Quiroz v. Cavalry SPV I, LLC

217 F. Supp. 3d 1130, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162955, 2016 WL 6804395
CourtDistrict Court, C.D. California
DecidedNovember 16, 2016
DocketCase No. 2:16-cv-04779-JFW-E
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 217 F. Supp. 3d 1130 (Quiroz v. Cavalry SPV I, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, C.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Quiroz v. Cavalry SPV I, LLC, 217 F. Supp. 3d 1130, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162955, 2016 WL 6804395 (C.D. Cal. 2016).

Opinion

STATEMENT OF DECISION GRANTING DEFENDANT CAVALRY SPV I, LLC’S MOTION TO COMPEL ARBITRATION

Hon. John F. Walter, United States District Judge

Having read and considered the papers and arguments of the parties, the Court finds and concludes as follows:

1. RELEVANT FACTUAL BACKGROUND

On January 4, 2011, plaintiff Javier Qui-roz (“Quiroz”) and his wife visited Santa Paula Dental Care, where his wife was obtaining dental work. See ECF No. 1 ¶ 12; ECF-No. 32 ¶5. To pay for the services, Quiroz submitted an application to GE Money Bank, which is now named Synchrony Bank (“Synchrony”), for a Ca-reCredit account.1 See ECF No. 28-1 ¶ 6, Ex. 1; ECF No. 32 ¶7. All Synchrony CareCredit accounts are governed by a written agreement setting forth the terms and conditions of the account (the “Card Agreement”). See ECF No. 28-1 ¶ 7. As part of the account-opening process, Synchrony requires merchant providers, like Santa Paula Dental Care, to give customers a copy of the blank CareCredit account application, which includes the Card Agreement as an attachment. Id. ¶ 7, Ex. 2. The application expressly informs the customer that Card Agreement:

(1) INCLUDES A DISPUTE AND CLAIM RESOLUTION (INCLUDING ARBITRATION) PROVISION THAT MAY LIMIT MY RIGHTS UNLESS I REJECT THAT PROVISION UNDER THE AGREEMENT’S INSTRUCTIONS.

Id. at 17 ¶ 3. Once the application is completed, the Card Agreement is detached from the application and given to the consumer by the merchant provider. Id. ¶ 7.

Once Synchrony approves the application and opens the account, the bank mails a copy of the Card Agreement to the customer, along with the actual credit card. Id. ¶ 8, Ex. 3. The Card Agreement provides: “By opening or using your account, you agree to the terms of the Agreement. The Agreement starts when (i) you give us an account application or (ii) you use your account or let someone else use it, whichever occurs first.” Id. Ex. 3 at 32 ¶ 1.

The Card Agreement also includes a provision that provides for individual, non-class arbitration of all disputes arising from or relating to the account (the “Arbitration Agreement”). Id. at 35 ¶ 24. It provides in relevant part as follows:

DISPUTE AND CLAIM RESOLUTION (INCLUDING ARBITRATION) PROVISION
General/Requirement to Arbitrate. PLEASE READ THIS PROVISION CAREFULLY. UNLESS YOU SEND US THE REJECTION NOTICE DESCRIBED BELOW THIS PROVISION WILL APPLY TO YOUR ACCOUNT, AND MOST DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND US WILL BE SUBJECT TO INDIVIDUAL ARBITRATION. THIS MEANS THAT: (1) NEITHER A COURT NOR A JURY WILL RESOLVE ANY SUCH DISPUTE; (2) YOU WILL NOT BE [1133]*1133ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION OR SIMILAR PROCEEDING; (3) LESS INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE; AND (4) APPEAL RIGHTS WILL BE LIMITED.
This Provision replaces any existing arbitration provision with us and will stay in force no matter what happens to your account, including termination. Upon demand, and except as otherwise provided below, you and we must arbitrate individually any dispute or claim between you, any joint cardholder and/or any additional cardholder, on the one hand; and us, our affiliates, agents and/or dealers/merchants/retailers or participating professionals, on the other hand, if the dispute or claim arises from or relates to your account. However, we will not require you to arbitrate: (1) any individual case in small claims court or your state’s equivalent court, so long as it remains an individual case in that court; or (2) any claim by us that only involves our effort to collect money you owe us. However, if you respond to a collection lawsuit by claiming that we engaged in any wrongdoing, we may require you to arbitrate.
YOU AGREE NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS, REPRESENTATIVE OR PRIVATE ATTORNEY GENERAL ACTION AGAINST US IN COURT OR ARBITRATION. ALSO, YOU MAY NOT BRING CLAIMS AGAINST US ON BEHALF OF ANY CARDHOLDER WHO IS NOT A JOINT OR ADDITIONAL CARDHOLDER WITH YOU ON YOUR ACCOUNT (AN “UNRELATED CARDHOLDER”), AND YOU AGREE THAT NO UNRELATED CARDHOLDER MAY BRING ANY CLAIMS AGAINST US ON YOUR BEHALF. CLAIMS BY YOU AND BY AN UNRELATED CARDHOLDER MAY NOT BE JOINED IN A SINGLE ARBITRATION.

Id. The Arbitration Agreement also provides a specific procedure by which the customer can reject the requirement that he arbitrate his disputes:

Rejecting this Provision. You may reject this Provision, in which case only a court may be used to resolve any dispute or claim. Rejection will not affect any other -aspect of this Agreement. To reject, you must send us a notice within 60 days after you open your account or we first provide you with a right to reject this Provision. The notice must include your name, address, and account number and be mailed to GE Money Bank, P.O. Box 981429, El Paso, TX 79998-1429. This is the only way you can reject this provision.

Id.

Thus, the Card Agreement was provided to Quiroz twice: once when he applied for the CardCredit account, on January 4, 2011, and again when Synchrony mailed him the Card Agreement, along with the credit card, on January 5, 2011. See ECF No. 28-1 ¶¶ 6-10. Quiroz used the account to finance his wife’s dental care, received monthly billing statements, and made payments in response to the statements. Id. ¶¶ 8-11; see also ECF No. 32 ¶¶ 5-9. Upon receiving the Card Agreement in the mail, Quiroz did not exercise his right to reject the Arbitration Agreement. See ECF No, 28-1 ¶¶ 13-14.

After Quiroz failed to pay the balance due, his account was charged off and sold to defendant Cavalry SPV I, LLC (“Cavalry”). Id. ¶ 16; ECF No. 28-2 ¶¶4-5.2 Cav[1134]*1134alry then began contacting Quiroz to attempt to collect the balance owed on the account, and eventually filed suit against him on July 2, 2015 in Ventura County Superior Court. See ECF No. 1 ¶¶ 19-20. On March 25, 2016, Cavalry dismissed that action without prejudice.

On- June 29, 2016, Quiroz filed a putative class action Complaint against Cavalry. In his Complaint, Quiroz alleges that Santa Paula Dental Care failed to obtain his signature on a notice he alleges was required by the former version of section 654.3(c) of the California Business and Professions Code (“Section 654.3 Notice” or “Notice”). Id. ¶ 18; ECF No. 32 ¶7.3 Quiroz also alleges that his unpaid balance on- the account “was invalid and uncollectible” because his dentist failed to provide him the Section 654.3 Notice. See ECF No. 1 ¶ 18. In his Complaint, Quiroz alleges causes of action for: (1) violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1692, et seq.; (2) violation of the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Cal. Civ. Code § 1788, et seq.; and (3) violation of the Unfair Competition Law, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200, et seq. Id. ¶¶ 37-74.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

Section 2 of the FAA4

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217 F. Supp. 3d 1130, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162955, 2016 WL 6804395, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/quiroz-v-cavalry-spv-i-llc-cacd-2016.