Lemire v. Wolpoff & Abramson, LLP

256 F.R.D. 321, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26559, 2009 WL 827764
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedMarch 31, 2009
DocketNo. 3:08-cv-00249 (CSH)
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 256 F.R.D. 321 (Lemire v. Wolpoff & Abramson, LLP) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lemire v. Wolpoff & Abramson, LLP, 256 F.R.D. 321, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26559, 2009 WL 827764 (D. Conn. 2009).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

HAIGHT, Senior District Judge:

Jeanne Lemire (“Lemire”)1 has sued Wol-poff & Ambranson, LLP (“Wolpoff”) for vio[323]*323lating Connecticut’s regulatory requirements surrounding the collection of consumer debt. She alleges that Wolpoffs state-law violations have exposed it to liability under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“DCPA”), 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692 et seq. Lemire has moved under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 to certify a class of all others similarly situated.

I. Factual Background

Wolpoff is a law firm based in Rockville, Maryland, that engages in collection of consumer debts. The basis of this lawsuit is Wolpoffs behavior with respect to consumers in Connecticut.

Under Connecticut law, businesses that engage in the collection of consumer debts must be licensed to do so. Conn. Gen.Stat. § 36a-801. Engaging in collection of consumer debts without a license constitutes a violation that may be punished by the Banking Commissioner, Conn. Gen.Stat. §§ 36a-50, -804, -806 to -808, and incurs liability that can be enforced by the state’s attorney. Id. § 36a-810. The Connecticut General Assembly did not provide for a private right of action to target violations of this statute. See Gaetano v. Payco of Wis., Inc., 774 F.Supp. 1404, 1414 (D.Conn.1990).

That is not the end of the analysis, however. Under federal law, consumer debt collection agencies may not use “false, deceptive, or misleading representation^]” or “unfair or unconscionable means” to collect debts. 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692e, 1692f. “Without limiting the general application” of those broad prohibitions, id., Congress gave specific examples of practices or representations which would violate those generalized prohibitions, including threatening “to take any action that cannot legally be taken or that is not intended to be taken,” § 1692e(5), and “[t]he use or distribution of any written communication ... which creates a false impression as to its source, authorization, or approval.” § 1692e(9).

The theory that provides the foundation for Lemire’s lawsuit is that Wolpoffs communication with consumers in Connecticut is a violation of Connecticut law, and that therefore it constitutes a per se violation of the FDCPA.

There is precedent for that argument, but the authority in this judicial district is not unanimous. Compare Gaetano, 774 F.Supp. at 1415 & n. 8 (finding that the defendant violated the FDCPA “by failing to seek the proper license from the state banking commissioner, ... [which] deprived the plaintiff of her right ... to have the defendant’s qualifications as a collection agency reviewed by state authorities” and “because the Court finds deceptive the defendant’s attempt to collect a debt when prohibited from doing so by Connecticut law”), with Goins v. JBC & Assocs., P.C., 352 F.Supp.2d 262, 271 (D.Conn.2005) (noting that “[n]ot all courts have adopted a categorical rule that an FDCPA violation occurs whenever an unlicensed debt collector sends out any debt collection notice,” but examining the content of the debt collection notices to find an FDCPA violation nevertheless). Although the Gaetano Court found the mere “attempt to collect a debt when prohibited from doing so by Connecticut law” to be “deceptive,” 774 F.Supp. at 1415, the Goins Court suggested that the illegality of such conduct under federal law might depend on the content of the communication, suggesting that a per se rule might be inappropriate. 352 F.Supp.2d at 271.

II. Legal Standard

Under Rule 23(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a member of a class may sue or be sued as a representative of all members of a class only if all of the following conditions are met: “(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 claims 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 requirements are typically summarized as require[324]*324ments of numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequacy of representation. See, e.g., Moore v. PaineWebber, Inc., 306 F.3d 1247, 1252 (2d Cir.2002).

Furthermore, under Rule 23(b), at least one of the following three conditions must also obtain:

(1) prosecuting separate actions by or against individual class members would create a risk of:
(A) inconsistent or varying adjudications with respect to individual class members that would establish incompatible standards of conduct for the party opposing the class; or
(B) adjudications with respect to individual class members that, as a practical matter, would be dispositive of the interests of the other members not parties to the individual adjudications or would substantially impair or impede their ability to protect their interests;
(2) the party opposing the class has acted or refused to act on grounds that apply generally to the class, so that final injunc-tive relief or corresponding declaratory relief is appropriate respecting the class as a whole; or
(3) 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. The matters pertinent to these findings include:
(A) the class members’ interests in individually controlling the prosecution or defense of separate actions;
(B) the extent and nature of any litigation concerning the controversy already begun by or against class members;
(C) the desirability or undesirability of concentrating the litigation of the claims in the particular forum; and
(D) the likely difficulties in managing a class action.

The question of which 23(b) provision applies is relevant because, among other things, it determines whether class members may opt-out of the class. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(c); U.S. Trust Co. v. Alpert, 163 F.R.D. 409, 419 (S.D.N.Y.1995).

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

Related

Scheinman v. Glass and Braus
D. Connecticut, 2020
Toliver v. Semple
D. Connecticut, 2019
O'Dell v. Nat'l Recovery Agency
291 F. Supp. 3d 687 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 2018)
Madden v. Midland Funding, LLC
237 F. Supp. 3d 130 (S.D. New York, 2017)
Tripp v. Berman & Rabin, P.A.
310 F.R.D. 499 (D. Kansas, 2015)
Annunziato v. Collecto, Inc.
293 F.R.D. 329 (E.D. New York, 2013)
Thorne v. Accounts Receivable Management, Inc.
282 F.R.D. 684 (S.D. Florida, 2012)
Wise v. Cavalry Portfolio Services, LLC
279 F.R.D. 196 (D. Connecticut, 2012)
Ellis v. General Revenue Corp.
274 F.R.D. 53 (D. Connecticut, 2011)
Harris v. D. Scott Carruthers & Assoc.
54 A.L.R. Fed. 2d 731 (D. Nebraska, 2010)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
256 F.R.D. 321, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26559, 2009 WL 827764, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lemire-v-wolpoff-abramson-llp-ctd-2009.