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Unfair, Abusive, And Unlawful: Protecting Debtors And Society From Unrestrained Bank Account Garnishment, Kevin Green

Fordham Law Review

In the span of a generation, consumer credit has reshaped the financial lives of millions of Americans. Today, some seventy million Americans have a debt in collections, and creditors file millions of actions annually to secure repayment of these loans. Despite the rapid expansion of consumer debt, the Consumer Credit Protection Act, the only federal law limiting garnishment, has not been updated since its enactment in 1968. Moreover, courts have narrowly construed its provisions to permit creditors to empty a debtor’s bank account to repay a delinquent debt.

To afford debtors the basic protections of the Consumer Credit Protection Act, …