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What is the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Often times, when speaking with clients considering bankruptcy or trying to find some other type of solution to manage their exposure to debt liability, I find that they have been unfairly treated by debt collectors.  While debt collection serves a legitimate purpose in our economy, just because you owe a debt does not mean that the collection agency has free reign to pursue collection of the money owed.  There are limits.  That is where the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) might come in.

The FDCPA is a federal statute that regulates the practices of third party debt collectors.  First, it is important to understand what I mean by a third party debt collector.  If you borrow money from Acme Bank & Trust, then they are the original creditor.  If Acme Bank & Trust sells or assigns the debt or contracts the collection of the debt to Ace Debt Collectors Inc., Then Ace Debt Collectors Inc. is a third party creditor and would likely be regulated by the FDCPA.

The breadth and width of the FDCPA’s reach is substantial.  As such, it is not possible to fully sum up what the law says or does in a single blog article, or even a series of blog articles for that matter.  For this reason, this article will be one in a series of articles that will summarize some of the various ways you can use the FDCPA as both a sword and a shield.
 

Disclaimer

These articles are for general informational use and do not constitute legal advice. Since laws change over time, it’s possible some articles are out of date and for that reason, we make no representation that the articles are fully accurate. For actual, up-to-date legal advice (including a free consultation), please contact us!