Loja v. Main Street Acquisition Corp.

Dist. Ct. erred in granting defendants’ motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-alleged debtor’s action under Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), where Dist. Ct. based dismissal on finding that plaintiff was not qualifying “consumer” under FDCPA. Record showed that plaintiff had previously denied that subject debt had been incurred by him, and that plaintiff had prevailed in collection case that had previously been filed in small claims court. While Dist. Ct. found that plaintiff was not qualifying consumer, since plaintiff had failed to allege that he actually owed any debt, Ct. of Appeals found that plaintiff qualified as covered consumer, since defendants had alleged that plaintiff owed said debt. Also, on remand, plaintiff will be able to amend his complaint to reflect that instant credit card debt was for personal, family or household purchases as required to satisfy definition of qualifying debt under section 1692a(5) of FDCPA.