The Eleventh Circuit recently reversed in part and affirmed in part the dismissal of a complaint alleging violations of the Georgia Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, O.C.G.A. § 10-1-372, and the federal Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a). Hi-Tech Pharm., Inc. v. HBS Int’l, 2018 WL 6314282 (11th Cir. Dec. 4, 2018). The case presented…
Category: Consumer Protection
Eleventh Circuit Restores $20m Punitive-Damages Verdict Against Philip Morris
The Eleventh Circuit last week reinstated a $20.76m punitive-damages verdict against tobacco giant Philip Morris, ruling that the district court had abused its discretion in ordering a new trial on the plaintiff’s intentional tort claims. Cote v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., 2018 WL 6167395 (11th Cir. Nov. 26, 2018). The court also affirmed the denial…
Supreme Court to Consider TCPA Circuit Split on Interpretation of “Advertisement”
The Supreme Court will address a circuit split over the interpretation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act’s provision imposing liability for sending unsolicited advertisements. PDR Network, LLC v. Carlton & Harris Chiropractic, Inc., No. 17-1705, 2018 WL 3127423 (U.S. Nov. 13, 2018). The majority view—held by the Eleventh Circuit—is that an unsolicited fax is only…
Disclosure of Additional Digits on a Credit Card Receipt Sufficient to Confer Article III Standing to Bring a FACTA Claim (Opinion Vacated, and Petition for Rehearing En Banc Granted, October 4, 2019)
On October 5, 2018, a panel of the Eleventh Circuit held that a plaintiff has standing to pursue a claim under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (“FACTA”) if a merchant discloses too many digits of a credit card number on a receipt, even without subsequent misuse of the plaintiff’s identity or credit card. …
Court Rejects ADA Exhaustion Argument for Closed Captions
The court held this week that the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, which creates an administrative procedure to address videos lacking closed captions before the FCC, does not create an administrative exhaustion requirement for bringing similar issues under the ADA. Sierra v. City of Hallandale Beach, Florida, (No. 18-10740 11th Cir….
Federal Law Does Not Prevent Foreclosure Against Surviving Spouse of “Reverse-Mortgage” Borrower If Contractually-Authorized
The federal statute that prevents HUD from insuring a reverse mortgage that permits foreclosure while the borrower’s surviving spouse lives in the mortgaged property does not similarly prohibit the lender from foreclosing after the borrower’s death, as long as the foreclosure is otherwise permitted by the loan documents. Estate of Jones v. Live Well Fin.,…
Bank Accurately Reported Mortgage as “Past Due” and “Delinquent” Despite Borrower’s Compliance with Forbearance Program
When a mortgage lender offers a borrower a forbearance plan—agreeing to accept lowered monthly payments in exchange for refraining from foreclosure—is it accurate for the lender to report that the borrower’s account is “past due” and “delinquent” even when the borrower complies with the plan? “Yes” was the Eleventh Circuit’s answer in Felts v. Wells…
Court Compels Individual Arbitration of Consumer Class Action
In Larsen v. Citibank FSB, 871 F.3d 1295 (11th Cir. Sept. 26, 2017), the Eleventh Circuit reversed the Southern District of Florida’s denial of a motion to compel arbitration of a consumer debt class action. The plaintiff, David Johnson, filed a putative class action alleging that Defendant KeyBank had improperly changed the sequence of debit…
No Willful Violation of Fair Credit Reporting Act If Report Technically Accurate, Even If Misleading, Given Split on “Maximum Possible Accuracy”
In Pedro v. TransUnion LLC, 2017 WL 3623926 (11th Cir. Aug. 24, 2017), the Eleventh Circuit concluded that a consumer reporting agency did not adopt an “objectively unreasonable interpretation” of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) when it stated on a consumer’s credit report that she was an authorized user of her parents’ credit card…
Don’t Call Me Maybe—TCPA Consent Can Be Partially Revoked
The Eleventh Circuit has held that the TCPA permits a consumer to partially revoke her consent to be called. Schweitzer v. Comenity Bank, 2017 WL 3429381 (11th Cir. Aug. 10, 2017). Emily Schweitzer had a past-due credit card account with Comenity Bank. The bank called her cell phone (the number which she had provided in…