for the same reasons the class is not ascertainable; that Jones and his counsel are inadequate to represent the class; and that a class action is not the superior method of adjudication.2

1. Ascertainability

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
317 F.R.D. 284, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114533, 2016 WL 4499456, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-advanced-bureau-of-collections-llp-gamd-2016.