After the financial meltdown of 2007-08, the federal government, as well as most state governments, took action to prevent unfair lending practices. Many of the new laws focused on penalizing lenders for inserting fine print into extensive loan documents and charging hidden fees for servicing consume loans.
According to a recent class action settlement, Georgia residents that received loans from Western Sky Financial might be eligible to receive compensation. The class action settlement holds Western Sky LLC and company subsidiaries accountable for implementing unfair lending practices. Moreover, the class action lawsuit alleges Western Sky violated several state consumer protection laws.
The settlement includes language that sets monetary payments, as well the cancellation of outstanding loans and positive adjustments to credit histories. Class members also sought judicial relief that prohibits Western Sky LLC from engaging in the lending business within the State of Georgia. This means the lender cannot service or collect any loans that fall under the legal guidelines set forth in the settlement.
What You Need to Know
Class member eligibility covers Georgia residents that received a loan from Western Sky Financial LLC and lived in the State of Georgia at the times they took out the Western Sky loans. The potential award varies, with the settlement creating four types of benefits. Monetary payments go to class members who received loans exceeding $3,000 and repaid an amount equal or greater than the loan proceeds. Some customers of Western Sky might be eligible for loan forgiveness and/or an adjustment of credit history that requires the three major credit bureaus to remove all credit reporting made by the Western Sky LLC. Western Sky Financial also has to cancel loans made to third parties.
The proof of purchase in this case requires class members to file a claim form that presents name, birth date, contact information, and the least four digits of a Social Security number. Class members have until May 15, 2017 to file a claim form in the case referred to in court as State of Georgia v. CashCall Inc., et al., Case No. 2013-CV-234310, in the Superior Court for Fulton County, Georgia. The judge in the case has not set a date for the final hearing. Stay informed about the hearing date and other important class action settlement information by accessing the case website at secure.dahladmin.com/GACASH/Index.
Class counsel for the case includes Timothy A. Butler, Charlene R. Swartz, Monica A. Sullivan, and Andrew D. Chesser from the Office of the Attorney General of Georgia. Western Sky Financial LLC and each of the company’s subsidiaries involved in the class action settlement have hired different law firms to handle their legal cases.
