Zelenitz v. Midland Funding LLC

Auto Fraud Legal Center obtained a victory over Midland Funding, LLC for Sue Zelenitz. Midland Funding sued Ms. Zelenitz for $7,948.58 based on a debt allegedly owed by Ms. Zelenitz to First Consumers National Bank. San Diego County Superior Court Case No. 37-2008-00077880-CL-CL-CTL. Midland Funding, LLC claimed to own the debt allegedly owed to First Consumer National Bank. Ms. Zelenitz denied owing the debt and sued Midland Funding for violation of state debt collection practices law. On Ms. Zelenitz’s behalf, RBB filed motions with the Court that lead the court to rule that not only did Ms. Zelenitz not owe Midland Funding anything, but Midland Funding had to pay Ms. Zelenitz $5,831.90 in damages.

The history of this case starts back on February 13, 2008, when Midland Funding, LLC filed a lawsuit against Sue Zelenitz, alleging that Ms. Zelenitz owed it based on a debt allegedly owed to First Consumers National Bank. On August 28, 2009, the Court, at Midland Funding, LLC’s request, entered default judgment against Ms. Zelenitz, for $8,184.58, which was for $7,948.58 demanded in the Complaint and $236.00 for costs.

Ms. Zelenitz was supposedly served with notice of the lawsuit in San Diego. The problem with this was that Ms. Zelenitz had not lived in San Diego since 1995. At the time when Ms. Zelenitz was supposedly served with a copy of the lawsuit, she was living in Europe. Ms. Zelenitz learned of the lawsuit and judgment against her after she returned to the United States in June 2010.

Ms. Zelenitz hired RBB who was successful in getting the judgment set aside. RBB then set out to prove that Ms. Zelenitz did not owe Midland Funding anything, and that Midland Funding had violated the state debt collection practices law – the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

On March 19, 2012, Honorable Ronald Styn, Judge of Superior Court, granted Ms. Zelenitz’s Motion for Summary Judgment against Midland Funding. Judge Styn ruled that Midland Funding violated the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, by suing Ms. Zelenitz for a debt that it did not own. During the course of the lawsuit, and in opposition to Ms. Zelenitz’ Motion, Midland Funding could not produce any evidence proving that it own the debt that it claimed Ms. Zelenitz owed. The Court awarded Ms. Zelenitz $5,831.90 in damages.

On May 4, 2012, Judge Styn granted Ms. Zelenitz’s Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings, dismissing Midland Funding’s lawsuit against her. The Court ruled that since it had already determined in Ms. Zelenitz’s Motion for Summary Judgment that Midland Funding did not own the debt, there was no way that Midland Funding could prevail on its lawsuit against Ms. Zelenitz.

On June 6, 2012, the Court entered the following Judgment against Midland Funding in Ms. Zelenitz’s favor.

On July 27, 2012, the Court granted RBB’s Motion for Attorneys’ Fees. RBB was awarded all of the attorneys’ fees that was requesting $70,049.25, plus a .5 multiplier of $35,024.62, for $105,073.87 total.

If you have any questions regarding this case, please contact Greg Babbitt at the number above x 104 or contact us by filling out the form on the left.

Click here for the Judgment filed in the case.

Click here for the Ruling on attorney’s fees