Legal report: 15 complaints, counsel flags rise in scams; $1,000 penalty for unlicensed second offense
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Summary
Legal counsel told the Collection Service Board it logged 15 complaints (13 new, 2 reprised), noted an uptick in scam/fraud collection calls affecting elderly consumers, and reported escalating a civil penalty from $500 to $1,000 for a second offense by an unlicensed entity; the legal report was approved by the board.
Legal counsel Joe Wharton presented the board’s legal report at the Jan. 7 meeting and read 15 complaint numbers into the record, saying 13 were new and two were reprised. Wharton opened the floor to questions after reading the complaint list.
Wharton told the board he is "certainly seeing more" scam and fraud complaints than when he began with the board and described common patterns: unsolicited phone calls that purport to be from legitimate companies and that target elderly consumers. He reported one enforcement action where the board escalated a civil penalty from the usual $500 base to $1,000 as a second offense by an unlicensed entity.
Board members discussed enforcement priorities and licensing gaps. Wharton described the current statutory framework for law firms: the statute exempts law firms that operate in a traditional attorney–client representation role but generally requires a license when a firm buys judgments or effectively acts as a judgment collector.
The board moved to approve the legal report and approved it by roll-call vote. Members asked follow-up questions and thanked counsel for the summary. No public commenters were present to address the complaints that were read into the record.