Opinion ID: 151657
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: providing advice or assistance to

Text: any consumer with regard to any activity or service described in clause (i) . . . 15 U.S.C. § 1679a(3)(A). In interpreting CROA, as with any act of Congress, 'our analysis begins with the language of the statute.' Zimmerman, 409 F.3d at 475 (quoting Hughes Aircraft Co. v. Jacobson, 525 U.S. 432, 438 (1999)). The words Congress used to define a credit repair organization must always be taken in their context and with a view to their place in the overall statutory scheme. David v. Mich. Dep't of Treasury, 489 U.S. 803, 809 (1989). That overall scheme is a sweeping consumer protection act explicitly intended to protect the public from unfair or deceptive advertising and business practices by credit repair organizations. 15 U.S.C. § 1679(b). Such consumer protection statutes are construed liberally in favor of consumers. Barnes v. Fleet Nat'l Bank, N.A., 370 F.3d 164, 171 (1st Cir. 2004). -24- By its plain language, CROA applies to credit repair organizations. 15 U.S.C. § 1679a(3)(A). By focusing on the word repair in the defined term, the defendants seek to draw a distinction between purporting to repair or retroactively fix past credit problems and purporting to improve credit in the future. They argue that Congress intended CROA to apply to entities performing the function of retroactive credit repair but not those companies offering services aimed at improving clients' credit in the future. In support of their theory, the defendants cite Hillis v. Equifax Consumer Servs., Inc., 237 F.R.D. 491 (N.D. Ga. 2006), in which the district court attempted to articulate such a distinction: the definition of a credit repair organization is narrower than a cursory reading of the statute would indicate. Specifically, when the statute refers to services whose purpose is to improve a consumer's 'credit record, credit history, or credit rating,' these terms [] refer to a consumer's historical credit record. Congress did not intend for the definition of a credit repair organization to sweep in services that offer only prospective credit advice to consumers or provide information to consumers so that they can take steps to improve their credit in the future. Id. at 514. The distinction drawn by the Hillis court, and embraced by the defendants, is unsupportable.14 By its plain terms, CROA 14 The theory put forward by the district court in Hillis appears to be an outlier. Cf. Helms v. Consumerinfo.com, Inc., 436 F. Supp. 2d 1220 (N.D. Ala. 2005); Polacsek v. Dedicated Consumer -25- applies to organizations that provide, in exchange for consideration, any service for the express or implied purpose of improving a consumer's credit record, credit history, or credit rating. 15 U.S.C. § 1679a(3)(A). The language of the Act does not bind the concept of an improved credit record, credit history, or credit rating to the literal alteration (repair) of an historical record, history, or rating. As the district court explained, [t]he ostensibly forward-looking orientation of representations about improving clients' credit does not mitigate the obvious message to debtors that [those] services might modify the effect of their past credit history on their credit score. Zimmerman, 529 F. Supp. 2d at 275. Credit records are constantly changing based on the ongoing performance of the consumer. By improving credit behavior prospectively, a consumer aims to improve a pre-existing credit record, credit history, and/or credit rating with a more favorable record, history, or rating in the future. Thus, credit counseling aimed at improving future creditworthy behavior is the quintessential credit repair service.