193167P.pdf   12/14/2020  Stephanie Reygadas  v.  DNF Associates
   U.S. Court of Appeals Case No:  19-3167
   U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas - Ft. Smith   
   [PUBLISHED] [Loken, Author, with Grasz, Circuit Judge, and Clark, District 
   Judge] 
   Civil case - Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. On this summary judgment 
   record, having considered the plain meaning of the statute's text, 
   together with the structure of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the 
   court concludes the district court did not err in ruling as a matter of 
   law that defendant DNF is a debt collector under Sec. 1692a(6); the court 
   does not hold that any debt buyer that hires an independent debt 
   collection thereby becomes a debt collector itself under Sec. 1692a(6); 
   while DNF knew that plaintiff had been represented by counsel in a state 
   court action it brought, it was its agent RGS that sent a letter directly 
   to plaintiff in violation of the Act; plaintiff could not recover from DNF 
   on a theory of vicarious liability as it is undisputed that RGS did not 
   have knowledge that plaintiff was represented and RGS did not violate the 
   Act; the record was insufficient to show RGS's acts could be imputed to 
   DNF to establish direct liability, and the district court erred in 
   granting partial summary judgment in favor of plaintiff sua sponte; 
   vacated and remanded for further proceedings.