A District Court judge in Washington has given the defendants in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Gramm-Leach Bliley Act case 14 days to demonstrate why the case should remain in federal court or it will be sent back to state court where it was originally filed. Two employees — a mother and her son — are being accused of using software and skiptracing tools to track the whereabouts of the son’s wife, who was allegedly the victim of abuse by her husband, and the collection operation they work for is also being sued for allowing the stalking to occur.
The Background: The plaintiff married one of the defendants and had two children with him. The husband is accused of being abusive — physically and mentally — and allegedly stalked the plaintiff after they separated and divorced.
- The defendant and his mother are both employees of a collection operation and allegedly used the company’s skiptracing tools to access the plaintiff’s accounts to locate her and that her requests to the company to intervene were not successful.
- The plaintiff also filed a complaint with the state Department of Licensing,
The Suit: The plaintiff originally filed her lawsuit in state court, alleging the collection agency was negligent in its supervision of its employees, negligent in investigating the issue after it was brought to its attention, that her privacy was invaded, and that the defendants violated the FDCPA, the Washington Collection Practices Act, and the GLBA.
- The defendants removed the case to federal court, on the grounds that federal laws — the FDCPA and the GLBA — were invoked.
The Ruling: In her complaint, the plaintiff notes that her former mother-in-law is not a debt collector and would not have access any debt. While it is undisputed that a federal court would have jurisdiction over federal claims, there is some concern that the factual overlap between the state law claims and federal claims is “less certain” noted Judge Lauren King of the District Court for the Western District of Washington.
