Tag: ascertainability precedent

3rd Circuit's Wrong Interpretation Leads to Removed Ruling and Denial Class Action Certification October 5, 2022 The U.S. Court of Appeal for the Third Circuit recently removed a ruling. This removal denies class certification that involves inaccurate consumer reports. The court held that the district court did not correctly interpret Section 1681g(a) of the FCRA. It also claimed that the district court incorrectly applied the appellate court's ascertainability precedent. The plaintiffs in the case claim that the defendant, a consumer reporting agency (CRA), supplied an inaccurate consumer report during a rental application process. Additionally, the defendants allegedly refused to resolve this inaccuracy until attaining proof of an error by using its sources. However, the plaintiffs claimed the defendant would not share what the sources were. After this, the plaintiffs filed a putative class action. They claimed that the defendant violated the FCRA by not disclosing all the information in the consumer's file and the sources when requested. Unfortunately, the district court did not grant class certification. Instead, the court stated that the class members did not satisfy Rule 23(b)(3)'s predominance and superiority requirements. Furthermore, it claimed the proposed class and subclass lacked ascertainability. After receiving the appealed case, the Third Circuit reviewed Section 1681g(a) to determine when it applied. Finally, the appellate court decided the plaintiffs incorrectly claimed that a third-party request could trigger Section 1681g(a). Instead, it explained that only direct requests from the consumer could activate it. Because of this, the appellate court held the district court's decision when they differentiated between the consumers who made direct requests and those who received courtesy copies of the rental reports used by property managers. Therefore, the appellate court affirmed the district court's denial of the plaintiff's request for an "All Requests" class. The Third Circuit also decided that the district court incorrectly narrowed the disclosure requirements of Section 1681g(a) to necessitate a consumer to request their consumer file rather than their consumer report. The appellate court held that nothing in the statute requires consumers to use any specific words to trigger the CRA's disclosure obligations, such as having to use the word "file" instead of "report." Therefore, the Third Circuit dismissed the district court's decision concerning the predominance requirement of class certification. They also remanded the case to the district court to consider whether the predominance and superiority requirements of Rule 23(b)(3) are satisfied concerning consumers in a purported subclass who directly requested their report or file. The appellate court also decided that the district court made errors in its analysis of the ascertainability of the proposed class. The decision emphasized how the district court required a high standard for administrative feasibility. The district court held that, if it were necessary to do a file-by-file review to identify class members, ascertainability would not be administratively feasible. However, the appellate court disagreed. The appellate court held that it would be administratively feasible to identify class members even if it would necessitate the review of individual records by cross-referencing large amounts of data from several sources. This decision shows the importance of complying with the FCRA. One of the best ways to do this is to partner with a background check company you can trust to keep up to date and comply with all FCRA regulations. Trust Pre-Employ to help ensure FCRA compliance today. Speak with a sales representative here. Source

Tag: ascertainability precedent

3rd Circuit’s Wrong Interpretation Leads to Removed Ruling and Denial Class Action Certification

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