Consumers sued a total of 498 different collection agencies and creditors between Oct. 16 and 31, down 17% from 597 during the first half of the month, according to data from U.S. district courts.
Total lawsuits this year citing alleged Fair Debt Collection Practices Act violations reached 9,917 through October, tracking nearly one full month ahead of last year's pace when the 10,000 mark was reached on Dec. 1.
WebRecon LLC, a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based company, tracks the data from the courts. Company CEO Jack Gordon expects the year-end total to reach 12,000 suits.
During the second half of October, consumers filed 492 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act-related lawsuits, 83 Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuits, 23 Truth-in-Lending Act lawsuits and 21 Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawsuits. An estimated 552 total lawsuits were file during the period, with many citing more than one statute violation, according to WebRecon.
The cases in the recent reporting period included an estimated 561 unique plaintiffs, 168 of whom previously had sued under consumer statutes. Combined, the plaintiffs have filed about 979 lawsuits since 2001.
David M. Larson was the most active consumer attorney during the latest period, representing 21 consumers. For the year, Larson has represented 293 consumers, trailing only Feng Li at 299. Craig T. Kimmel has represented 218 consumers this year, followed by Sergei Lemberg with 204, according to WebRecon.
The top courts where lawsuits were filed in the Oct. 16 to 31 period were California Central District Court, Western Division, Los Angeles, 40 lawsuits; Illinois Northern District Court, Chicago, 31; and Colorado District Court, Denver, 30.
