As an attorney representing individuals in disputes with large corporations for nearly a decade, it has frequently occurred to me that most consumers are unaware of substantial legal rights they have, including laws that exist for the express purpose of protecting consumers from specific unfair business practices.  I have been surprised to find a kindred spirit in comedian John Oliver of HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, whose concern with consumer affairs on the show has included major problems with credit reporting as well as debt collection and debt buying scams (caution: strong language).  I am pleased to see these troubling issues discussed in a popular forum, by a public figure with a genuine passion for consumer rights.

What Mr. Oliver does not explore in these entertaining and informative pieces are the legal frameworks available under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), which encourage aggrieved consumers and their attorneys to act as “private attorneys general” to regulate the industries that abuse credit reports and those that resort to unfair and deceptive means of collecting seriously delinquent debts–some of which may even be time-barred, or not owed in the first place.  While these statutes and the numerous precedents that interpret them are not the stuff of late night television, they are major tools in the arsenal of consumer advocates such as myself, and can form the basis for significant recoveries for consumers themselves.