IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

CASE NO.: 1:20-cv-21993

MARVELI RAYO,

Plaintiff,

v. 

I.C. SYSTEM, INC. and 

MD NOW MEDICAL CENTERS, INC., 

Defendants.

_____________________________________/

Defendant I.C. System, Inc.’s Response to Plaintiff’s Statement of Claim

COMES NOW, Defendant I.C. SYSTEM, INC. (“Defendant” and/or “ICS”), by and 

through its undersigned counsel, in accordance with the Court’s Order of Referral and Order 

Regarding Court Practices and Procedures (DE 19) files its Response to Plaintiff’s Statement of 

Claim (DE 21) served on ICS on July 24, 2020 and states the following:

1. Rayo alleges I.C. System, Inc. violated the FDCPA and the FCCPA for sending 

her a collection letter to collect a debt owed to MD NOW MEDICAL CENTERS, INC. (“MD 

Now”).1 Specifically, Rayo alleges the MD Now account ICS sought to collect was for medical 

treatment she received related to injuries she sustained from a work-related accident and should 

have been billed to her Worker’s Compensation carrier or her employer; but not to Rayo.2 ICS 

denies these allegations in their entirety and maintains that its letters to Rayo did not violate the 

FDCPA or the FCCPA. 

1 See, DE 1, generally (In Count III, Rayo also alleged Co-Defendant MD Now violated § 559.72(5) of the FCCPA.)

2 Ibid. 

Case 1:20-cv-21993-MGC Document 26 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/06/2020 Page 1 of 5
2 | Page

2. On or about June 17, 2019, MD Now referred a delinquent account to ICS for 

collection.3 At the time of referral, MD Now transmitted certain information relating to the 

Rayo’s Account to ICS including, inter alia, the debtor’s name “Marveli Rayo,” Rayo’s contact 

information, and identified a balance of $122.50 (consisting of $100.00 in principal and a $22.50 

collection charge) on Rayo’s Account as validly due and owing.4 As part of its collection 

attempts, on June 20, 2019, ICS sent its initial collection letter to Rayo seeking to collect the 

“Balance Due: $122.50.”5 Also as part of its collection attempts, on August 4, 2019, ICS sent a 

second collection letter to Rayo seeking to collect the “Balance Due: $122.50.”6

3. On or about October 28, 2019, ICS received a letter from Rayo’s counsel 

disputing Rayo’s Account (“Rayo’s Dispute Letter”).7 Rayo’s Dispute Letter was the first 

communication of any kind ICS received from Rayo and/or Rayo’s counsel related to Rayo’s 

Account.8 After receipt of Rayo’s Dispute Letter, ICS has made no further attempt to collect 

Rayo’s Account.9

4. The law is clear that § 559.72(9) of the FCCPA requires the plaintiff to show not 

just that a non-existent right was asserted but also that the defendant “possessed actual

3 See, Declaration of ICS’s Chief Compliance Officer / Corporate General Counsel Michelle K. Dove (“ICS Dec.”) 

attached hereto as EXHIBIT A at ¶ 6.

4 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 7.

5 See, DE 1-4; ICS Dec. at ¶ 8.

6 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 9.

7 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 10 (Rayo’s Dispute Letter was dated October 21, 2019). 

8 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 11.

9 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 12.

Case 1:20-cv-21993-MGC Document 26 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/06/2020 Page 2 of 5
3 | Page

knowledge that the threatened means of enforcing the debt was unavailable.”10 Rayo’s FCCPA 

claim fails as there is no evidence ICS had actual knowledge that the debt was the result of 

medical treatment provided to Rayo for injuries which “arose from [Rayo]’s work-related 

accident,” that MD Now did not “have any entitlement or authority to collect the [delinquent 

financial obligation] from [Rayo],” or that the debt “was the responsibility of [Rayo]’s employer 

and/or the insurance carrier of [Rayo]’s employer.”11 In fact, after receipt of Rayo’s Dispute 

Letter, MD Now sent correspondence to ICS dated October 30, 2019 re-confirming the 

delinquent balance on Rayo’s Account was validly “due and outstanding.”12

5. MD Now still maintains it “provided services unrelated to the workers 

compensation injury to [Rayo], at her request, as she did not have a primary care physician and 

needed to address, seek treatment for, and obtain prescription medications for her non-work 

related health issues... [and] [t]he billing and collection attempts at issue in this action are 

related to the non-work related services, not the Workers Compensation case, as alleged.”13 MD 

Now has also provided documents supporting its position that the “billing and collection 

attempts at issue in this action are related to the medical services that [Rayo] requested and 

received – not the Workers Compensation case... [and Rayo] acknowledged her financial 

responsibility for this treatment.”14

10 See, Medley v. Dish Network, LLC, No. 18-13841, 2020 WL 2092594, at *5 (11th Cir. May 1, 2020) (“We agree 

with Medley that DISH attempted to collect debt it had no legal right to collect because the debt had been 

discharged in bankruptcy, and we agree that DISH directly contacted Medley after having received notice that she 

was represented by counsel. To hold a defendant liable, however, both statutes require a plaintiff to establish that the 

debt collector possessed actual knowledge.”)

11 See, ICS Dec. at ¶¶ 13-14.

12 See, ICS Dec. at ¶ 15. 

13 See, DE 16 at pp. 1-2; ICS Dec. at ¶ 16.

14 See, DE 24 at ¶¶ 3-4. 

Case 1:20-cv-21993-MGC Document 26 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/06/2020 Page 3 of 5
4 | Page

Respectfully submitted by:

/s/ Joseph C. Proulx

JOSEPH C. PROULX, ESQ.

Florida Bar No.: 0056830

DALE T. GOLDEN, ESQ.

Florida Bar No.: 0094080

GOLDEN SCAZ GAGAIN, PLLC

201 North Armenia Avenue 

Tampa, Florida 33609-2303

Phone: (813) 251-5500

Fax: (813) 251-3675

jproulx@gsgfirm.com

dgolden@gsgfirm.com

Counsel for Defendant I. C. System, Inc.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on July 6, 2020, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of 

the Court using the CM/ECF. I also certify that the foregoing document is being served this day 

on all counsel either via transmission of Notices of Electronic Filing generated by CM/ECF or in 

some other authorized manner for those counsel or parties who are not authorized to receive 

electronically Notices of Electronic Filing.

___________

JOSEPH C. PROULX, ESQ.

Florida Bar No.: 0056830

DALE T. GOLDEN, ESQ.

Florida Bar No.: 0094080

GOLDEN SCAZ GAGAIN, PLLC

201 North Armenia Avenue 

Tampa, Florida 33609-2303

Phone: (813) 251-5500

Fax: (813) 251-3675

jproulx@gsgfirm.com

dgolden@gsgfirm.com

Counsel for Defendant I. C. System, Inc.

Case 1:20-cv-21993-MGC Document 26 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/06/2020 Page 4 of 5
5 | Page

Case 1:20-cv-21993-MGC Document 26 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/06/2020 Page 5 of 5