Law firms are coming after the low hanging fruit i.e. engaging in potentially successful lawsuits against private employers. Is your firm an “easy pick”? The good news is it is easy to avoid being sued.
Plaintiff lawyers are discovering a fertile area for lawsuits. The area of attack is a company’s lack of compliance with required consent and disclosures in the FCRA as it relates to the hiring process.
What is going on here and why are plaintiff attorneys interested? Turns out the Fair Credit Reporting Act allows for minimum statutory damages of $100 to $1000 for willful violations, it is a class action-friendly remedy, actual damage awards for negligent violations and (TA-DA) Attorney fees to a successful plaintiff
A Florida law firm recently filed federal class action lawsuits in the same court against three separate national employers on the same day alleging violations of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failure to obtain valid background check consent on an online application process.
The three complaints field by the same law firm:
- Mack vs. Panera, LLC is Case No. 0:14-cv-61672-WJZ in United States District Court Southern District of Florida Broward Division
- Mack vs. American Multi-Cinema, Inc. (AMC) is Case No. 0:14-cv-61676-DPG in United States District Court Southern District of Florida Broward Division
- Rumph, vs. Nine West Holdings is Case No. 0:14-cv-61673-UU in United States District Court Southern District of Florida Broward Division
All three essentially alleged the same type of violation—that the employer failed to obtain a valid consent on a standalone form that did not contain extraneous information. Our blog contains numerous examples of this situation.
How hard is the fix? Not hard at all. The consumer reporting agency (CRA) that provides you with background investigations should be able to help you comply. And, you should ask if your CRA can deliver an easy method that allows applicants to complete the process on-line. Doing so avoids managing paper authorization forms and keeps sensitive private information very secure.
