Complaint Review: Javitch Block & Rathbone - Cleveland Ohio

I'm currently active duty military stationed in Maryland and in early JUL I was contacted by a representative from Javitch, Block & Rathbone.  The person stated he/she was a debt collector and claimed I owed $4k plus for a broken 2011 lease in which I appeared as a cosigner.  My twin was the occupant.  I never cosigned any lease in Cleveland. I wasn't physically in Cleveland on any of the signing dates and the address provided for me does not exist so there was no way the papers were mailed to me.

I immediately disputed this and was told I had failed to respond to a letter sent to me which had previously informed me of the debt.  I told the person I never received a letter and provided my current address.  The original letter was sent to an address I lived at over 5 years ago. This address DID not appear on the lease in question and appears to have been pulled from my credit report, on which wasn't even the most recent address listed and had not been reported since 2011.  I was upset that they had failed to mail the document to the most recent address available for me and requested verification of the debt owed be sent to my current address.

I received the document and noted that when I supposedly signed the APPLICATION for the lease (2010) I was deployed to Afghanistan and that the address listed for me was an odd mix of a stateside and APO address making it undeliverable. I also noted that the signature on the actual lease (2011) was obviously not mine and did not even match the signature on the initial lease application.  I was also provided an "Identity Theft Affidavit" which included on the bottom of every page the phrase "DO NOT SEND AFFIDAVIT TO THE FTC OR ANY OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCY".  Apparently I would fill it out and "the client" would investigate the matter.  Last time I checked a leasing agency wasn't qualified to investigate identity theft.  Needless to say I did not fill out this paperwork.

I consulted the legal services at Andrews AFB and the attorney there spoke with an attorney at the firm.  This took 15 minutes to accomplish and the first person we spoke with threatened to hang up on my attorney when he placed the phone on speaker so I could listen to the exchange.  She also told my attorney that she "was not required" to provide her name to him.  When we finally spoke to an attorney it was revealed that they had violated the FDCPA by not resending my notification letter when I provided them an updated address. This entire exchange was recorded by my attorney.

At my attorney's urging I drafted a letter detailing my deployment dates (with orders), again reiterating I had not signed the lease.  I also provided a copy of my leave history to show I was present for duty in Maryland on the date the actual lease was signed as well as official forms showing my signature for comparison.

On 24Jul13 I was again contacted by the firm. I informed the rep that I had provided them an attorney's information and that it was my understanding that under FDCPA they were no longer permitted to contact me directly.  The person denied having an attorney's information.  I insisted and was placed on hold, after which the call terminated.  They did not call me back nor did they contact my attorney.

On 7Oct I received an advertisement in the mail from a bankruptcy lawyer.  The advert claimed that there was a civil suit against me and listed a case number.  I looked the number up to find that on 4Oct13 Javitch, Block & Rathbone filed a suit listing me as a co-defendent.  The addresses listed for my sister and myself were slighty off (mine not so much as to be undeliverable: Fair Del instead of correct Fairdel however as of 9Oct13 I have not received the document).  The address listed for my sister does not exist.  In both cases the errors are minor enough to be mistaken for accidents if taken individually, however the chances of both of our addresses being entered incorrectly (especially since they have sent me documents before) seems low.  I returned to Andrews AFB legal and was told by the attorneys that I would have to appear for the 15Nov court date. 

None of the attorney's at Andrews AFB are licensed to practice in Ohio and so they will not be able to represent me at trial.  Despite this I was assured that I had provided sufficient evidence to support my not having signed the lease or lease application that the case against me was likely to be dismissed.

 The whole situation has left me extremely upset as I have had to explain this situation to my leadership.  It has also jeopardized my job with the military as financial stability is a requirement.  I have the overall impression that I was not meant to find out about the court date and that the firm was anticipating a default judgment in their favor.

I am sure there are at least two violations of the FDCPA.

I have already filed a complaint with the Ohio Attorney General.