Gloria Yocum v. Rental Solutions, LLC; Scalley Reading Bates Hansen & Rasmussen, P.C.; and Does 1 through 5

Summary

The United States District Court for the District of Utah denied Defendants’ motion to dismiss Gloria Yocum’s claims under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act, and the Utah Communications Fraud Act. The court held that the alleged obligation for property damage beyond reasonable wear and tear plausibly arose from the residential lease agreement and therefore qualified as a “debt” under the FDCPA. Because the FDCPA claim survived, the court retained supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claims.

Holdings

1. An alleged obligation for repairs or wear and tear that arises in connection with a residential lease is plausibly a debt under the FDCPA because it arises from a consensual consumer transaction and is connected to the lease agreement.
2. The Complaint plausibly alleged FDCPA violations and therefore stated claims sufficient to survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion.
3. The court retained supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claims because the FDCPA claim, over which the court had federal-question jurisdiction, was not dismissed.

Questions Presented

1. Whether an alleged obligation for property damage or wear and tear arising from a residential lease qualifies as a debt arising from a consumer transaction under the FDCPA.
2. Whether the Complaint plausibly alleged FDCPA violations sufficient to survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion.
3. Whether the court retained supplemental jurisdiction over Yocum's state-law claims after declining to dismiss the FDCPA claims.

Disposition

other