California Attorney General Jerry Brown succeeded in obtaining a $1 million judgment against predatory lender CashCall, Inc. Brown argued that the company violated California Business and Professions Code Section 17200. Brown’s press release noted that CashCall:

• Made excessive and verbally abusive telephone calls at all hours of the day and night;
• Caused borrowers to incur bank fees by repeatedly trying to collect payments despite knowing there were insufficient funds in the borrowers’ accounts;
• Threatened to initiate law enforcement and wage garnishment proceedings against borrowers without any basis for doing so;
• Improperly discussed private financial information with borrowers’ friends, colleagues and neighbors;
• Failed to honor borrowers’ requests to cancel automatic withdrawals from checking accounts; and
• Continued to contact borrowers by phone after receiving requests to only contact them in writing.

These practices are also illegal under federal law, namely the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.