Lawsuits Against Agencies, Creditors Jump

The total number of consumer statute lawsuits filed in the Nov. 1-15 period  soared to 558, up from 503 in the previous two-week period and 497 in the first half of October, according to data from U.S. District Courts.

The Nov. 1-15 period includes 535 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuits, 72 Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuits, 24 that cited Telephone Consumer Protection Act violations and 19 Truth in Lending Act cases, according to WebRecon LLC, the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based research firm that compiles the data from the courts.

An estimated 497 different collection agencies and creditors were sued in the first half of November, up from 464 in the previous two-week period. Of the total, there were an estimated 577 different plaintiffs, including an estimated 164 who previously had sued under consumer statutes. Combined, those plaintiffs have filed an estimated 1,022 lawsuits since 2001.
 
Jack Dennis Card is the most active consumer attorney this year, having represented 352 consumers. Sergei Lemberg has represented 304 consumers in 2010.

In June, Lemberg criticized the collection industry in a statement to the press, see story, for blaming consumer attorneys for a spike in lawsuits.

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