Opinion ID: 624915
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The grant of summary judgment against Hendrickson

Text: The debt collectors also appeal the district court's determination that Hendrickson is personally liable under the FDCPA as a debt collector within the meaning of the statute. The debt collectors argue that the claims against Hendrickson personally should have been dismissed because no evidence supports holding Hendrickson personally liable for any violation of the FDCPA. We hold that Hendrickson is liable under the FDCPA since he qualifies as a debt collector under the FDCPA and that there is no triable issue of material fact but that his personal acts were sufficient to render him personally liable for violations of the FDCPA.
Section 1692a(6) defines a debt collector for the purposes of the FDCPA. A debt collector is any person who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another. Id. We have previously held that an individual working for a corporation may independently qualify as a debt collector under the statute. Fox v. Citicorp Credit Servs., 15 F.3d 1507, 1513 (9th Cir.1994) (Attorneys, like all other persons, are subject to the definition of `debt collector' in 15 U.S.C. § 1692a(6)). Hendrickson is the sole owner, officer, and director of ICC. ICC has been his sole employer since January 1986. Hendrickson himself stated at a deposition that he ha[s] to do everything for ICC, including collection duties. The various duties that Hendrickson performed as ICC's sole officer and director qualify him as one who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another. 15 U.S.C. § 1692a(6). Under Fox, Hendrickson qualifies as a debt collector.
The district court granted summary judgment for Cruz and against Hendrickson, focusing its reasoning on the fact that Hendrickson qualifies as a debt collector under the FDCPA. As discussed above, we agree that Hendrickson so qualifies. However, the fact that an individual qualifies as a debt collector of course does not necessarily mean that the individual is a debt collector who has violated the FDCPA; the FDCPA does not prohibit merely qualifying as a debt collector but instead prohibits debt collectors from taking certain specific actions. 15 U.S.C. § 1692. The next question is whether that debt collector has taken an action that violates the FDCPA, such as us[ing] any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt. 15 U.S.C. § 1692e. The inquiry is therefore a two-step process, in which we must determine 1) whether the individual qualifies as a debt collector, and 2) whether that individual has taken an action that violates the FDCPA. [4] Thus, Hendrickson's liability turns on whether he took some action sufficient to render him personally liable for ICC's violations. The Ninth Circuit has not yet reached the issue of what kind of action the officer of a debt collection company must take to be personally liable under the FDCPA. There is an open question whether, if an officer qualifies as a debt collector, that officer may be held personally liable based solely on the action of serving in his role as officer of the company. We need not reach this question in this case, however, as Hendrickson himself was personally involved in at least one violation of the FDCPA present in this case. The record reflects that Hendrickson was not merely the officer and owner of ICC, uninvolved in the collection attempts against Cruz. Hendrickson explained in his deposition that ICC had a policy that letters to debtors were sent by the person who signed the letter. An employee named Alex Rogel was assigned to and had been handling Cruz's debt, and signed the first letter to Cruz. Despite this, when Cruz sent ICC a certified letter disputing the debt and refusing to pay, Hendrickson, not Rogel, signed to receive that letter on October 31, 2006. Hendrickson also admitted at his deposition that he signed Alex Rogel's name to the fourth letter to Cruz, sent on November 24, 2006. The signature on that letter includes Hendrickson's own initials C.H. after the signature. The fourth letter, like the other letters, falsely claims that ICC is entitled to collect interest on the principal; in fact, Nevada law only permits a debt collector to collect interest or fees if the interest or fees have been added to the principal by the creditor before the debt collector received the item of collection. Nev.Rev. Stat. § 649.375(2)(a) (2011). Therefore, by signing the letter, Hendrickson use[d a] false, deceptive, or misleading representation. . . in connection with the collection of [a] debt and therefore violated § 1692e. As discussed above, the `bona fide error' defense is not properly before this court. As discussed above, the fourth letter also violated § 1692c(c) because Cruz had refused to pay the debt in writing before the fourth letter was sent. Therefore, the district court's grant of summary judgment against Hendrickson is affirmed. [5]