Debt collector sues the wrong person then blames him for its mistake

Pressler & Pressler, a large debt collection law firm, sued the wrong Mark Hoyte. Although Hoyte’s social security number and date of birth did not match the ones in Pressler’s file, they continued with the lawsuit. Not until Pressler’s attorney talked to Hoyte in the hallway outside the courtroom did they finally admit that they had sued the wrong person and agree to dismiss the case. But the judge was not impressed. Judge Noach Dear asked Pressler’s attorney why his law firm didn’t make sure it had the right person before suing. The attorney responded by saying said that Pressler & Pressler used an online database called AnyWho to hunt for debtors. “So you just shoot in the dark against names; if there’s 16 Mark Hoytes, you go after without exactly knowing who, what, when and where?” Judge Dear asked.

But instead of conceding its mistake, Pressler’s lawyer then tried to blame Hoyte. He asked Hoyte if he had provided Pressler with any written proof that he wasn’t the debtor. Hoyte responded by saying that Pressler never asked for written proof. Incredibly, Pressler’s attorney then told Hoyte that “[s]o without any written proof that it’s not you, you would expect someone just, you know, to go on say-so”?

This is yet another example of the sue first, ask questions later approach used by most debt collectors. But for the debt collector to blame the innocent consumer, in open court and on the record, takes quite a bit of, ahem, nerve. Judge Dear is considering sanctions against Pressler for its easily-avoided mistake.

Hello, Collections? The Worm Has Turned | New York Times | November 27, 2009