Offer by debt collection offenders to buy off named class representative is rejected

Christopher Hrivnak sued NCO Portfolio Mgmt., the law firm Javitch, Block & Rathbone, LLP, and other debt collection entities, alleging that they were violating state and federal law in credit card debt collection practices. Hrivnak sought to enjoin their illegal actions and to recover damages for himself and all other abused debtors. The defendants sought to "buy off" and dismiss Hrivnak by paying him $7,000.00, which the defendants claimed was the most he could possibly be owed. They argued that the Court could force him to take the money and dismiss the class action. The Court rejected the Defendants' attempt to eliminate Hrivnak's "personal stake" in the class action and to force him to accept what the defendants' deemed to be appropriate compensation. The Court said, in essence, that in order to "moot" the Plaintiff's action, the defendants were required to offer the Plaintiff "everything he asked for," not "everything they deemed fair.