Are you getting marketing text messages late at night? You might be able to sue for damages.

 Under the Telephone Consumer Privacy Act, or TCPA, a company is not supposed to engage in automated calling or text messaging without your permission. They also aren't allowed to send automated messages to you before 8:00 AM or after 9:00 PM your time.  I received a complaint from a person who is receiving late night messages repeatedly from patpat.com.  If you are repeatedly getting text messages you didn't sign up for, or outside of 8:00AM-9:00PM, please contact me.  

More Comments on Home Title Lock

 In the past couple of years, I've gotten calls from a couple of reporters who started an investigation into Home Title Lock. It is likely the most recent investigation was snuffed out by the (then new) pandemic.  I heard my first commercial for them in a long time, and I think things are about to heat up.  In addition, I saw this article on the Quicken Loans site that sure seems to me to read more like an advertisement than a journalistic piece.  

What I find interesting is that this article includes the first statistics I've ever seen in discussions about this problem. According to the article:

 "According to the FBI, 9,600 victims lost over $56 million in 2017 due to real estate and rental fraud. There are not specific numbers on home title theft, but many see these schemes as a fast-growing area of cybercrime."

Now let's assume these numbers are true. My argument has never been that home title fraud NEVER happens. My argument has been that it is REALLY RARE.  As this quote points, out these are NOT numbers specific to home title theft, but to all areas of real estate and rental fraud.  In my 34 years as an attorney, I have seen a number of cases involving real estate fraud, but none of them has involved forged title documents by a stranger.  The most common fraud I've seen is the "we buy homes" scam.  You've probably seen the signs on a telephone pole near you.  The thing that disqualifies this scam from what Home Title Lock  touts is, typically, the deeds and other documents are actually signed by the real owner, but under the misrepresentations of a con-artist.  The other common real estate fraud that I've seen is a relative or other trusted person using undue influence or misrepresentations to con an elderly or incompetent person into signing a deed.  Home Title Lock won't help in these situations, either.  Rental fraud? I've seen people without even any documented claim of ownership of a property pretend to be a landlord and rent it out.  In addition, there is a form of mortgage fraud that the victim is the mortgage company rather than a homeowner and that is a "straw buyer" fraud.  I haven't seen this fraud in at least 15 years, but it was big before the Great Recession.  

The bottom line is that I am guessing the number of cases that fit the description of Home Title Lock's advertisements is closer to 96 than 96 thousand, and if I'm right, the odds of you being a victim really is one in a million.  Note the odds of being struck by lightning are twice that, about 1/500,000.  

By the way, I'm apparently not the only person who thinks the problem described by Home Title Lock is overblown. I ran across this interesting blog post by attorney Nathan Hannah from Arizona. Attorney Hannah's also seems suspicious that the actual problem of title theft by forged deeds is rare, and he also analyzed a common title insurance policy and determined that it might cover such events anyway.  Also, whether or not it does, identity theft coverage through a homeowners' policy just might.  

(The subject of identity theft coverage in homeowners' policies opens another whole can of worms, one which might be the subject of a blog post later.  My limited personal experience with it leads me to believe that it is hard to make use of the coverage even when you are a victim of identity theft. A few years ago, I talked to a big table of consumer lawyers who do Fair Credit Reporting Act cases for consumers, and I asked if any of them had ever received a referral from an insurance company under an identity theft policy, or if they were ever retained to work for a consumer on an identity theft issue, and none of them had.  I just haven't seen evidence of an insurance company ever actually doing something for a policy holder on an identity theft case.)  

Dealerfloorplandefense.com website is online

 Our website, dealerfloorplandefense.com is up and running.  The floorplan part of this blog will eventually migrate there.  Check out the website and let me know what you think.  

Bankruptcy Courts Differ on whether Unpaid Floorplan Balances can be Discharged

 When floorplan lenders sue, generally they claim "conversion" for inventory sold "out of trust".  The lenders also either threaten to or actually do object to the discharge of these debts in bankruptcy. The courts are all over the map in how they treat these cases. Knowing this affects how we defend conversion cases by floorplan lenders.  Fundamentally, we have found during the initial lawsuit, it is crucial to raise a defense to a conversion claim to keep the creditor from getting a default judgment for conversion.  Next, it is best if a settlement can be arranged that gets rid of the conversion claim as well as the breach of contract claim.  If no settlement can be reached, our next approach is to make sure the creditor gets a judgment for breach of contract only, and not for conversion.  

Even if they just get a judgment for breach of contract, that doesn't mean that they can't still object to discharge in bankruptcy. If they do though, it is important for your bankruptcy attorney to fight back. If the creditor meets resistance, they will probably cut a deal.  This means that you need to save some money for the fight in bankruptcy court, and you need to find a bankruptcy attorney who handles contested "adversary" cases.  

The bottom line, if you as a businessperson are sued by a floorplan lender, call us. Keith Hagan and I have handled hundreds of floorplan cases over the last four years, and settled a good portion of them, even some cases that didn't seem capable of being settled at first.  We can only litigate the case in Indiana, but no matter where you are located in the United States, and whichever lender we may be able to negotiate on your behalf.  

Here's a comment on the subject from another law firm, Severson.com.  https://www.severson.com/consumer-finance/bankruptcy-courts-reach-different-conclusions-on-whether-floorplan-lenders-loans-were-dischargeable-when-debtor-converted-funds-and-went-out-of-trust/

Have you received a medical bill for services relating to a workers compensation covered injury? (in Indiana)

 If you live in Indiana and have received a bill for medical services relating to an injury covered by workers compensation, please call me.  Legally you should not be getting this type of bill.  (Unfortunately, we can't do cases for people outside of Indiana.)  

Have you been sued by Quality Leasing or QL Titling Trust?

 I have recently been made aware, that Quality Leasing and QL Titling Trust have been filing a number of lawsuits in Marion County Indiana. I haven't gone through all of these lawsuits, but I suspect most of them are attributable to the bankruptcy of Celadon Trucking in Late 2019.  

Owner operators were really in dire circumstances when Celadon abruptly declared bankruptcy. Many drivers were across the country from their home base suddenly facing the probability that they would not be paid for their trip and with cargo that could not be delivered, but could not be indefinitely kept on board a stranded truck.  

Truckers were left with leases with Quality Leasing that said they could only drive for Celadon, but they couldn't drive for Celadon. Many went into default.  Now many of the drivers are being sued by Quality Leasing.  If you are sued by Quality Leasing, please give us a call at 317-662-4529.  Our goal, quite frankly, is to combine the defenses of several similar cases to either settle the cases or make it economical to defend them all the way to trial.  

Have you been sued by Kinetic Advantage?

 Kinetic Advantage is a new automotive floorplan lender located in Hamilton County Indiana. The company was formed by former executives at DSC, a company which evolved into Nextgear Capital.  I suspect once they build their business, they will end up suing dealers in Indiana. When they do, we'll be ready to represent the defendants.  https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/altamont-capital-partners-invests-in-kinetic-advantage-301210030.html