Anytime a judge notes that a plaintiff is engaging in “scorched-earth litigation tactics” you have to think it’s not going to work out well for that individual, and that is definitely true in this case. A District Court judge in Tennessee has dismissed a lawsuit against a collection law firm, a bank, and other defendants that accused them of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act over issues with a collection lawsuit that was filed against the plaintiff. In adopting a magistrate judge’s Report and Recommendation, the court not only rejected the claims on the merits, but also shut down a flood of procedural motions that the court said had overtaken the case.
The background: The plaintiff was sued in Tennessee state court over an unpaid consumer debt. After a judgment was entered, the plaintiff appealed and then turned around and sued the creditor and its collection counsel in a separate action.
- The lawsuit alleged that the defendants violated the FDCPA and state consumer protection laws by, among other things, refusing to provide proof of the attorney-client relationship between the bank and the law firm, continuing to pursue the collection case after the plaintiff claimed to be “judgment proof,” and copying a court staff member on an email that included a debt collection notice.
- The plaintiff also repeatedly sought to amend pleadings, remand the case back to state court, and compel discovery.
The ruling: A magistrate judge recommended dismissing the case in its entirety, and Judge Aleta A. Trauger of the District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee adopted that recommendation.
- Judge Trauger concluded that the allegations “cannot support plausible claims for relief” under the FDCPA or state law, and emphasized that creditors collecting their own debts are generally not “debt collectors” under the statute.
- The judge also rejected the notion that collection counsel had any obligation under the FDCPA to provide proof of their representation agreement to an opposing party.
- In a pointed observation about the plaintiff’s litigation strategy, Judge Trauger noted that the docket reflected “scorched earth litigation tactics,” with numerous duplicative and procedurally improper filings.
- In what will likely come as a surprise to nobody, the plaintiff has appealed the dismissal to the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
