Opinion ID: 2647902
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Complaint Amendment History

Text: Mr. Eller, proceeding pro se, filed his initial complaint in the present action in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado on January 9, 2009. He alleged that Trans Union committed negligent and willful violations of both the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq., and the Colorado Consumer Credit Reporting Act (“CCCRA”), Colo. Rev. Stat. 12-14.3-101 et seq. This original complaint included claims concerning various accounts reported by Trans Union, including the NCO Financial account and student loan accounts.1 1 The initial complaint also named Experian Information Solutions, Inc. (“Experian”) as a defendant. Mr. Eller’s claims against Experian subsequently settled and are not part of this appeal. -5- After he filed his original complaint, Mr. Eller hired an attorney, Steven Nolan, who represented him for a brief time prior to trial. Through Mr. Nolan, Mr. Eller amended his complaint twice. In his Second Amended Complaint, filed September 18, 2009 by Mr. Nolan, Mr. Eller voluntarily dismissed all of his claims related to account entries other than the NCO Financial account. After the district court accepted the Second Amended Complaint but before trial, Mr. Nolan withdrew, and Mr. Eller proceeded pro se from that point forward. On October 5, 2009, Trans Union filed a counterclaim against Mr. Eller, alleging that his claims were frivolous and brought in bad faith and that Mr. Eller had breached the terms of his 2006 settlement agreement with Trans Union by failing to notify Trans Union that he disputed the NCO Financial account report. On December 8, 2009, Mr. Eller, proceeding pro se, moved to reassert the additional FCRA claims that he had voluntarily dismissed, including claims based on inaccurate reporting of his student loans. A magistrate judge recommended that the motion to amend be denied on the grounds of undue delay, prejudice, and futility. Aplt. Appx. Vol. I at 72-80. The magistrate judge also noted that the student loan claims were precluded by jurisdictional bars, including the Rooker-Feldman doctrine, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. Id. at 77-79. The district court adopted the magistrate judge’s recommendation and denied Mr. Eller leave to reassert his initial claims. Aplt. Appx. Vol. II at 695. -6- On January 5, 2012, at a pretrial conference, Trans Union’s counsel reported that he had student loan documents prepared as trial exhibits if “Mr. Eller is allowed to get into anything related to student loans.” Id. at 745-46. At the final trial preparation conference on September 21, 2012, the district court nevertheless ruled that Mr. Eller would not be permitted to present evidence of any claims other than those related to the NCO Financial account.