MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — DCM Services, LLC (DCMS) the industry leader in estate and specialty account recovery solutions, announced the hiring of Scott Foster, MBA, CHFP, CRCR as Director of Business Development, Healthcare Revenue Cycle.

Foster, who most recently served as Vice President of Business Development at Penn Credit Corporation, will use his years of industry experience to help lead sales in the healthcare revenue cycle space for DCMS. Scott has extensive experience in turning around territories, building sales, account management, and creating successful relationships. Tiffany Jansen, SVP of Business Development said, “We are ecstatic to have Scott join the DCMS family. With his depth of knowledge and experience, we will continue to assist even more organizations in the healthcare industry by providing innovative and unique solutions.”

DCM Services’ healthcare estate and bankruptcy solutions capture specialty revenue by ensuring compliance with CMS Provider Reimbursement Requirement, mitigating reputational risk, and improving survivor experience by streamlining processes. Its diverse client base includes more than half of the nation’s largest healthcare systems. Additionally, DCMS’ largest and most prestigious healthcare clients range from $2BN to nearly $20BN in annual net patient revenue.

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Learn more about how DCM Services’ healthcare solutions create a survivor-centric experience 

About DCM Services
Minneapolis-based DCM Services is the industry leader in estate and specialty account resolution services, maximizing the value of client portfolios across financial services, healthcare, auto, retail, telecom, credit union, government, and utilities industries through innovation and performance. Its recovery solutions offer a full range of services from proprietary web-based solutions to full outsourcing, maintaining an unmatched spectrum of innovative solutions that increase recoveries, protect brand value, and enhance survivor relationships – with respect and sensitivity. For more information on all DCM Services’ offerings, please visit www.dcmservices.com.

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EVERETT, Wash. — Sentry Credit, Inc. (Sentry) is pleased to announce the appointment of Megan A. Klamn as the company’s new Director of Operations.  Since starting with Sentry in 2016,  Klamn has quickly risen through the ranks from Collector, Collection Supervisor, Collection Manager, and most recently Director of Collection Operations. 

James Stewart, Co-founder of Sentry Credit commented, “My business partner Michael Mathis and I have very high expectations of Megan as she was officially promoted to Director of Operations on March 8^th, 2021.  Her duties will now put her front and center for the company in charge of all collection strategies and client performance.  Megan has always surpassed our expectations across the board and we know she will continue to do a fantastic job in her new role.  Her operational achievements have taken the company to the next level of performance and profitability by  continuing to think ‘outside the box’ and improve upon our proprietary collection strategies and performance.” 

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Klamn is passionate about her leadership responsibility. “I am a firm believer that you set your goals high, and you don’t stop until you get there,” said Klamn.  “My leadership style is to be positive, consistent, and available.  As well as to lead by example and never take yourself too seriously. We will all make mistakes at times, and all I ask is that my employees learn from those mistakes and try and be better today than they were yesterday. Believing in each individual and giving them the tools and pathway to be successful is what I am most passionate about. It is very satisfying and worthwhile to watch someone develop skills here at Sentry that they will use for a lifetime.”

When asked about how she felt about her new role, Klamn stated,  “Director of Operations means the world to me. I get to be part of an incredible executive management team and share their success. Sentry’s trust in me allows me to be a problem solver and mentor to achieve our mutual company goals, whether it’s a career goal or a personal goal when we all work together, we can achieve anything. A quote from Aristotle –  ‘Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work’  rings true in my current environment. I am passionate about our team members and strive to make our office atmosphere fun and energetic.   This extra focus helps us deliver unsurpassed recovery, compliance, and top tier customer service for all of our clients”

ROCHESTER, NY — Continental Service Group, Inc., d/b/a ConServe announces that they have once again received Better Business Bureau of Upstate New York’s 2021 BBB Torch Award for Ethics in the Large Business Category. 

The Torch Awards for Ethics (Torch Award) honors companies that demonstrate a high level of personal character and ensure that the organization’s practices meet the highest standards of ethics and consequently generate trust among their employees, customers, and their communities.

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ConServe is based on a simple concept of helping people fulfill their financial obligations in a way that preserves dignity and conducts business in a manner consistent with improving the human condition.  Rich Klein, ConServe President said, “Our commitment to ethics and compliance is steadfast and unwavering and is the cornerstones of our success.  I am extremely proud of our team of committed employees who regularly embody the ideals of this award.  Our Clients can be confident in the trust they place in us, our employees can be proud of our efforts toward Fostering Financial Freedom® and our communities can be inspired by our corporate citizenship.”

“BBB is proud to honor ConServe with the 2021 Torch Award for Ethics,” said Warren Clark, president and CEO, Better Business Bureau of Upstate New York. “This is the company’s second Torch Award. The independent panel of judges selected ConServe based on an extensive process. The company exemplifies what BBB stands for: Ethics and trustworthiness in the marketplace. I want to congratulate the whole team for this incredible achievement.”  

About ConServe

ConServe is a top-performing accounts receivable management service provider specializing in customized recovery solutions for their clients. Anchored in ethics and compliance, and steadfast in their pursuit of excellence, they are a consumer-centric organization that operates as an extension of their clients’ valued brands.  For over 35 years, they have partnered with their clients to provide unmatched customer service while simultaneously helping them achieve their accounts receivable management goals.  Visit us online at www.conserve-arm.com

About BBB Torch Award for Ethics: The Torch Awards for Ethics (Torch Award) honors companies with leaders who demonstrate a high level of personal character and ensure that the organization’s practices meet the highest standards of ethics and, consequently, generate trust. These companies generate a high level of trust among their employees, their customers, and their communities. The award embodies the Better Business Bureau^® mission of advancing marketplace trust. BBB.org.

Whether a mistake of law that results in the filing of a lawsuit after the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations is a bona fide error under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)¹ has been hotly debated since the United States Supreme Court held in Jerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich LPA² that the bona fide error defense does not apply to a mistake in interpreting the FDCPA. In an issue of first impression, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit answered in the affirmative, holding that the defense could apply to a mistake of law in determining the appropriate state statute of limitations. See Kaiser v. Cascade Capital, LLC et al., No 19-35151 (March 9, 2021).

Statutes of limitation (how much time you have to file your claim in court) are relatively straightforward on one level. They tell you precisely how many years you have to file your claim in court. That’s where the simplicity ends and the complexity begins, however. For example, determining the statute of limitations for a breach of contract claim for an unpaid credit card debt typically requires a plaintiff to first assess which state’s statute of limitations governs. This assessment includes a complex workflow/waterfall approach that considers many factors, including whether the contract contains a governing or choice of law provision, whether that provision incorporates procedural law (many states consider statute of limitations procedural), and if the state in which you intend to file suit has a statute that requires another state’s shorter statute of limitations to apply if the cause of action occurred in that state. And, even if you know which state’s law applies, the law in that state could be unsettled about which of two different statutes of limitation – one shorter than the other – applies.

For many plaintiffs a ruling that it filed suit after the expiration of the statute of limitations means the litigation is over. For plaintiffs regulated either by the FDCPA, or state statutes akin to the FDCPA, a dismissal based on the statute of limitations often means the next phase of litigation in which they become the defendant is about to begin. The Ninth Circuit’s decision in Kaiser offers the perfect illustration.

In Kaiser, a deficiency balance remained on the debtor’s automobile retail installment contract after the car was repossessed and sold. The creditor sought to collect the debt first through a letter sent by its attorneys and then a state court lawsuit filed in Oregon by the same attorneys. Kaiser moved to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming it was filed after the four-year statute of limitations in the Uniform Commercial Code for the sale of goods, as adopted in Oregon. The creditor argued the suit was timely under Oregon’s six-year catch-all contract statute of limitations. The state court agreed with the debtor and dismissed the lawsuit.

Kaiser wasted no time in filing a class action lawsuit in federal court accusing the creditor and its attorneys of threatening to sue and suing on time-barred debt in violation of the FDCPA. The district court dismissed the case for failure to state a claim, finding that the law was unsettled in Oregon regarding which statute of limitations applied, and thus there was no improper, unfair or misleading collection attempt. The Ninth Circuit reversed, holding that: (i) the FDCPA prohibits filing suit on a time-barred debt; and (ii) consistent with the recent publication of Regulation F by the CFPB, a plaintiff does not have to prove the debt collector “knew or should have known” that the statute of limitations had expired when the lawsuit was filed because strict liability applies under the FDCPA.

Although the 9th Circuit reversed, it gave defendants a potential defense on remand. The Court ruled that Jerman did not prohibit debt collectors from using the bona fide error defense to raise a mistake in determining the appropriate state statute of limitations. It limited Jerman to prohibiting the use of that defense only when claiming a mistake in interpreting the requirements of the FDCPA.³ To avoid liability under the FDCPA’s bona fide error defense, the defendants in Kaiser must show they mistakenly applied the wrong statute of limitations and maintained procedures (preferably written) to determine the right statute of limitations and avoid filing lawsuits after it expired. Kaiser appropriately recognizes the difficulties inherent in determining the correct statute of limitations and the unfairness of a Congressional scheme that would impose strict liability without the ability to excuse good faith mistakes in legal judgment.

The ability to raise the bona fide defense to a mistake in determining the appropriate statute of limitations does not mean it should always be pled as an affirmative defense. Before pleading the defense, consideration should be given to understanding the evidence supporting each element of the defense. For example, did the debt collector conduct a legal analysis to decide which statute of limitations to use before filing the underlying lawsuit or at least that type of lawsuit?  Does the legal analysis support or contradict the defense?  Is there a written policy or procedure requiring an attorney to evaluate that the right statute of limitations is applied to the debt and that the claim is not stale under that statute of limitations? Is there a written policy prohibiting the filing of lawsuits after the expiration of the statute of limitations? And, perhaps most critically, a debt collector should assume that if it raises the defense it will be considered to have waived the attorney-client privilege for all communications with counsel on the issue before it filed the underlying suit by placing the advice at issue in the FDCPA case. If those communications do not support the defense, the defense should not be raised because the communications will likely have to be produced.

Please contact Robert Horwitz at rhorwitz@maddinhauser.com or visit the Financial Services and Real Property Litigation practice group page for additional information and articles.

¹ The bona fide error defense excuses liability under the FDCPA “if the debt collector shows by a preponderance of evidence that the violation was not intentional and resulted from a bona fide error notwithstanding the maintenance of procedures reasonably adapted to avoid any such error.” See 15 U.S.C. § 1692k(c).

² 559 U.S. 573, 604–05 (2010).

³ The Ninth Circuit is not the first court to limit the holding in Jerman. See Abdollahzadeh v Mandrich Law Group, LLP, 922 F.3d 810 (7^th Cir. 2019) (applying bona fide error defense to defendant law firm’s mistake of fact in filing a lawsuit after the expiration of the statute of limitations based on an incorrect payment date supplied by the creditor to the law firm’s debt buyer client); Gray v. Suttell & Assocs., 123 F.Supp.3d 1283 (Ed. Wash. 2015) (bona fide error defense applied to excuse the filing of lawsuit after the four-year statute of limitations in the Uniform Commercial Code); Hare v. Hosto and Buchan, PLLC, 774 F.Supp.2d (2011) (S.D. Texas 2011) (bona fide error defense applied to excuse filing a lawsuit to confirm an arbitration aware more than one year after issuance of the award).

CHESAPEAKE, Va. — Spring Oaks Capital, LLC has hired Michael Cheng as Controller for the various legal entities that make up the Spring Oaks Capital group. In this role, Cheng will be responsible for all accounting functions across the operating company and its affiliates. Cheng, a CPA with both public accounting and industry experience, also holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from James Madison University and a Master of Science in Accountancy from Old Dominion University.

“It is very rare you find such an energetic and supporting company. From the first day I walked in I could tell Spring Oaks has a special culture. I am beyond excited to bring my skillset to the table while also growing and learning alongside my new teammates.” stated Cheng. Tim Stapleford, Spring Oaks Capital’s President and CEO stated, “Michael is exactly the type of individual we are looking to add to our team. He is an expert in his field, shows great interpersonal skills, and has the energy level we need to help us drive our vision forward.” Cheng will report directly to the incoming CFO that will be announced in the coming weeks.

Spring Oaks Capital continues to expand across the organization adding staff and executives in key positions to support its growth and strategic objectives. Marcelo Aita, Spring Oaks Capital’s Executive Chairman added, “We are thrilled to have Michael on our team. In the short time he has been with us he has already proven to be a great fit.” Mr. Aita went on to say, “We have hired some great people so far and will be announcing three key additions to our executive team in the coming weeks.”

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About Spring Oaks Capital, LLC

Since 2019, Spring Oaks Capital has been buying portfolios from several sellers and creditors that want better pricing for their accounts without compromising on compliance or their brand. Building an innovative, refreshing and equitable vision that provides positive optionality around consumer debt obligations has been key to their success. Spring Oaks Capital leverages a differentiated culture and leading-edge technology to offer more competitive pricing. Spring Oaks Capital is an innovative and technology-focused consumer debt purchasing company spearheaded by a group of well-known and respected industry executives, who hold decades of experience at some of the largest banks, debt buyers, and collection firms in the United States.

ROCKVILLE, Md — Greenberg Advisors (“GA”) is pleased to announce the acquisition of ARMC Financial Services (“ARMC”) by Revco Solutions (“Revco”), which is a portfolio company of Longshore Capital Partners (“Longshore”). GA initiated the transaction for Revco and Longshore.

Based in Oradell, New Jersey, ARMC is a healthcare revenue cycle management company that specializes in denials management.

Brian Greenberg, CEO of GA, commented, “The denials management sector is a hotbed of M&A activity, as specialists can significantly ease the cash flow issues faced by providers. In fact, this is one of a few transactions that we’ve completed in the denials space since last summer. In the case of ARMC, the owners built a solid business with marquee clients and great brand recognition.”

Revco’s CEO, Geoff Miller, commented, “ARMC’s denials management expertise allows Revco to enter a highly attractive niche of the revenue cycle to better serve its existing clients.”

For more information regarding investment and M&A activity, read GA’s 2020 M&A Updates for ARM and RCM & HCIT, which offers insight and trend analysis.

About Greenberg Advisors

Greenberg Advisors, LLC is an independent investment bank providing world-class M&A and strategic advisory solutions to Business Services and Technology companies in the Accounts Receivable Management (ARM), Revenue Cycle Management (RCM), Healthcare Information Technology (HCIT), and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sectors.

Focused on these sectors for over 25 years, the firm’s professionals offer a comprehensive, yet highly specialized perspective from which to advise clients, which has resulted in the completion of over 135 M&A, capital raising, valuation, and strategic advisory engagements. These client successes reflect Greenberg’s distinct client-first approach, deep sector expertise, objective point of view, and work ethic.

In tandem with federal and state regulators and attorneys general, On September 29, 2020, the FTC launched Operation Corrupt Collector to target collectors who engage in unauthorized and abusive collection practices. Simultaneously, the FTC announced it filed suit and had obtained temporary restraining orders against National Landmark Logistics (National) and Absolute Financial Services (Absolute).

Wasting no time in showing they mean business, on March 15, 2021, the FTC announced that, through a settlement, both National and Absolute have been permanently banned from the debt collection industry. The FTC did not mince words, stating the following actions led to these results:

National Landmark Logistics and Absolute Financial Services [used] illegal robocalls to leave messages with consumers that threatened outcomes from lawsuits to arrest. The messages didn’t identify the caller as a debt collector, and when consumers would return the calls, the defendants would present themselves as mediators or attorneys.

In most cases, the debts being collected by National Landmark and Absolute Financial were not actually owed by the consumers, either because they never existed in the first place or had been previously paid off.

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In addition to being permanently banned from the collections industry, in their respective settlement agreements, National agreed to a monetary judgment of $16,418,306.00, and Absolute agreed to a monetary judgment of $11,281,993.00.  Although these judgments are partially suspended due to National and Absolute’s inability to pay, if either entity misrepresented its financial status, the entire judgment will be due immediately.  Further, both National and Absolute agreed to cooperate with the FTC in ongoing law enforcement actions.

The settlements also permanently banned National’s affiliated entities from the collections industry: Liberty Solutions & Associates, LLC and LSA Processing Systems, LLC, as well as James Dennison and Eric Dennison.  Absolute’s affiliates Absolute Financial Services, LLC, Absolute Financial Services Recovery, LLC, and AFSR Global Logistics, LLC, were included in the Absolute settlement LLC as well as Lashone Elam and Talesia Neely.  

insideARM Perspective

In addition to harming consumers, bad actors can tarnish the accounts receivable industry’s reputation. Those entities that spend enormous amounts of time, energy, and financial resources to comply with applicable laws and regulations should welcome oversight to eradicate bad actors from our space. Further, legitimate businesses may be the first to learn about scammers targeting consumers; initiatives like Operation Corrupt Collector may provide a resource for good actors to report scams that cross their desks.

On March 11, 2021, American Medical Collection Agency (AMCA) settled with 40 states and the District of Columbia regarding its 2018/2019 data breach.  AMCA specializes in collecting small-dollar medical debt. Between August 1, 2018, and March 30, 2019, a hacker compromised AMCA’s web payment page, exposing the personal information of at least 21 million individuals across the country.

AMCA first learned of the issue when it started receiving a disproportionate number of notices suggesting credit cards that had interacted with AMCA’s web portal were later associated with fraudulent activity. Outside consultants ultimately confirmed the breach, and in June 2019, AMCA reported the breach to 40 states and the District of Columbia.

As a direct result of the data breach, AMCA suffered a severe drop in business and filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. AMCA received permission from the bankruptcy court to settle with the multi-state coalition and, on December 9, 2020, filed for dismissal of the bankruptcy action.  

Per the terms of the settlement agreement, the 21-million-dollar payment to the states will be deferred so long as AMCA complies with the other terms of the settlement agreement. Included among these requirements, AMCA must create and implement an information security program, employ a chief information security officer, hire a third-party assessor to perform a security assessment, and cooperate with attorneys general from the 40 states which are part of the settlement and District of Columbia.

insideARM Perspective

As insideARM previously mentioned, this is a sobering story.  AMCA’s well-intentioned decision to provide consumers a web portal for payment ultimately led to a significant data breach harming both consumers and AMCA.   This is a stark reminder that technology platforms cannot be updated or added in a vacuum. Any entity handling consumer data needs to take appropriate steps to assess new technology’s vulnerability before implementation.

Show Notes: 

Ralph Liberio, President and CEO of NCB Management Services, Inc. stopped by Clark Hill’s Credit Eco to Go to discuss the CFPB’s new debt collection rules and the power consumers now have to resolve their debts on their own. NCB’s self-service web-based portal allows consumers to make payments on their own terms and to set their preferences of when and how they want to be communicated with, including opting-in to receiving emails and texts. Ralph tells us that consumers are more responsive and engaging when they have control over the rhythm, flow, and “beat” of the communication.  When it comes to debt collections, consumers like to dance on their own. 

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DISCLAIMER – No information contained in this Podcast or on this Website shall constitute financial, investment, legal and/or other professional advice and that no professional relationship of any kind is created between you and podcast host, the guests or Clark Hill PLC. You are urged to speak with your financial, investment, or legal advisors before making any investment or legal decisions.

Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3787-funk-game-loopLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

FRANKLIN, Mass. — Interactions, one of the world’s largest standalone conversational artificial intelligence (AI) companies, today announced that NRA Group, a leading accounts receivable management (ARM) company, has deployed a sophisticated Interactions Virtual Collection Agent (VCA) in record time. Progressing from contract signature to the first call in a few months, NRA Group is accelerating the impact of its REV-TECH™ channels using the VCA for dramatic improvements in efficiency and profitability.

NRA Group (formed by the acquisition of Credit Plus Solutions Group est. 1922 & National Recovery Agency Inc. est. 1976) has successfully provided extended business office services such as revenue cycle, debt collection, skip tracing, payment processing, early out and credit bureau reporting to some of America’s leading companies for decades. As consumer debt continues to rise, the company strives to manage unprecedented call volume while balancing both the agent and customer experience. Interactions’ OmniChannel VCA was the only solution purpose-built for collections that could quickly and effectively help them meet their unique needs. 

“This year, the need for an AI-powered virtual assistant in our contact centers became more urgent than ever. We needed a solution that could quickly support both our agents and our customers, and successfully automate the sensitive, complex and compliant process of collecting payments and negotiating debt recovery plans,” said Steve Kusic, CEO, NRA Group. “By getting our VCA up and running so quickly, we’re setting ourselves up to see measurable results faster than we ever anticipated.”

Interactions VCA combines conversational AI with human understanding in real-time to behave like a company’s best agent, at scale. VCA seamlessly integrates into current tech ecosystems, including telephony dialers, knowledge bases, CRMs, and billing and payment systems to deliver a personalized and consistent experience across channels. With its market-leading proprietary technology, VCA is uniquely poised to increase revenue recovery at a reduced operational cost and do so in a conversational, human-like, and judgment-free manner.

NRA Group is implementing voice and Interactions’ Rich Text capabilities into its VCA. The text features make it possible to embed forms, maps, or images directly into text-based channels, creating interactive, efficient, and conversational experiences for customers. The addition of web chat and SMS with Interactions voice solution creates a best-in-class and cohesive customer experience for customers regardless of their channel preferences.

“COVID-19 has greatly increased the need to digitally transform collections contact centers, and Interactions is uniquely-equipped to help agencies expedite this transition,” said Mike Iacobucci, CEO of Interactions. “By using both voice and text channels to automate transactional conversations and sort out wrong party contacts, our VCA is successfully boosting agent productivity and reducing churn, while increasing debt recovery and easing consumer financial pressures. With NRA Group getting its VCA deployed in just a few months, we’re seeing how quickly we can make a tangible impact on the industry at large.”

To learn more about the unique benefits that Interactions Virtual Collection Agent brings to ARM agencies, please visit www.interactions.com/industries/collections/.

About Interactions

Interactions provides Intelligent Virtual Assistants that seamlessly assimilate conversational AI and human understanding to enable businesses to engage with their customers in highly productive and satisfying conversations. With flexible products and solutions designed to meet the growing demand for unified, omnichannel customer care, Interactions delivers unprecedented improvements in the customer experience and significant cost savings for some of the world’s largest brands. Founded in 2004, Interactions is headquartered in Franklin, Massachusetts, with additional offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.interactions.com.

About NRA Group and National Recovery Agency

NRA Group is a nationally ranked – ACA Certified agency that has evolved from a high-quality performing call center into an advanced technological contact center. We are proud of our past and excited about our future. Due to NRA’s extensive utilization of the OmniChannel technologies, we are experiencing exceptional growth in reaching consumers who truly appreciate our assistance in improving their financial health. As a Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™ company, we partner with reputable publicly traded and private business organizations to better serve them and their valued customers. Our talented and well-trained staff is committed to serve and assist our clients in a way that enhances their revenue resources and cash flow needs on a fast-track basis. NRA – Discover How We Recover™for you and achieve our mission of 100% Client Satisfaction