Trial Court Grants Lender's Motion to Dismiss Counterclaim with Prejudice

FLORIDA CASE LAW UPDATE
US BANK N.A., AS TRUSTEE V. GARRISON, No. 05-2018-CA-017475 (Fla. 18th Jud. Cir. Jan. 16, 2020)
In a foreclosure suit, the borrower asserted a counterclaim against the lender under the Florida Consumer Collections Practices Act (“FCCPA”), based on the monthly mortgage statement, the included payment coupon and the blank mailing envelope included with the monthly mortgage statements. The trial court granted the lender’s motion to dismiss the counterclaim with prejudice. The court ruled: (1) the monthly mortgage statements were not debt collection activity as that term is understood and defined by the FCCPA [note: the FCCPA does not define the term debt collection activity]; (2)  the payment coupons included with the monthly mortgage statements are part of the CFPB’s approved H-30(B) and without any material deviations, are not debt collection activity; and (3) the blank mailing envelope included with the monthly mortgage statements are not debt collection activity.