Repossessions: After You Have Possession
A NorthLegal Webinar presented August 18, 2011
(Approximately 2 hr 39 min including Q&A)

Cost/Registration | Regions Affected | Co-Hosts | How to Attend a Webinar

2010 and 2011 have been busy years for lawsuits against consumer lenders for failure to comply with repossession laws!

Ford Motor Credit settled a lawsuit by reportedly waiving more than $110 million in debt, refunding post-repossession payments made by borrowers, and paying attorneys fees.

A large East Coast credit union is reported to have settled another by waiving more than $50 million in debt, refunding post-repossession payments, and paying more than $200,000 in attorneys fees.

One finance company settled a case by reportedly waiving $43 million in debt and returning more than $407,000 in post-petition payments and paying the debtor's attorneys fees.

An Illinois credit union got off easy by comparison, settling a case in California by reportedly waiving $7 million in debt and returning $139,000 in post-repossession payments, and paying the debtors' attorneys fees.

And the Ninth Circuit court of Appeal just allowed still another case against another major bank to go forward, overturning a lower court case dismissing it.

And those cases are just a few that can be found with a quick Internet search!   Dozens of other cases are filed and settled each year for tens of millions of dollars without ever making the news.

Bearing in mind that each of these large financial institutions almost certainly was sure it was doing things right, but wasn't: How about you?  Does your institution understand the legal issues that can turn you into the debtor and your borrower into your creditor?

During a previous webinar, attorney Eric North (who has taught and written about repossession procedures extensively for more than 25 years) discussed legal issues lenders need to understand that arise before a motor vehicle is repossessed.  In this program, Eric will talk with participants about important legal issues that arise after a vehicle is repossessed, including—

• What single, surprisingly common, mistake made by experienced lenders invalidates hundreds or thousands of repossession sale notices every year?
• What is a "right of reinstatement" and do your borrowers have it?
• Which lenders may require borrowers to pay force placed insurance premiums in full as a condition to the return of the collateral and which cannot?
• What is a "public sale," what is a "private sale"—and why does it matter?
• What is a "commercially reasonable" sale?
• May you repair or recondition collateral before selling it?  Must you repair or recondition it?
• May you sell collateral to an employee or the family member of an employee?
• What error do many lenders make after collateral has been sold that places them at significant risk for class action litigation?
  

Don't wait until you receive notice of a lawsuit with your name on it to learn what you should have done.

NOTE: This program is intended for employees of consumer lending institutions. Please contact NorthLegal Training and Publications to obtain approval before registering if you are not an employee of a consumer lending institution.

Cost/Registration
The fee to attend this archived program is $145.00 if paid by credit card or $155.00 if paid by check. For that fee, you or someone from your financial institution may view this program as often as you like for a period of 30 days.

Co-Hosts
Although financial institutions from any state may attend this program, this program is jointly hosted by NorthLegal Training and Publications, by credit union and other consumer lending institution leagues and associations serving:

by the following local or regional associations:

• The California Credit Union Collectors Council
• The New England Adjustment Managers Association
• The NorthWest Credit Union Collectors Association

and by the law firm of

Moore, Brewer, Jones, Tyler & North

(Participants do not have to be members of any of those leagues or associations in order to attend.)

How to Attend a Webinar
To attend this archived NorthLegal Webinar, please do the following:

• Register.  To register online using a credit card, visit the link shown earlier on this page. To register by mail, call NorthLegal at 623.537.7150.
• Check your email. Within moments after you complete the registration process you should receive two emails.  One will be a receipt for the transaction and the other will contain a link and detailed instructions explaining how to use that link to attend the program. 
• Download the handout materials by clicking the link shown earlier in these materials.
• Call NorthLegal to obtain the password to open the handout materials.

You or someone from your financial institution may view the program as often as you like for a period of 30 days after you register.