Washington Court Sides with Hunstein Copycat; Rejects Main Industry Defenses

Last week a federal judge in the Eastern District of Washington allowed Hunstein copycat case to continue and rejected the primary Hunstein defenses we've seen thus far from the ARM industry. 

Jackin v. Enhanced Recovery Company is a typical Hunstein copycat case. The consumer alleged that Enhanced Recovery Company (ERC) violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) by sending data to a letter vendor (RevSpring) so that RevSpring could produce and mail the consumer a letter. The consumer claims she noticed that ERC used a letter vendor because the P.O. box listed as the return address did not belong to ERC.

ERC moved to dismiss the complaint under several different legal theories, many of which were raised by ARM industry participants in amicus briefs last year in the Hunstein matter (see here, here, and here for example). After considering arguments from the consumer and ERC, District Court Judge Salvador Mendoza Jr. addressed and rejected each theory in a June 10, 2022 Order.