Horia v. Nationwide Credit & Collection, Inc.

Dist. Ct. erred in dismissing on res judicata/claim preclusion grounds instant action alleging that defendant-debt collector violated Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) by failing to notify credit agency that plaintiff had disputed debt asserted by defendant, after defendant had reported to credit agency existence of debt. While plaintiff had previously filed and settled similar claim against defendant that alleged same violation of FDCPA regarding different debt, res judicata did not apply, since prior claim was not identical to instant claim, where defendant’s failure to notify credit agency with respect to each debt constituted separate wrong. Moreover, each alleged failure by defendant to notify credit agency could have caused additional harm to plaintiff’s credit score or peace of mind, and plaintiff was entitled to potential $1,000 statutory damages for each claim.