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Chapter 5 Repeated Debt Collection Calls as an Invasion of

Privacy

Charles Lorant, the founding partner of Alabama Injury Lawyers, P.C., has beenrepresenting plaintiffs and consumers in Alabama for over 20 years. Charlie received his B.A.from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and his J.D. from the University of AlabamaSchool of Law. While Charlie continues to represent injured individuals in their claims forpersonal injuries, fraud, and discrimination, for the past five years, his practice has becomefocused on representing consumers in their claims under the FCRA, FDCPA, and Alabama statelaw claims. While their firm is small, the lawyers have done battle with numerous giants acrossthe country, including Equifax, Experian, Trans Union, First USA, Wachovia, Bank of America,American Express, Direct Merchants/Metris, Capital One, National Financial Systems, RiskManagement Alternatives, Arrow, NCO, and countless others

Penny Hays is a partner with Alabama Injury Lawyers, P.C. Penny received her B.A.from Samford University and her J.D. from Cumberland School of Law in 1994. Penny has been

representing individuals in their claims for workers compensation, wrongful termination, andsocial security disability since joining the firm in 1995. For the past five years, her practice hasfocused on representing consumers in their claims under the FCRA, FDCPA, and Alabama statelaw claims. Alabama Injury Lawyers, P.C., is a small firm located in Birmingham, Alabama.

Section 5.1 is a state court complaint against a collection law firm and some of its debtcollectors alleging that they tortiously invaded the consumers privacy1 by calling repeatedly attheir home and workplaces, and discussing the consumers debt with third parties. Those actswere also alleged to constitute the tort of intentional infliction of mental distress.2 The complaintsought $74,500.00 in compensatory damages and punitive damages. Section 5.2 adds a debtcollector defendant. Section 5.3 is the Second Amended Complaint adding numerous claimsunder the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and adding attorney fees to the relief sought and

increasing the damages sought to $2 million.3Section 5.4 are the first set of interrogatories, section 5.5 are the first request for

admissions, section 5.6 is the first request for the production of documents, and section 5.7 is anotice of taking deposition, all serviced with the first state court complaint. Subsequentdiscovery and proceedings were conducted in federal court. Section 5.8 is a second request forthe production of documents repeating requests for employee compensation information from thecollection law firm and for documents relating to consumer suits against the debt collector.Section 5.9 is the third request for production of documents seeking debt collector employeespersonnel and complaint files, telephone bills and logs, contracts between the collector and thecreditor, and other documents. Section 5.10 is the fourth request for production of documentsregarding documents mentioned in the following depositions of the debt collectors. Section 5.11

is the deposition of an experienced debt collector who had been assigned the consumers accountfor collection. Section 5.12 is the deposition of the debt collector owner who was active in thebusiness after she had reviewed the consumers tape recordings of two harassing telephone calls.

1 National Consumer Law Center, Fair Debt Collection 10.3 (5th ed. 2004).2Id. at 10.2.3Id. at Ch. 5.

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Section 5.13 is a memorandum of law opposing the debt collectors motion for summaryjudgment. It argues that the evidence established a campaign of intentional harassment and falsethreats of arrest, garnishment, and suit, and insults that resulted in severe physical and emotionaldistress, invaded the consumers privacy, and that the employer had failed to exercise duediligence and ordinary care in supervising its employees despite numerous prior complaints. The

memorandum of law further argues that the defendants argument that their liability for attorneyfees under the FDCPA should terminate with their admission of FDCPA liability is erroneousbecause the consumers are entitled to a trial on the FDCPA actual damages including mentalanguish. Section 5.14 is a consent judgment for the consumers in the amount of $90,000.00.

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5.1 Complaint

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, ALABAMA

[Consumer 1] and [Consumer 2],Plaintiffs,

v.

Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Ken Jones, Jason Davidson, and Fictitious Defendants A, B, C, D, E,F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, and O, all of whose true and correct names are not further known toPlaintiffs at this time, but when ascertained, will be added by way of amendment. Nevertheless,each of said fictitious parties Defendants participated in, contributed to, and conspired with thenamed Defendants herein to commit the acts that injured and damaged the Plaintiffs as set forthherein below, all acting as collectors and operating the corporate entity collecting corporate

accounts. Each of said parties, named and fictitious, acted as principal and agent, each of theother, and combined and concurred each with the other in committing the acts that injured thePlaintiffs herein,

Defendants.

COMPLAINT

1. The Plaintiffs, [Consumer 1] and [Consumer 2] are residents and citizens of the Stateof Alabama and are over the age of twenty-one (21) years. Each brings this action by his and herindividual, separate claim.

2. The Defendant, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., whose correct corporate status is unknownto Plaintiffs at this time, was, at all respects and at all times relevant herein, doing business in theState of Alabama.

3. The Defendant, Ken Jones, was at all times pertinent hereto an agent, officer oremployee of Defendant Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C.

4. The Defendant, Jason Davidson, was at all times pertinent hereto an agent, officer oremployee of Defendant Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C.

5. Fictitious Defendants A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, and O, are all entities orindividuals who contributed to or participated in, or authorized the acts and did the thingscomplained of which caused the injuries and damages to the Plaintiffs as hereinafter set forth, inthe State of Alabama. Each of said fictitious Defendants participated in, and contributed to the

acts that injured and damaged the Plaintiffs as set forth herein below, all acting as collectors andoperating the corporate entity collecting corporate accounts. Each of said parties, named andfictitious, acted as principal and agent, each of the other, and combined and concurred each withthe other in committing the acts that injured the Plaintiffs herein.

COUNT ONE: INVASION OF THE RIGHT OF PRIVACY

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6. The Plaintiffs adopt the averments and allegations of paragraphs 1 through 5hereinbefore as if fully set forth herein and add thereto the following:

7. The Defendants undertook a series of communications to the home and workplace ofthe Plaintiffs constituting an invasion of privacy, as set out and described in the common law ofthe State of Alabama. Said communications were harassing, unreasonable, systematic and

continuous in number and made in disregard for Plaintiffs right to privacy; after repeatedrequests that the Defendants no longer contact them. Said communications were made to force,coerce, harass, frighten, embarrass and/or humiliate the Plaintiffs into paying a debt.

8. Said invasions were intentional, willful, and malicious, and violated the Plaintiffsprivacy. Said invasions were a regular, continuous and systematic, harassing and unreasonablecollection effort contrary to the law of the State of Alabama and violated the Plaintiffs privacy.Plaintiffs aver that the Defendants telephoned the Plaintiffs on multiple occasions demandingpayment, threatening to send the sheriff to pick them up, and threatening the Plaintiffs physicalwell being.

9. Plaintiffs also aver that Defendants telephoned their respective places of employmentand spoke with third parties regarding the Plaintiffs.

10. The Plaintiffs aver that the communications were made by Ken Jones and JasonDavidson who were the employees of and acting on behalf of the named Defendant.11. Plaintiffs were harassed, hounded, and threatened. Plaintiffs repeatedly and

continuously begged and pleaded with Defendants to stop calling, that the calls were creatinggreat emotional distress, physical sickness, and mental pain and anguish. Defendants refused tocease and desist the calling, hounding, threatening, and harassment. Defendants havecontinuously and repeatedly called Plaintiffs at home and work after being told not to call andthat the calls were making them physically sick and creating great emotional distress and mentalpain and anguish.

12. As a proximate consequence of said invasion of the right of privacy, Defendantshave caused the Plaintiffs to suffer great worry, loss of sleep, anxiety, embarrassment,nervousness, physical sickness, and physical and mental injury, pain, anguish, fear and fright.

COUNT TWO: INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS

13. Plaintiffs adopt the averments and allegations of Paragraphs 1 through 12hereinbefore as if more fully set forth herein and add thereto the following.

14. The Defendants continual refusal to cease communicating with the Plaintiffs was anintentional infliction of emotional distress, willfully and intentionally undertaken, knowing thatthe same was designed to abuse and coerce, confuse and create great mental and physical painand damage, so that the Plaintiffs would pay a debt. As a proximate cause thereof, the Plaintiffswere caused great mental anguish, physical sickness, embarrassment, loss of sleep, and fear andintimidation.

15. The Defendants, named and fictitious, are all corporations and/or individuals, andhave committed the acts set out in the above paragraph by directing communications to thePlaintiffs in the State of Alabama.

16. As a proximate consequence of said intentional infliction of emotional distress, theDefendants have caused the Plaintiffs great worry, humiliation, embarrassment, loss of sleep,anxiety, nervousness, physical sickness, physical and mental suffering, pain, anguish and fright.

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COUNT THREE: NEGLIGENT TRAINING AND SUPERVISION

17. Plaintiffs adopt the averments and allegations of Paragraphs 1 through 12hereinbefore as if more fully set forth herein and add thereto the following.

18. Defendants, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C. and fictitious defendants 1 through 10,

knew or should have known of the conduct set forth herein which was directed at and visitedupon the Plaintiffs.19. Defendants knew or should have known that said conduct was improper.20. Defendants negligently and wantonly failed to train and supervise collectors in order

to prevent said improper conduct.21. As a result of Defendants negligence and wantonness, the Plaintiffs suffered

humiliation, loss of sleep, anxiety, nervousness, physical sickness, physical and mental suffering,pain, and anguish.

AMOUNT OF DAMAGES DEMANDED

WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Plaintiffs, each separately and severally,demand judgment against Defendants, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Ken Jones, and JasonDavidson, in the sum of Seventy-Four Thousand, Five Hundred Dollars ($74,500.00) incompensatory damages and punitive damages, hence this suit. Though this Complaint spells outclaims and refers to several, separate and different counts, the Plaintiffs claim only the singleamount of damages set out in this paragraph at this stage of these proceedings, and Plaintiffsreserve the right to file and make amendments to this Complaint as to causes of action andamounts claimed as discovery is produced pursuant to discovery propounded at this stage ofthese proceedings and as the Defendants make discovery.

____________________________________[Attorney for Plaintiffs]

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5.2 Amended Complaint Adding Party



v.



Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS AMENDED COMPLAINT

Come now the Plaintiffs in the above styled cause and hereby amend their Complaint asfollows:

1. The Plaintiffs hereby substitute Kathryn Neuheisel for fictitious Defendant A as anadditional Defendant in this matter.2. The Defendant, Kathryn Neuheisel, was at all times pertinent hereto an agent, officer,

owner or employee of Defendant Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C.

COUNT FOUR

3. The Plaintiffs hereby adopt, incorporate, and reallege each and every allegationcontained in the Plaintiffs original Complaint and Paragraphs 1 and 2 herein above as if fully setout herein.

4. Defendant Kathryn Neuheisel was under a duty to properly train and supervise her

agents, officers, and/or employees collecting on past due accounts.5. Defendant Kathryn Neuheisel knew or should have known of the conduct set forth inthe Plaintiffs Complaint which was directed at and visited upon the Plaintiffs.

6. Defendant Kathryn Neuheisel knew or should have known that said conduct wasimproper.

7. Defendant Kathryn Neuheisel negligently, intentionally, and wantonly failed to trainand supervise collectors to prevent said improper conduct.

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8. As a result of Defendant Kathryn Neuheisels negligence and wantonness, thePlaintiffs suffered humiliation, loss of sleep, anxiety, nervousness, physical sickness, physicaland mental suffering, pain, and anguish.

AMOUNT OF DAMAGES DEMANDED

WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Plaintiffs, each separately and severally,demand judgment against Defendants, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Ken Jones, Jason Davidson,and Kathryn Neuheisel in the sum of Seventy-Four Thousand, Five Hundred Dollars($74,500.00) in compensatory damages and punitive damages, hence this suit. Though thisComplaint spells out claims and refers to several, separate and different counts, the Plaintiffsclaim only the single amount of damages set out in this paragraph at this stage of theseproceedings, and Plaintiffs reserve the right to file and make amendments to this Complaint as tocauses of action and amounts claimed as discovery is produced pursuant to discoverypropounded at this stage of these proceedings and as the Defendants make discovery.


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5.3 Amended Complaint Adding FDCPA Claim to Tort Claims



v.



Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS SECOND AMENDED COMPLAINT

Come now the Plaintiffs in the above styled cause and hereby file this Second AmendedComplaint to add the following Count and increase the ad damnum as follows:

COUNT FIVE

1. The Plaintiffs hereby adopt, incorporate, and reallege each and every allegationcontained in the Plaintiffs Complaint and Amended Complaint as if fully set out herein.

2. The Defendant, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., (Neuheisel), is a company engaged inthe business of collecting consumer debt and regularly collects consumer debts. Accordingly,Neuheisel is a debt collector as defined in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C.1692 a (6).

3. Ken Jones, Jason Davidson, and Kathryn Neuheisel are the employees and agents ofNeuheisel.

4. The Defendants have engaged in acts and practices in violation of the Fair Debt

Collection Practices Act (hereinafter referred to as FDCPA) in collection activity with respectto the Plaintiff, [Consumer 1]s, alleged personal debt.5. The Defendants violated 15 U.S.C 1692b(2) by communicating with a person other

than the consumer and indicating that the Plaintiff and or Plaintiffs owed a debt.6. The Defendants violated 1692c(a)(1) by contacting the Plaintiffs at a time or place

Defendants knew or should have known was inconvenient to the Plaintiffs. The Defendants alsoviolated 1692c(a)(3) by continuing to contact the Plaintiffs at their places of employment after

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Defendants knew or had reason to know that the Plaintiffs were prohibited from receiving suchcommunications.

7. The Defendants violated 1692d by engaging in conduct the natural consequence ofwhich was to harass, oppress, or abuse the Plaintiffs. The Defendants further violated1692d(1) by threatening the use of violence or other means of harm to the Plaintiffs; d(2) by

using language the natural consequence of which is to abuse the hearer; and d(5) by repeatedlytelephoning the Plaintiffs with the intent to annoy, abuse, or harass the Plaintiffs in an effort tocoerce them into paying a debt.

8. The Defendants also violated 1692e(3), (4), and (5) by making false and misleadingrepresentations to the Plaintiffs. At the time the Defendants made these representations to thePlaintiffs, the Defendants knew, or should have known, that said representations were false. Saidrepresentations made by Defendants were made recklessly, willfully, and/or intentionally.

9. Finally, the Defendants violated 1692f by using unfair and/or unconscionable meansto attempt to collect a debt.

10. As a proximate result of the Defendants actions, the Plaintiffs were caused to sufferactual damages for worry, shame, humiliation, loss of sleep, anxiety, nervousness, physical

sickness, physical and mental suffering, pain, anguish and fright.11. As a result of Defendants violations of the FDCPA, the Plaintiffs are entitled to anaward of statutory damages, actual damages, costs, and attorneys fees.

12. Plaintiffs further amend their ad damnum and Amount of Damages Demandedtherein to seek compensatory damages and punitive damages against the Defendants in the sumof Two Million Dollars.

WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Plaintiffs hereby demand judgment onall counts against Defendants, Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Kathryn Neuheisel, Ken Jones andJason Davidson in the amount of Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000.00) in compensatory andpunitive damages. Plaintiffs also demand actual damages, attorneys fees and costs.


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5.4 Interrogatories



v.



Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS FIRST INTERROGATORIES TO DEFENDANTS

Come now the Plaintiffs and request the Defendants, separately and severally, to answerthe following interrogatories, within forty-five (45) days after service upon you. The Plaintiffsrequest that the Defendants responses be in the form required by the Alabama Rules of Civil

Procedure.

1. Please identify the name, address, job title, and job duties and each and every personwith factual information concerning the following:

a. All communications, whether written or by telephone, made to the Plaintiffs;b. All efforts to collect on the Plaintiffs account, account number [account number];c. The Defendants policies and procedures regarding collection of accounts; andd. The Defendants policies and procedures for monitoring collection activities,

including, but not limited to, telephone calls.

2. Please identify each and every supervisor of collectors for Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C.

3. Please identify each and every person who spoke with, called, or contacted thePlaintiffs, including their names, all assumed names or aliases, addresses, and home and businessphone numbers, the dates they called, the reasons for such call or contact, and what specificallywas said to Plaintiffs. State the entire, full, total conversation.

4. State whether or not you or any agent, servant, or employee has telephoned Plaintiffsat any time, and:

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a. State the date and time of each call and the nature of the call or calls.b. State what was said, in detail, by and between your agent, servant or employee

and the Plaintiffs.c. State the name, and any assumed names, and employment of each person making

such call or calls, and the purpose of said call.

5. State whether you or your agent, servant or employee has called the Plaintiffsneighbors, spouse, relatives, or employment at any time in connection with an alleged account orfor any other reason.

a. State the dates, name of each person making the call or calls, the purpose of eachsuch call, and the details of what was said between said agent, servant oremployee to Plaintiffs neighbors, spouse, relatives or employer.

6. Identify the employees of each Defendant who had any contact whatsoever with thePlaintiffs.

a. State everything said in detail by all parties involved in the contact and the date of

same. Specifically, any employee who called the Plaintiffs or directed any writtencommunication to Plaintiffs.

7. State the principal place of business of each corporate Defendant herein.

8. List each and every insurance policy which is applicable to the Plaintiffs claims,including the amount of coverage and applicable deductible.

9. State the name, address and qualifications of any and all experts you have retained,hired or consulted in this case, which are expected to testify. For each,

a. State the subject matter on which any and all such expert witnesses are expectedto testify.

b. Summarize the substance of the facts and opinions to which any such expertwitness is expected to testify, including in that summary the grounds for eachopinion.

c. List all texts, articles, manuals, or any other materials used by the expert inpreparation of this matter.

10. State the names, addresses, telephone numbers and places of employment of allpersons who have factual knowledge regarding the facts and circumstances involving thislawsuit.

____________________________________[Attorney For Plaintiffs]

PLEASE SERVE SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH THE COMPLAINT IN THIS CAUSE

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5.5 Request for Admissions



v.



Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS FIRST REQUEST FOR ADMISSIONS

Come now Plaintiffs and request the defendants, each separately and severally, to admitto the truth of the following within the time required by law and the Alabama Rules of CivilProcedure:

1. That Defendants communicated with Plaintiffs.2. That Defendants telephoned the Plaintiffs residence.3. That the Defendants telephoned [Consumer 1] at her place of employment.4. That the Defendants telephoned [Consumer 2] at his place of employment.5. That Defendants telephoned the Plaintiffs in the State of Alabama.6. That Defendants undertook to collect an indebtedness from Plaintiffs in the State of

Alabama.7. That Defendants undertook to enforce and secure an alleged claim against Plaintiffs

within the past two (2) years.8. That the Defendants who communicated with Plaintiffs were not licensed attorneys.

9. That all persons telephoning the Plaintiffs residence concerning an allegedindebtedness were not licensed attorneys.10. That all persons telephoning the Plaintiffs places of employment concerning an

alleged indebtedness were not licensed attorneys.11. That the Defendants were told by the Plaintiff, [Consumer 1], to stop calling her at

work.12. That the Defendants were told by the Plaintiff, [Consumer 2], to stop calling him at

work.

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13. That the Defendants spoke with third parties at [Consumer 1]s place of employment.14. That the Defendants spoke with third parties at [Consumer 2]s place of employment.15. That the Defendants were told by the Plaintiffs to stop calling them at home.16. That Defendants were notified and had knowledge of notice to cease and desist

communication with Plaintiffs.

17. That the Defendants are not licensed to practice law in the State of Alabama.

______________________________[Attorney For Plaintiffs]


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5.6 Document Production Request



v.



Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS FIRST REQUEST FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS DIRECTED

TO DEFENDANTS

Pursuant to the Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiffs request that Defendantsproduce the documents herein described and permit Plaintiffs and their attorneys to inspect them

and copy such of them as they may desire. Plaintiffs request that the documents be madeavailable for this inspection at the offices of counsel for the Plaintiffs, Alabama Injury Lawyers,P.C., 2204 Lakeshore Drive, Suite 200, Birmingham, Alabama 35209.

Plaintiffs further request that this inspection be permitted by Defendants immediatelyafter Defendants response to this request has been filed, and that their attorneys be permitted toremove from Defendants custody such documents as they desire to copy, on the understandingthat Plaintiffs attorneys will be responsible for these documents so long as they are in theirpossession, that copying will be done at Plaintiffs expense, and that the documents will bepromptly returned immediately after copying has been completed.

This request is intended to cover all documents in possession of the Defendants, orsubject to its custody and control, regardless of location.

As used in this request, the term document means every writing or record of every typeand description that is in the possession, control or custody of Defendants, including but withoutlimitation to, correspondence, memoranda, stenographic or handwritten notes, studies,publications, books, pamphlets, pictures, films, voice recordings, reports, surveys; minutes orstatistical compilations, data processing cards or computer records or tapes or print-outs;agreements, communications, state and federal governmental hearings, and reports,correspondence, telegrams, memoranda, summaries or records of telephone conversations,summaries or records of personal conversations or interviews, diaries, graphs, reports,

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notebooks, note charts, plans, drawings, sketches, maps, summaries or records of meetings orconferences, summaries or reports of investigations or negotiations, opinions or reports ofconsultants, photographs, motion picture film, brochures, pamphlets, advertisements, circulars,press releases, drafts, letters, any marginal comments appearing on any document, and all otherwritings.

REQUESTS FOR PRODUCTION

Please produce the following:

1. The original file, including original file folder, all memoranda, statements, letters,notations, reports, reports of telephone calls, records of all calls, or other written memoranda,and all communications in Defendants files concerning or pertaining to [Consumer 1] or[Consumer 2], or in whatever form the name is reflected in Defendants records.

2. Any and all collection manuals, all written procedural instructions and regulationsregarding and governing collection activities, collection procedures, and collection practices

utilized by the Defendants for the three (3) years prior to the filing of the lawsuit herein.3. Each and every manual, collectors handbook, document, book, record, instruction,regulation, and memoranda concerning collections from consumers, and collections on consumeraccounts, including, but not limited to, telephone calls and personal visitations in the control ofor possession of Defendants, which was in effect at any time during the two (2) years prior to thefiling of this lawsuit.

4. Any and all documents, written statements or reports, records of any kind in yourpossession regarding the collection of an alleged debt from Plaintiffs.

5. All interoffice communications concerning, relating to, or pertaining to, the Plaintiffs.6. Any and all documents, letters, and records reflecting attempts to collect sums of

money from the Plaintiffs.7. A copy of any and all documents which you allege create an obligation to you

concerning the Plaintiffs herein.8. All computer printouts or sheets or copies of computer screens regarding the

Plaintiffs, the Plaintiffs account, collection activity on the account, and the alleged debt.9. All code indexes for computer printouts, including abbreviation and symbol lists,

computer training and procedures manuals, and computer indexes, if separate from policies andprocedures manuals previously requested, which were in effect at any time during the two (2)years prior to the filing of this lawsuit.

10. The salary, commission, and bonus records for collectors, supervisors, andemployees involved in your debt collecting operations during the two (2) years prior to the filingof this lawsuit.

11. All manuals and guidelines governing the payment of salary, commission, andbonuses for employees, collecting money in your collection operations, including collectors,supervisors, directors, and persons in control, which were in effect at any time during the two (2)years prior to the filing of this lawsuit.

12. All material, including video and audio tapes, pertaining to training by or for theDefendants and their employees regarding collection efforts which were in effect at any timeduring the two (2) years prior to the filing of this lawsuit.

13. A current organizational chart for each Defendant.

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14. All documents between Defendants and any other person or persons or entityregarding the Plaintiffs and collection of an alleged debt.

15. Copies of any litigation filed against the Defendants within the last three (3) yearsalleging invasion of privacy or Fair Debt Collection Practices Act violations with respect tocollection efforts made by Defendants.

16. A list of all current employees engaged in the collection of debts such as the debt youare attempting to collect from Plaintiffs, their positions and responsibilities.17. Any insurance policies in effect at any time during the two (2) years prior to the

filing of this lawsuit covering the Defendants for actions against the Defendants such as isalleged in the complaint herein.

18. All financial reports of the Defendants for the past two years.19. All income tax returns of the Defendants for the past two years.20. All internal reports and memoranda of the Defendants regarding the use of its

collection notices and collection efforts.21. All documents relating to the maintenance of procedures by the Defendants adapted

to avoid any violation of a persons right to privacy.

22. All documents relating to the maintenance of procedures by the Defendants adaptedto avoid any violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.23. Copies of all reports and documents utilized by an expert which Defendants propose

to call at trial.24. Copies of any and all documents which evidence the purchase of any account of the

Plaintiffs from any source.25. Copies of all tape recordings of conversations between the Plaintiffs and Defendants.26. Copies of all video tape recordings made to monitor the activities of collectors while

they are attempting to collect debts.27. Copies of any and all documents which evidence or govern the agreement between

this Defendant and the seller of the account of Plaintiffs for which this Defendant has attemptedcollections.

28. All exhibits which Defendants propose to introduce at trial.

This Request shall be deemed continuing so as to require further and supplementalproduction if Defendants obtains additional documents required to be produced herein betweenthe time of the initial production and the time of trial.



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5.7 Notice of Taking Deposition



v.



Defendants.

NOTICE OF TAKING DEPOSITION

To: Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C.64 East Broadway Road, Ste 245Tempe, AZ 85282

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that pursuant to Rule 30(b)(5) and (6) of the Alabama Rules of CivilProcedure, the Plaintiffs herein will take the deposition of the employee(s) of the Defendant,Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., or the correct designation thereof, who are most knowledgeableconcerning:

1. Any and all contact with the Plaintiffs, whether by phone, letter, or any other means;2. The policies and procedures of handling collection of past due accounts;3. The policies and procedures of monitoring collectors in their collection activities;4. All collection efforts by the Defendant to collect the debt for account number [account

number], the subject of this litigation.

DATE: May 17, 2002

TIME: 10:00 a.m.

PLACE: Alabama Injury Lawyers, P.C.2204 Lakeshore Drive, Suite 200Birmingham, AL 35209

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The Plaintiffs request that the above named-deponent(s) produce the following

documents at the time of the taking of his/her deposition. For purposes of this request:document means any written, recorded or graphic matter however produced or reproduced andincludes but is not limited to memoranda, notes, internal communications, letters, lists, computer

generated papers, reports or any other writings (either hand or typewritten) by whatever namecalled.This request is intended to cover all documents in your possession or subject to your

custody and control, whether they are located at your principal place of business, another office,the office of your counsel or at your home or otherwise subject to your access or control.

1. Any and all records in the possession and control or custody of the Defendants,including internal reports, instructions, and manuals regarding its collection activities, efforts,notices, and operations manuals utilized by the Defendants, and all exhibits in the Defendantspossession to introduce at trial.

2. All documents relating to the alleged debt of Plaintiffs and the collection thereof,

including but not limited to account number [account number].3. All material, including video and audio tapes, pertaining to training by or for theDefendants and their employees regarding collection efforts.

4. All internal reports and memoranda of the Defendants regarding the use of itscollection notices and collection efforts.

5. All operation manuals utilized by the Defendants.6. All documents relating to the maintenance of procedures by the Defendants adapted to

avoid any violation of a persons right to privacy.7. All exhibits which Defendants propose to introduce at trial.8. The original file and file folder regarding the Plaintiffs.9. Produce and attach a true and correct copy of each collectors personnel file that has

ever spoken with or communicated with the Plaintiffs.10. Produce and attach the compensation scale, including salaries, incentives, and

bonuses for every collector of Defendants that have ever spoken with or communicated with thePlaintiffs.

11. The organizational structure of each corporate defendant herein.

Said depositions shall continue from day to day until completed.


PLEASE SERVE SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH THE COMPLAINT IN THIS CAUSE.

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5.8 Second Document Production Request



v.

Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Ken Jones, Jason Davidson, and Kathryn Neuheisel,Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS SECOND REQUEST FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS

DIRECTED TO DEFENDANTS

Pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiffs request that Defendantsproduce the documents herein described and permit Plaintiffs and their attorneys to inspect themand copy such of them as they may desire. Plaintiffs request that the documents be madeavailable for this inspection at the offices of counsel for the Plaintiffs, Alabama Injury Lawyers,P.C., 401 Office Park Drive, Birmingham, Alabama 35223.

Plaintiffs further request that this inspection be permitted by Defendants immediatelyafter Defendants response to this request has been filed, and that their attorneys be permitted toremove from Defendants custody such documents as they desire to copy, on the understandingthat Plaintiffs attorneys will be responsible for these documents so long as they are in theirpossession, that copying will be done at Plaintiffs expense, and that the documents will be

promptly returned immediately after copying has been completed.This request is intended to cover all documents in possession of the Defendants, orsubject to its custody and control, regardless of location.




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1. The salary, commission, and bonus records for collectors, supervisors, and employeesinvolved in your debt collecting operations during the two (2) years prior to the filing of thislawsuit.

2. All manuals and guidelines governing the payment of salary, commission, andbonuses for employees, collecting money in your collection operations, including collectors,supervisors, directors, attorneys, and persons in control, which were in effect at any time duringthe two (2) years prior to the filing of this lawsuit.

3. Copies of any litigation filed against the Defendants within the last three (3) yearsalleging invasion of privacy or Fair Debt Collection Practices Act violations with respect tocollection efforts made by Defendants.

____________________________________

[Attorney for Plaintiffs]

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5.9 Third Document Production Request



v.

Neuheisel Law Firm, P.C., Ken Jones, Jason Davidson, and Kathryn Neuheisel,Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS THIRD REQUEST FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS DIRECTED

TO DEFENDANTS

Pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiffs request that Defendantsproduce the documents herein described and permit Plaintiffs and their attorneys to inspect themand copy such of them as they may desire. Plaintiffs request that the documents be madeavailable for this inspection at the offices of counsel for the Plaintiffs, Alabama Injury Lawyers,P.C., 401 Office Park Drive, Birmingham, Alabama 35223.

Plaintiffs further request that this inspection be permitted by Defendants immediatelyafter Defendants response to this request has been filed, and that their attorneys be permitted toremove from Defendants custody such documents as they desire to copy, on the understandingthat Plaintiffs attorneys will be responsible for these documents so long as they are in theirpossession, that copying will be done at Plaintiffs expense, and that the documents will be

promptly returned immediately after copying has been completed.This request is intended to cover all documents in possession of the Defendants, orsubject to its custody and control, regardless of location.




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22


1. Produce and attach a true and correct copy of each collectors personnel, payroll file,training file, and all complaint letters received regarding each collector that has ever spoken withor communicated with the Plaintiffs.

2. Provide a copy of each and every telephone bill or log for every telephone line usedby Defendants or any of its agents for collection calls from December 1, 2001 through June 1,2002.

3. A copy of the contract entered into between Collect America and the Defendantsregarding this account and/or the portfolio which contained this account.

4. A copy of the contract entered into between MBNA and the Defendants regarding thisaccount and/or the portfolio which contained this account, if any.

5. A copy of each and every collection and monitoring criteria required by CollectAmerica or MBNA.

6. A copy of each and every form used to monitor the collection of accounts.7. A copy of each and every form used to monitor the collection of Collect America and

MBNA accounts.8. A copy of each and every monitoring form completed for Collect America for 2001and 2002.

9. A copy of each and every complaint filed against any of the Defendant with theFederal Trade Commission, United States Attorney General and/or all states Attorneys Generalfrom 1995 to the present.

10. A copy of each and every Consent Decree, Consent Order, Order or Injunctionentered against the Defendants from 1995 to the present.

11. A copy of each and every monitoring procedure, including all form documents,maintained by the Defendant from 2000 to the present.


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23

5.10 Fourth Document Production Request



v.

Neuheisel Law Firm, et al.,Defendants.

PLAINTIFFS FOURTH REQUEST FOR PRODUCTION

1. The licensing agreement between CUBE Recovery and Collect America;2. All materials provided to Neuheisel Law Firm, CUBE Recovery, or Kate Neuheiselfrom Collect America including all books provided in the fall of 1999 and April 2003;

3. All case law received from Collect America;4. The 3-ring binder received from Collect America which is used in training all

collectors;5. The FDCPA Blue Book which was used in training collectors;6. All memos received from Collect America on policies, procedures or legal issues;7. The form used for lawsuit requests by collectors;8. All collectors meeting memos and training materials which are provided to collectors

during the monthly meetings from June 2001 through June of 2002;

9. All monthly reviews performed on Jason Davidson and Ken Jones;10. All performance evaluations performed on Jason Davidson and Ken Jones;11. All collection memos provided to collectors from June 2001 through June 2002;12. A copy of all testing given to collectors from June 2001 through June 2002;13. A copy of all letters received from attorneys from January 2001 through the present

complaining about the collection activities or conduct of Neuheisel collectors.14. A copy of all complaint letters received from consumers from January 2001 through

the present complaining about the collection activities or conduct of Neuheisel collectors.15. A copy of all complaints received from Better Business Bureaus from January 2001

through the present complaining about the collection activities or conduct of Neuheiselcollectors.

16. A copy of all bar complaints made to the Arizona State Bar from January 2001through the present.17. All memos received by Ken Jones from anyone at Neuheisel Law Firm while an

employee of Neuheisel Law Firm.18. A copy of all of Ken Jones laminated cards provided to him by Neuheisel Law Firm.19. The legal referral form completed by Ken Jones for suit to be filed against

[Consumer 2].20. The name of the lawsuit wherein Ken Jones testified by deposition.

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24

21. A copy of Ken Jones and Jason Davidsons W-2s for 2001 and 2002.22. A copy of each and every document recognizing, naming, or in any way

memorializing that Ken Jones and /or Jason Davidson received any monthly or daily prizes andawards, i.e. collector of the most gross dollars, etc.

23. A copy of all talk-offs or scripts used by Ken Jones while an employee at Neuheisel

Law Firm.24. A copy of all talk-offs or scripts used by Ken Jones while an employee at NeuheiselLaw Firm.

25. Neuheisel Law Firms monthly report cards from Collect America from November2001 through March, 2002.

26. All phone records whether from Collect America or Touch America from December2001 through February 2002, which have not been provided. Due to the voluminous nature ofthese documents, please just make them available for inspection and copying if necessary.


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25

5.11 Deposition of Collection Agency Employee

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0001

1 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

2 SOUTHERN DIVISION

3 [CONSUMER 1] AND )

[CONSUMER 2], )

4 )

Plaintiffs, )

5 )

v. ) CIVIL ACTION NUMBER

6 )

NEUHEISEL LAW FIRM, )

7 ET AL., )

Defendants. )

8

9

10

DEPOSITION OF KENNETH JONES

11 9:18 a.m.

June 17, 2003

1213

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

0002

1 STIPULATIONS

2 IT IS STIPULATED AND AGREED by and

3 between the parties through their respective counsel

4 that the deposition of KENNETH JONES, a witness in

5 the above-entitled cause, may be taken before Dionne

6 M. Motley, a Court Reporter and Notary Public for

7 the State of Alabama, at the law offices of Lloyd,

8 Gray & Whitehead, P.C., 2501 20th Place South, Suite

9 300, Birmingham, Alabama 35223, on the 17th day of

10 June, 2003, commencing at 9:18 a.m., pursuant to the

11 Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure.

12

13

14

15 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND AGREED that16 the signature to and the reading of the deposition

17 by the witness is waived, the deposition to have the

18 same force and effect as if full compliance had been

19 had with all laws and rules of court relating to the

20 taking of the depositions.

21

22

23

0003

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1 STIPULATIONS (continued)

2

3 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND AGREED that

4 it shall not be necessary for any objections to be

5 made by counsel to any questions except as to form

6 or leading questions, and that counsel for the

7 parties may make objections and assign grounds at

8 the time of trial or at the time said deposition is

9 offered in evidence or prior thereto.

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

2122

23

0004

1 A P P E A R A N C E S

2 For The Plaintiffs:

3 Ms. Penny D. Hays

4 Attorney at Law

5 Lorant & Associates, P.C.

6 401 Office Park Drive

7 Mountain Brook, Alabama 35223

8

9 For The Defendants:

10 Ms. Laura C. Nettles and Mr. Chris D. Cobb

11 Attorneys at Law

12 Lloyd, Gray & Whitehead, P.C.

13 2501 20th Place South, Suite 300

14 Birmingham, Alabama 35223

15

16 Also Present:

17 Mr. Brett Garrett, and

18 Ms. Kathryn A. Neuheisel

19 Reported by:

20 Dionne M. Motley

21 EDMONDSON REPORTING & VIDEO

22 2119 3rd Avenue North, Suite 205

23 Birmingham, Alabama 35203

00051 I N D E X

2 Page(s)

3 Examination by Ms. Hays....................... 6-221

4 Reporter Certification.......................... 223

5

6 E X H I B I T S

7

8 Page/Line:

9 Plaintiff's Exhibit No. 1................... 65:20

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11 Plaintiff's Exhibit No. 3.................. 139:10





16

17

18

19

20 I, Dionne M. Motley, a Court Reporter and

21 Notary Public for the State of Alabama, acting as

22 commissioner, certify that there came before me at

23 the law offices of Lloyd, Gray & Whitehead, P.C.,

0006

1 2501 20th Place South, Suite 300, Birmingham,

2 Alabama 35223, on the 17th day of June, 2003,

3 beginning at 9:18 a.m., KENNETH JONES, witness in

4 the above cause, for oral examination, whereupon the

5 following proceedings were had:

67 KENNETH JONES,

8 having been first duly sworn,

9 testified as follows:

10

11 THE REPORTER: Usual stipulations?

12 (Affirmed by counsel.)

13

14 EXAMINATION BY MS. HAYS:

15 Q. Will you state your name for the record?

16 A. Kenneth M. Jones.

17 Q. And your current address?

18 A. [Redacted.]

19

20 Q. What's your phone number there?

21 A. I'm sorry?

22 Q. What's your phone number there?

23 A. [Redacted.]

0007

1 Q. And are you still employed with Neuheisel Law

2 Firm?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. And do you work in their office in Tempe,

5 Arizona?

6 A. Yes.

7 Q. When did you first begin your employment at

8 Neuheisel?

9 A. April 9, 2001, I believe.10 Q. Have you ever given a deposition before?

11 A. Once.

12 Q. When was that?

13 A. Sometime in the year 2000. Well, could be

14 early 2001.

15 Q. Was that in reference to work, or was that a

16 personal matter?

17 A. Work.

18 Q. Where were you working?

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19 A. Well, I would say more personal.

20 Q. All right. Tell me about what kind of case

21 it was when you gave this deposition.

22 A. Without mentioning companies, I was a witness

23 for a company I used to work for. I think they were

0008

1 being sued for something, and they asked me to be a

2 witness.

3 Q. Were you a collector for that company?

4 A. Yes.

5 Q. Have you ever testified in court before?

6 A. No, not that I recall.

7 Q. I'm sure that this myriad of lawyers has gone

8 over what a deposition is with you. But if you need

9 to take a break, just let us know, and we'll take a

10 break whenever you need to.

11 A. Okay.

12 Q. If you don't understand a question, let me

13 know, and I'll try and rephrase the question. If

14 you answer the question, then we will all assume

15 that you understood the question, okay?16 A. Correct.

17 Q. Now, tell me about your education.

18 A. Can you be more specific?

19 Q. Did you go to high school?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Where did you graduate from high school?

22 A. Laura Richland High School.

23 Q. And where is that located?

0009

1 A. Hopkins, South Carolina.

2 Q. I'm sorry?

3 A. Hopkins, South Carolina.

4 Q. What year did you graduate?

5 A. May of 1979.

6 Q. Did you go to any colleges?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. Where did you attend college?

9 A. Carson Newman College in Jefferson City,

10 Tennessee and the University of South Carolina.

11 Q. Did you graduate from either college?

12 A. No.

13 Q. What did you study?

14 A. Criminal law.

15 Q. How long did you attend Carson Newman?

16 A. Two years.

17 Q. And what about the University of South

18 Carolina?19 A. Year and a half.

20 Q. Did you study criminal law at both

21 universities?

22 A. Yes.

23 Q. Have you ever attended law school?

0010

1 A. No.

2 Q. And you're not an attorney?

3 A. No.

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4 Q. Tell me where you started working after

5 college.

6 A. Wow. Oh, my. After college? Let's see.

7 Let me go back. Let's see. Sales.

8 Q. What was the name of the company?

9 A. Vorwerk.

10 Q. Can you spell that, please?

11 A. V-O-W -- excuse me -- V-O-R-W-E-R-K.

12 Q. And where is Vorwerk located?

13 A. Vorwerk. It's a German company -- or was.

14 It was in Columbia, South Carolina.

15 Q. When did you start working for them?

16 A. Giving my memory a real test here.

17 Q. Just your best judgment.

18 A. 1981 -- well, yeah, I would say around '81.

19 Q. And what were you doing for that company?

20 A. Sales.

21 Q. What type of sales?

22 A. Door-to-door.

23 Q. What were you selling?0011

1 A. Vacuum cleaners or home care systems.

2 Q. How long did you do that job?

3 A. Pretty close to a year.

4 Q. Were you doing that job while you were

5 attending the University of South Carolina?

6 A. No.

7 Q. That was after school?

8 A. Right.

9 Q. What was your next job?

10 A. There were too many little ones at

11 convenience stores, the sales jobs, and it's too

12 many to try to remember.

13 Q. When was your next employment where you

14 worked for more than two months?

15 A. Oh, gosh -- hotel.

16 Q. Okay. What was the name of the hotel?

17 A. Comfort Inn, I believe.

18 Q. Which Comfort Inn?

19 A. I don't remember streets. It was in

20 Columbia.

21 Q. Where in Columbia?

22 A. I just said I don't remember the street.

23 Q. What general vicinity?

0012

1 A. Don't remember. I haven't lived there in

2 years.3 Q. Okay. What did you do at the Comfort Inn?

4 A. Bellman.

5 Q. Bellhop?

6 A. They call it bellman.

7 Q. Bellman. How long did you do that job?

8 A. It was a while. I don't remember. I'd say

9 pretty close to a year.

10 Q. And that Comfort Inn was in Columbia, South

11 Carolina somewhere?

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12 A. Yes.

13 Q. What was your next job of more than two

14 months after the Comfort Inn?

15 A. Oh, wow. Gosh, for more than two months.

16 Probably, say, collections.

17 Q. Okay. Where was the first company?

18 A. NCSE. Stood for National Credit Services

19 Corp.

20 Q. Where is National Credit Services Corp.

21 located that you worked?

22 A. Was located?

23 Q. All right.

0013

1 A. Glenn Park, Kansas.

2 Q. Is that company out of business today?

3 A. Bought out by another company.

4 Q. Who was it bought out by?

5 A. I have no idea.

6 Q. When did you work there?

7 A. October '85 to January of '94.

8 Q. What was your first job at National Credit9 Services?

10 A. Collector.

11 Q. What type of collections did they handle?

12 A. Retail, primarily.

13 Q. When you began there in collections, did you

14 receive some training?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. What type of training?

17 A. Be specific.

18 Q. Tell me all the areas you received training

19 when you began as a collector.

20 A. Could you rephrase it?

21 Q. Yeah. Tell me all the training you received

22 when you began as a collector at National Credit

23 Services Corp.

0014

1 A. FDCPA training, ACA training, telephone

2 training, telephone monitoring, management training,

3 client relationship training.

4 Q. Anything else?

5 A. Budget training. That's all I can recall.

6 Q. Okay. ACA, is that the American Collectors

7 Association?

8 A. That's correct.

9 Q. Were you a member of the ACA?

10 A. Correct.11 Q. Are you still a member of the ACA?

12 A. I don't know.

13 Q. What is it based on?

14 A. I don't remember.

15 Q. You don't remember?


17 Q. Is Neuheisel Law Firm a member of the ACA?

18 A. I don't know. I would assume so.

19 Q. How long did you work as a collector at NCSC,

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20 the whole time, or did you move up to a supervisor?

21 A. I did both.

22 Q. You did both?

23 A. Yes.

0015

1 Q. When did you work as a supervisor?

2 A. Probably from '87 to '94.

3 Q. How many collectors were you supervising?

4 A. At what time?

5 Q. Well, let's start in '87.

6 A. Don't remember.

7 Q. During the tenure of your supervisory

8 responsibilities, on average how many collectors did

9 you supervise?


11 Q. Give me your best judgment. Was it more than

12 ten?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. More than 20?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. More than 50?17 A. Yes.

18 Q. More than 100?

19 A. No.

20 Q. Between 50 and 100, give me your best

21 judgment of how many people you supervised.

22 A. At what point?

23 Q. On average.

0016

1 A. 56.

2 Q. 56?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. Were any of those 56 individuals also

5 supervisors of collectors?

6 A. Yes.

7 Q. What was your job title in '87?

8 A. Supervisor -- unit manager, I think it was

9 what they called it, I think.

10 Q. And did that job title change between '87 and

11 '94?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. What was your next job title?

14 A. In terms of a change of title, I would

15 probably say department manager.

16 Q. When did that occur?


18 Q. Best judgment.

19 A. Don't remember.20 Q. Was it more than a year after you were unit

21 manager?

22 A. I really don't remember.

23 Q. Did your responsibilities change at all when

0017

1 you went from unit manager to department manager?

2 A. Absolutely.

3 Q. What did your duties become as department

4 manager?

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5 A. Be more specific.

6 Q. What part of that don't you understand? And

7 then I'll try and be more specific.

8 A. Are you wanting every single thing I did

9 every single day or just a broad stroke?

10 Q. I'd like to know what your responsibilities

11 were as department manager.

12 A. Manage supervisors, keep up with schedules,

13 do a budget for each unit that I was responsible

14 for, do file reviews, phone monitoring, maintain

15 relationships with clients, pick up new business. I

16 don't know if I said do a budget, do goals,

17 goal-setting training.

18 Q. When you were the department man -- I'm

19 sorry. Were you finished or were there others?

20 A. That was enough, I'm sure.

21 Q. When you were department manager, how many

22 different units were there you were supervising?

23 A. During the course of that time or at any one

0018

1 time?2 Q. When you first became department manager, how

3 many units were there?

4 A. Three.

5 Q. And when did it change?


7 Q. When you -- how long were you department

8 manager?

9 A. I would say at least -- I don't remember

10 exactly.

11 Q. More than a year?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. More than two years?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. More than 3 years?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. More than four years?

18 A. Not sure.

19 Q. So during the three to four years toward the

20 end of that time period, how many units were there?

21 A. Between four and six.

22 Q. And in those four to six units, how many

23 collectors were there on the floor?

0019

1 A. That I was responsible for?

2 Q. Yes.

3 A. Give or take 55.

4 Q. Tell me about the phone monitoring that you5 were responsible for as the unit manager. What did

6 that include? I'm sorry, as department manager.

7 A. Be specific, please.

8 Q. What did you do to monitor phones?

9 A. I need you to be a little lucid, please.

10 Q. Well, you said you were responsible for phone

11 monitoring.

12 A. Right.

13 Q. So tell me how you were responsible for phone

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14 monitoring.

15 A. Just to make sure people were in compliance

16 with FDCPA regulations, that they were being

17 professional, maintaining their composure on the

18 phone, getting F and C.

19 Q. I'm sorry?

20 A. Getting F and C.

21 Q. What is that?

22 A. Full and complete information, and asking for

23 help if they needed it.

0020

1 Q. How did you actually monitor the telephone

2 calls?


4 Q. How did you monitor telephone calls?

5 A. From my phone.

6 Q. All right. And how did you do that?

7 A. With a system where you just punched in a

8 code, and I could -- and the extension, and I could

9 listen to any call.

10 Q. We've sometimes heard that referred to as11 shadowing where you were listening to a call. Did

12 you have a term that you used to describe that --

13 when you would push the button to listen in on a

14 call?

15 A. Monitoring.

16 Q. Monitoring? Did the --

17 MR. JONES: Excuse me for a second. Is there

18 any way I can get some water?

19 Q. (By Ms. Hays) Approximately, of the 55

20 collectors when you were the department manager, how

21 many calls would you monitor a day?

22 A. I don't recall that.

23 Q. More than ten?

0021

1 A. Oh, yeah.

2 Q. More than 20?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. During this same time when you were

5 department manager, were you also responsible for

6 collections?

7 A. No.

8 Q. At that time you had no responsibility to

9 actually collect on individual accounts?

10 A. Personally?

11 Q. Correct.

12 A. No.

13 Q. What type of training did you provide the14 collectors?

15 A. Be more specific.

16 Q. Were you actually responsible for the

17 training that was given to collectors when they were

18 hired?

19 A. Yes.

20 Q. And did that training include what we talked

21 about earlier on the Fair Debt Collection Practices

22 Act?

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23 A. Absolutely.

0022

1 Q. And also on ACA?

2 A. Absolutely.

3 Q. And on the telephone?

4 A. Yes.

5 Q. And on telephone monitoring?

6 A. Yes.

7 Q. And on management training?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And client relationships?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. And budget training?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. And you personally trained these collectors?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. Did you draft or compile any materials that

16 you used in training?

17 A. Some.

18 Q. Do you still have some of those items?

19 A. No.20 Q. Do you have any of the materials that you

21 used in your employment at NCSC?

22 A. No.

23 Q. Do you have any of the materials on ACA?

0023

1 A. Personally or in the office?

2 Q. Either.

3 A. In the office, yes.

4 Q. And what do those materials include?


6 Q. Yeah. Describe each document you have,

7 either in your possession or in your office, from

8 ACA.

9 A. Oh, I'm sorry. I misunderstood. I thought

10 you said FDCPA. My mind wondered. My apology. No

11 ACA.

12 Q. You have no materials on ACA?

13 A. Unless there's some cross-reference from the

14 FDCPA, no.

15 Q. You have in your possession materials on the

16 FDCPA?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Describe each document you have on the FDCPA.

19 A. There's no way I could.

20 Q. Well, are they in a binder?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. All right. Tell me about the binder.23 A. Be specific.

0024

1 Q. Is it a three-ring binder?

2 A. Yes, I believe so.

3 Q. What color is it?

4 A. White.

5 Q. Where is it located?

6 A. On my desk, cubicle.

7 Q. What's in it?

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8 A. Rules, regulations, company policies,

9 procedures.

10 Q. On the rules and regulations, does that

11 document have a title?

12 A. I don't recall.

13 Q. Is it something that was given to you by

14 Neuheisel Law Firm, or is it something that you've

15 had throughout the course of your work as a

16 collector and manager?

17 A. Neuheisel Law Firm.

18 Q. What about the policy and procedures, was

19 that something provided to you by Neuheisel Law

20 Firm?

21 A. Neuheisel Law Firm.

22 Q. Do you have any other documents in this

23 three-ring binder?

0025

1 A. No.

2 Q. So besides the company policies and the rules

3 and regulations, you have nothing else in this

4 binder?5 A. Memos from the company.

6 Q. How many memos?


8 Q. Are they dealing with collection?

9 A. Yes.

10 Q. And they're from Neuheisel?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. Are they given to all collectors?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. Are there more than five memos?

15 A. I would presume.

16 Q. More than ten?


18 Q. Do you have any other three-ring binders on

19 your desk?

20 A. No.

21 Q. Do you have any other materials, other than

22 this binder, whether they be loose or bound, in some

23 other fashion --

0026

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. -- that you use? What are those other

3 materials?

4 A. More memos, other training materials.

5 Q. What are those memos? Are they from

6 Neuheisel Law Firm?

7 A. Yes.8 Q. How many?


10 Q. More than five?

11 A. Don't recall.

12 Q. Give me your best judgment.

13 A. I'd rather not. I have no idea.

14 Q. And you said you had other training

15 materials?

16 A. Yes.

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17 Q. What are those training materials?

18 A. Specific state laws regarding contact, things

19 of that nature.

20 Q. I'm sorry?

21 A. Things of that nature.

22 Q. Okay. Describe this document that contains

23 the specific state laws. Are they contained within

0027

1 little boxes or are the actual state laws set out?

2 A. I'm sorry, could you rephrase it?

3 Q. Is that what your state laws section looks

4 like (indicating)?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. And that was provided to you by Neuheisel Law

7 Firm?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. Other than how it appears in this document,

10 which is page 54 of documents that have been

11 provided in this lawsuit, which contain all 50

12 states, are there any other state laws that you have

13 in your possession?14 A. I have a laminated copy of some other states'

15 laws.

16 Q. What are those states?

17 A. I have no idea. I look at it daily.

18 Q. You look at it daily?

19 A. Yes.

20 Q. And you can't tell me what laws are

21 laminated?

22 A. No. That's why it's laminated.

23 Q. Why do you use it daily?

0028

1 A. To make sure I know what I can do on calling

2 each state.

3 Q. Do you make collection calls to every state

4 every day?

5 A. No.

6 Q. Which states do you collect in?

7 A. Be more specific, please.

8 Q. Which states in the United States of America

9 do you make collection calls to collect accounts?

10 A. All states except Alabama.

11 Q. Why do you no longer collect in Alabama?

12 A. The reason why we're here.

13 Q. Because of this lawsuit?

14 A. That's my interpretation.

15 Q. Have you been told by your employer to no

16 longer make calls to Alabama?17 A. No.

18 Q. Then why --

19 A. I would say yes. What it is is the way the

20 accounts are placed, they're just automatically

21 taken out of my file, so I never run into them.

22 Q. So Alabama accounts are no longer placed in

23 your collection queue to make calls?

0029

1 A. Right.

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2 Q. When you -- I want to go back to when you

3 were working at NCSC -- because we sort of got off

4 track -- and you were the department manager. When

5 you were monitoring phone calls of your collectors,

6 did you ever hear one of your collectors violate the

7 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?

8 A. No.

9 Q. If one of your collectors had told a consumer

10 or debtor that they were dead meat, would that have

11 violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. If one of your collectors would have told the

14 consumer: I'm going to send the sheriff out to pick

15 you up, would that have violated the Fair Debt

16 Collection Practices Act?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. If a collector had called a place of

19 employment and spoken to a supervisor and informed

20 the supervisor that they were sending the sheriff

21 out to serve a summons because of a debt, would that

22 violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?23 A. Yes.

0030

1 Q. And would you have written up those

2 collectors?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. If one of your collectors had violated the

5 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, how would they

6 have been disciplined under your management?

7 A. Too long ago to recall.

8 Q. Would they have been fired?

9 A. Potentially.

10 Q. What would have been necessary, in your

11 judgment, for a collector to be fired?

12 A. It wasn't entirely my judgment.

13 Q. I'm sorry?

14 A. It was not entirely my judgment.

15 Q. Okay. What was it based on?

16 A. The facts, tangible proof. I had some input,

17 but the final say was by the owner.

18 Q. Who was the owner; do you recall?

19 A. There were two.

20 Q. Who were they?

21 A. A. L. Simmerlin and Richard Wilson.

22 Q. At NCSC did you -- or did the company or you,

23 as the department manager, ever record telephone

0031

1 conversations?2 A. Yes.

3 Q. In your best judgment, how many telephone

4 calls were recorded on a daily basis?

5 A. There's no way I could recall that.

6 Q. Was it random where they would record just

7 every, you know, fifth call or every tenth call, or

8 was there some pattern of trying to record specific

9 collectors at certain times?

10 MS. NETTLES: Object to the form of the

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11 question.

12 MS. HAYS: You can answer it if you can.

13 A. I don't recall.

14 Q. (By Ms. Hays) Were calls recorded on a daily

15 basis at NCSC?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. Were video cameras used to record or monitor

18 the work area of collectors?

19 A. Not that I'm aware of.

20 Q. And recording calls was a means used at NCSC

21 to monitor collectors' activity?

22 A. Primarily train, but monitor, also.

23 Q. Now, you left NCSC in '94?

0032

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. Did you quit or were you terminated?

3 A. I quit.

4 Q. And where did you go after NCSC?

5 A. Took five months off to be with my newborn

6 daughter.

7 Q. All right. And then where did you go?8 A. Diversified Recovery, something or the other.

9 Q. Where was Diversified Recovery located?

10 A. Kansas City, Kansas.

11 Q. Would that still have been in '94, or did

12 that five months push you over into 1995 when you

13 started Diversified?

14 A. When I started, it was still '94.

15 Q. '94? And how long did you work at

16 Diversified Recovery?

17 A. Few months.

18 Q. Were you a collector there or a manager?

19 A. Collector.

20 Q. Did you have any supervisory responsibilities

21 at Diversified?

22 A. No.

23 Q. All right. And did you quit at Diversified

0033

1 or were you terminated?

2 A. I quit.

3 Q. And where did you go next?

4 A. Citibank, slash, Equifax.

5 Q. Which branch did you work at?

6 A. Two different companies I worked at the same

7 time.

8 Q. Okay. Which Citibank did you work at?

9 A. Kansas City, Missouri.10 Q. And were you a collector at Citibank?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. Did you have any supervisory role at that

13 job?

14 A. No.

15 Q. And you were working a separate job at

16 Equifax at the same time?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Where was the Equifax branch, the same

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19 location, Kansas City?

20 A. No. It was in Kansas. I think it was

21 Shawnee Mission.

22 Q. I just didn't hear you. Shawnee Mission?

23 A. That's correct.

0034

1 Q. Okay. What did you do at Equifax?

2 A. When? Be specific.

3 Q. Well, when did you start at Equifax?

4 A. Collector -- oh, when I started there? Seems

5 like the latter part of '94.

6 Q. And when you started, you were a collector?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. What type of accounts were you collecting for

9 Equifax?

10 A. Retail.

11 Q. How long did you do the collector job at

12 Equifax?

13 A. '97, '98, somewhere in there.

14 Q. Did you ever do any other job besides

15 collector at Equifax?16 A. Uh-huh.

17 Q. What was the next job after collector?

18 A. I don't know if they call it unit supervisor

19 or unit manager. I'm not sure which.

20 Q. When you held the unit manager job or

21 supervisor, whichever, was the correct title -- did

22 you also collect on accounts or were you just the

23 supervisor?

0035

1 A. I collected, also.

2 Q. Do you recall how many collectors worked for

3 you at that time?

4 A. At what time?

5 Q. When you were working as the unit supervisor

6 manager.

7 A. At what point?

8 Q. At any point.

9 A. You're going to have to be a little bit more

10 specific than that.

11 Q. When did you become unit supervisor?

12 A. Don't remember exactly.

13 Q. How long were you unit supervisor?


15 Q. Well, I can't be more specific if you can't

16 give me a time period. So during the time that you

17 worked as a unit supervisor, how many collectors did

18 you supervise?19 A. As few as five.

20 Q. And as many as?

21 A. This is going to be strictly a guess because

22 I don't recall.

23 Q. Was it more than ten?

0036

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. More than 15?

3 A. Yes.

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4 Q. More than 25?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. More than 40?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. More than 50?


10 Q. More than -- so between 40 and -- can you

11 give me your best judgment?

12 A. I'd rather not. I really don't remember.

13 Q. But more than 40?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. During that time, were you responsible for

16 training?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Monitoring?

19 A. Yes.

20 Q. Did Equifax record telephone calls?

21 A. No. Actually, you know what, that's not

22 true; yes, they did.

23 Q. Did you ever review the recordings of calls?

00371 A. Yes.

2 Q. How often?

3 A. Daily.

4 Q. And the purpose of reviewing the recordings

5 was to make sure that collectors were not violating

6 the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; correct?

7 A. Among other things.

8 Q. And what were the other things?

9 A. Training.

10 Q. How were they used in training?

11 A. Voice inflection, professionalism, sticking

12 to a script.

13 Q. At Equifax were the collectors provided with

14 talk-offs or scripts for calls?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And they were expected to follow those

17 scripts?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. Was that the same at NCSC?

20 A. To some degree.

21 Q. What about Citibank? Were you provided

22 scripts at Citibank?


0038

1 Q. Did you do any jobs at Citibank other than

2 collector?

3 A. No.4 Q. Do you have a judgment as to how long you

5 worked at Citibank?

6 A. About 45 days, maybe 60.

7 Q. Did you quit that job or were you terminated?

8 A. Quit.

9 Q. When you monitored calls at Equifax, was that

10 the same way as it was at NCSC where you would pick

11 up a line and actually listen in on a telephone

12 call?

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13 A. Yes.

14 Q. Was there any other form of monitoring of

15 collectors that was done by you at Equifax?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. What were the other forms of monitoring?

18 A. Sometimes I sat with the collector.

19 Sometimes we used a recorder, and we would play back

20 the tape with them for training purposes.

21 Q. Any others?

22 A. Any other what?

23 Q. Means or ways of monitoring collectors that

0039

1 you did while at Equifax?

2 A. Sit with the collector. That's about it.

3 Q. Did you have any other jobs besides collector

4 and unit supervisor at Equifax?

5 A. Actually, let me go back. We also monitored

6 their files and notes.

7 Q. How did you monitor their files? What do you

8 mean by that?

9 A. When their que came, randomly we went through10 their files.

11 Q. I'm sorry. What --

12 A. Went into their cues --

13 Q. Okay.

14 A. -- and randomly looked through their files,

15 the work that they had done or hadn't done.

16 Q. To see if they were actually making calls on

17 accounts?

18 A. That, and compliance with how the calls went;

19 were they asking the right questions; were they

20 getting any F and C.

21 Q. When you were reviewing the notes, did you

22 review the notes on the calls that you had actually

23 listened to?

0040

1 A. Those, also.

2 Q. And collectors' notes are based on what the

3 collector enters into the system?

4 A. Correct.

5 Q. And that's the case across the board?

6 A. (No response.)

7 Q. It was the case at Equifax?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And Citibank?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. And NCSC?

12 A. Well, I don't know. See, I don't know much13 about Citibank's training or monitoring, I should

14 say.

15 Q. Collectors' notes at NCSC are based on what

16 was entered by the collector?

17 A. Partially.

18 Q. What else could they be based on?

19 A. If you happen to be monitoring the call

20 during that particular conversation.

21 Q. Okay. And at Neuheisel, what's entered by

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22 the collector makes up the collection notes, other

23 than system entries?

0041

1 A. I'm sorry. Could you --

2 Q. At Neuheisel Law Firm, the collection notes

3 that are entered by collectors are based solely on

4 what's entered by the collector unless it's a system

5 entry?

6 A. Right.

7 Q. Did you quit Equifax?

8 A. No. Actually, I was fired.

9 Q. Why were you fired?

10 A. Conflict of interest.

11 Q. What was that?

12 A. They thought I was recruiting employees.

13 Q. Recruiting employees for what?

14 A. Another business.

15 Q. What was the other business?

16 A. Import/export.

17 Q. Was there a name of a company?

18 A. Jones Enterprises.19 Q. Was that your company?

20 A. Yes, and my ex-wife's.

21 Q. I don't think I got an answer, so let me just

22 go back. At Equifax, did you hold any other jobs

23 besides collector and unit manager?

0042

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. What were the other jobs?

3 A. Department manager and corporate trainer.

4 Q. How long were you department manager?


6 Q. More than six months?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. More than a year?

9 A. Yes.

10 Q. More than two years?


12 Q. As department manager, were you also

13 responsible for monitoring collectors at that time?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. And corporate trainer -- how long did you

16 work as the corporate trainer?


18 Q. Okay. More than a year?

19 A. I would say at least.

20 Q. As corporate trainer, was that nation-wide or

21 was that limited to the Kansas branch in Shawnee?22 A. I'm sure that question is simple, but could

23 you ask it a diffe

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