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DannLaw Client Update for May 2023…

Identity Theft

By

Dann Law

Hello and Happy Spring. I’m reaching out today to provide our clients and friends with updates about several pending cases, new investigations and an exciting new addition to the DannLaw legal team. 

First I would like to introduce and welcome Jeff Crossman to DannLaw. Jeff, who recently joined DannLaw after serving in the Ohio House and running for Ohio Attorney General, will be litigating complex class action, mortgage servicing, and corporate/business cases. 

Picture of Jeff CrossmanJeff brings more than two decades of legal experience to Dann Law.  During his career, he has represented a variety of clients in complex matters, successfully resolving disputes for both individuals and businesses ranging from small startups to national corporations.  Jeff has served as an associate with a prominent national law firm, as in-house legal counsel for multiple national companies, and recently served two terms as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives where he gained invaluable experience in public policy, government, and changes made to the legal system. The sum of Jeff’s experience has given him a unique perspective and a deep understanding of the legal landscape, which he leverages to achieve the best outcomes for his clients.

Jeff believes that every client deserves high-quality legal representation personalized to fit the client’s needs, and he is committed to achieving the best possible outcomes for each and every one of his clients.

Education

  • B.A. University of Mount Union
  • M.A., University of Akron
  • J.D., Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, magna cum laude

Bar Admissions

  • State of Ohio
  • Federal District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
  • Pending: Federal District Court for the Southern District of Ohio 
  • 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.

 Mortgage Servicing Litigation

Our Mortgage Servicing Litigation team, which includes Dan Solar, Michael Smith, Saher Chaudrey, Javier Merino, Brian Flick, Kim White, and Karen Ortiz, continue to bring groundbreaking cases on behalf of homeowners involved in disputes with their mortgage servicers:

  1. Delays  and mistakes made by servicers assisting homeowners who took advantage of Covid Related Mortgage Payment Forbearance provided by the CARES Act and the American Recovery Act.  As a result of these errors, many borrowers exited forbearance with higher interest rates than they should have and some are facing unnecessary and unwarranted foreclosure actions. 
  2. Homeowners put at risk because servicers mishandled tax, insurance, and other escrow payments.. 
  3. Problems that have occurred when mortgage servicing is transferred from one company to another. This problem is especially prevalent when borrowers and services are engaged in loss mitigation activities. 
  4. Accounting problems following the successful completion of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. 
  5. Violations of Ohio’s Residential Mortgage Loan Act. Dannlaw has obtained numerous consumer/borrower favorable court decisions involving servicers who failed to abide by changes in the Ohio Law that protects borrowers.

Foreclosure Defense

As foreclosure protections sunset our Foreclosure Defense team led by Whitney Kaster with support from Amanda Severt, Karen Ortiz and Roberto Rivera are litgating cases and developing thoughtful and innovative loss mitigation and legal strategies that will enable our clients to stay in their homes. If you are or may be about to enter foreclosure, please contact form or call us at 216-373-0539. We are here to help.

Class Action Lawsuits 

The members of our class action practice group, Brian Flick, Javier Merino, Andy Wolf, Jeff Crossman, Saher Chaudrey,Kim White and Liza Marigliano are pleased and proud to report that they have worked with co-counsel to obtain preliminary approval of several class action cases across the United States in the past several months.  There are active claim deadlines in the following cases.  If you believe you are a member of the class in one or some of these actions, we encourage you to visit the case settlement websites to review the terms of settlement and if appropriate files a claim: .

Nationstar

In the Class Action case against Nationstar Mortgage and payment processor ACI we successfully negotiated a $9 million settlement that is set for final approval on May 31, 2023 in the Federal District Court in North Carolina. You still have  time to submit claims if Nationstar pulled money from your bank account without permission in April of 2021. Visit this website to make a claim https://achloanpaymentlitigation.com/.

Michigan Ave. Immediate Care

Michigan Avenue Immediate Care  has agreed to a $900,000 settlement fund for people whose personal information was exposed to the dark web as the result of a data breach. If you were a patient of the of that Chicago medical practice file a claim here:  https://www.maicincident.com/

Parker Hannifin

We’ve reached a favorable $1.75 Million  settlement for present and past employees of Parker Hannifin who were impacted by a data breach. If you ever worked at Parker Hannifin please follow this link to learn more and file a claim www.phdatasettlement.com.

We are also investigating and litigating several other significant class action cases including:

Pricing Fraud by Dollar General.  DannLaw has filed cases against Dollar General in Ohio, New York and New Jersey based on allegations that prices listed for items on shelves are lower than prices charged at the register. If you live anywhere in the United States and believe you have been overcharged by Dollar General or any other retailer, please contact our office by completing and submitting our contact form or calling 216-373-0539.

Salmonella Poisoning in Jif Peanut Butter 

The FDA, along with CDC and state and local partners are investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Senftenberg infections linked to certain Jif brand peanut butter products produced at the J.M. Smucker Company facility in Lexington, Kentucky. If you believe you have been impacted by the outbreak please complete and submit our contact form or call us at 216-373-0539.

Traffic Camera Violations in the City of Girard

Tickets were wrongly issued to drivers along Rt 80 in Girard Ohio

Impact Cases

Federal Government’s failure to compensate victims of  “Snap Skimming”  DannLaw recently filed a case in Ohio against the United States Department of Agriculture regarding the agency’s failure to reimburse Ohioans whose SNAP benefits have been “skimmed” by unknown third parties beginning in January of 2022. 

Skimming occurs when criminals use a device placed over a point-of-sale card reader to steal information from payment cards like SNAP EBT and cash assistance cards. That means SNAP or cash assistance benefits may have been stolen with the cardholder’s knowledge.

If you believe you have been a victim of SNAP theft, please please complete and submit our contact form or call us at 216-373-0539.

Racial Discrimination in Mortgage Lending by Wells Fargo We have assumed a  leadership role in investigating allegations that Wells denied  borrowers of color mortgage financing at a rate almost double that of white borrowers.. 

Ohio PUA Unemployment Benefits

In Bowling v. Dewine we continue to pursue $900 million in fully federally-funded COVID-19 supplemental unemployment insurance benefits the DeWine administration callously denied Ohioans who were left jobless as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. 

Data Breach Cases

We are also bringing Class Actions for Data Breaches against the following Companies:

Last Pass/GoTo Technologies

Carrington Mortgage and Alvaria, Inc.

Snap Finance–Brian Flick has been appointed co-lead counsel

Key Bank/KeyBank Mortgage/Fulton Bank/Overby-Seawell

Samsung

Bet MGM (Where Javier Merino is taking a Lead Role)

Lakeview Loan Servicing

If you or someone you know has been impacted by these data breaches please complete and submit our contact form or call us at 216-373-0539.

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The End of Covid Forbearance is here. Time to rework your loan. 

DannLaw founder Marc DannMortgage forbearance and other programs made available to homeowners during the COVID-19 pandemic are about to end. That means millions of homeowners are or will soon be pursuing loan modifications or other work out options with their lenders. Karen Ortiz, Roberto Rivera, and DannLaw’s highly experienced and knowledgeable legal staff are here to help families navigate the complicated process and select the payment structure that best meets their needs. Please contact us to arrange a no-cost, no-obligation consultation by calling 216-373-0539 or completing our contact form.

Changes at DannLaw

We are sad to announce that Attorney Whitney Horton is leaving DannLaw after being a valuable member of our team for more than seven years. If Whitney has been working on your case, a notice of substitution of counsel will be filed in the next few weeks. Whitney Kaster, who was at DannLaw before the pandemic is returning to the firm on Monday April 24. Attorney Kaster will work me and Emily White on foreclosure defense matters and with Brian Flick on Consumer Protection cases.  In addition, Amanda Severt who has been our administrative assistant has been promoted and will now work as a paralegal assigned to foreclosure cases and state court litigation.

 Student Loan Changes

The U.S. Department of Education is making changes to the Income Based Repayment program for Federal Student Loans that should enable lower income borrowers to fulfill their obligations faster and qualify for Public Service or other Loan forgiveness programs sooner. You may read about the changes here. Richard Cordray who served as Ohio Treasurer and AG before being named the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is now in charge of Student Loan Issues at the DOE drafted and implemented these significant improvements.  

Foreclosures Are Ramping Up 

Along with forbearance and other relief programs, foreclosure stays are ending.  That means hundreds and perhaps thousands of new judicial foreclosure actions will be filed in Ohio, New Jersey and other states. We have the experience, expertise, and knowledge needed to save your home.

Remember this important point: The filing of a foreclosure lawsuit is the beginning, not the end of the process. Please reach out to DannLaw or another attorney as soon as you know a foreclosure action has been filed against you. If you’ve been served with a foreclosure complaint you have a short time–28 Days in Ohio–to retain a lawyer and file an answer. The vast majority of people who retain us because they want to stay in their home are able to do exactly that.

In addition to defending the foreclosure action, we conduct a thorough investigation to determine if your mortgage loan servicer has followed all applicable rules and laws that govern mortgage lending. If we discover violations, we can bring and pursue claims against the mortgage company. Our foreclosure clients pay an affordable monthly payment into our trust account to cover the fees that we earn in their cases. We offer a free consultation. If you or anyone you know has been sued for foreclosure please contact us here, or call us at 216-373-0539. To schedule an appointment with me visit calendly.com/mdann.

 Regulation F Changes the Game for Debt Collectors and Consumers 

 The CFPB has enacted new strict rules that govern the manner in which debt collectors may contact you by mail, email, text, telephone or social media. You can read about the new regs here. In addition, Credit Reporting Agencies will no longer report most medical debt. This should help consumers improve their credit score. If you believe a debt collector has made a misrepresentation to you or contacted you by phone, letter, text, or email at an inappropriate time you may be entitled to financial compensation. Please feel free to contact us to discuss your situation.

 Data Breach Cases

Multiple courts have selected DannLaw to serve as Class Counsel in data breach Cases. A data breach occurs when a company fails to properly safeguard its customers’ personal information. Our legal staff devotes considerable time and resources to pursuing and securing just compensation for the inconvenience, expense, and aggravation data breach victims endure.

I have a new perspective on that today. I’ve been ensnared in multiple data breaches. Someone obtained my personal information and “took over” my bank account. I’ve spent 20 hours sorting out payments, ACHs and was forced to visit my bank three times. I have a renewed passion to ensure that companies who allow breaches to occur are held accountable for their actions.  If you are notified that your information is at risk due to a breach, contact us immediately so we can take all available legal steps to secure just compensation for you and other data breach victims.

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Travel Click logoImportant notice for anyone who received a letter from a lodging chain regarding the TravelClick date breach:  Don’t delay. Protect yourself and your family. Contact DannLaw TODAY!

Hotel chains that use TravelClick, a third-party reservation system, recently notified customers that the company allowed hackers to steal their credit card information.

As a result of the failure to protect this sensitive personal information, many people are now at high risk for identity theft and credit card fraud.

If you received a letter from a lodging chain you should contact DannLaw today. We are now investigating this data breach and believe you and other victims may be entitled to substantial financial compensation.

To arrange a no-cost no-obligation consultation about this important matter call 216-373-0539, complete the contact form found at dannlaw.brmcstaging.com/contact, or send us a direct message via our Facebook page. We are here to protect you.

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Flagstar Bank Data Breach

Important notice for current and former customers of Flagstar Bank: You may be a victim of a serious data breach! Don’t delay. Protect yourself and your family. Contact DannLaw TODAY!

Flagstar Bank recently announced that it allowed hackers to steal the social security numbers, first and last names, phone numbers, and home addresses of current and former customers. The victims include people whose mortgages were sold to Flagstar without their consent or knowledge. There are also reports that customers who closed their accounts more than ten years ago are impacted by the breach.

As a result of Flagstar’s failure to protect this sensitive personal information, you are now at high risk for identity theft, tax fraud, and tax refund diversion. In addition, cybercriminals can use this data to file fraudulent unemployment claims and open new accounts in your name.

If you received a letter from Flagstar about the breach you should immediately take advantage of the free identity monitoring service the bank is offering.

You should also contact DannLaw today. We are now investigating this devastating data breach and believe you and other victims may be entitled to substantial financial compensation.

To arrange a no-cost no-obligation consultation about this important matter call 216-373-0539, complete the contact form found at dannlaw.brmcstaging.com/contact, or send us a direct message via our Facebook page. We are here to protect you.

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Lodging company data breach exposes hundreds of millions to identity theft, consumer fraud

DannLaw, one of the nation’s leading consumer protection law firms, is urging victims of the massive Starwood data breach to immediately take steps to both protect their personal information and preserve their right to seek financial compensation from the Marriott Corporation, Starwood’s parent company.

Last week Marriott announced that sensitive information belonging to 500,000,000 million people who used the company’s Starwood reservations system has been accessed by cybercriminals. According to the company the hackers copied names, addresses, dates of birth, passport numbers, email addresses, phone numbers, and encrypted credit card information from the Starwood reservation system. The company admits that the perpetrators may be able to overcome the encryption and use the credit card numbers.

“Starwood had a legal, ethical, and moral obligation to protect the information they obtained from consumers,” Atty. Marc Dann said. “The company utterly failed to meet those obligations and now as many as 500 million people are at risk of having their identities stolen and their credit damaged or ruined by cyber criminals. They must be held accountable for their actions.”

Atty. Dann noted that Marriott, like other companies that allowed customers’ personal data to be compromised, waited months to reveal that the reservation system had been hacked. “Even worse, cybersecurity experts agree that the company missed multiple opportunities to detect and/or prevent the breach since it occurred in 2014,” the former Ohio Attorney General said.

Those experts include Andrei Barysevich, a researcher with the security company Recorded Future Inc., who told the Wall Street Journal that a small breach the company suffered in 2015 should have set off alarms. “With all the resources they have, they should have been able to isolate hackers back in 2015,” he said. Instead, hackers mined the company’s reservation system for nearly four years.

“As a result, what could and should have been a minor problem has become one of the largest security failures in history,” Atty. Dann said. “Whether willful or careless, it appears that Marriott violated a number of consumer protection laws, and that means victims may be entitled to substantial compensation.”

Anyone who used the Starwood system to reserve a room at one of the following properties in the past four years may be at risk:

  • Sheraton Hotels & Resorts
  • Four Points by Sheraton
  • Westin Hotels & Resorts,
  • W Hotels
  • Regis, Element Hotels
  • Aloft Hotels,
  • The Luxury Collection,
  • Tribute Portfolio,
  • Le Méridien Hotels & Resorts, and
  • Design Hotels.
  • Starwood-branded timeshare properties

“Anyone who believes their personal or credit card information has been stolen should visit https://answers.kroll.com/, the website Marriott set up to deal with the problem and take advantage of the opportunity to enroll in WebWatcher for free,” Atty. Dann said. “But please, do not agree to any waiver or release the company offers via email, regular mail, or via phone. The last thing a victim of the company’s carelessness should do is surrender their right to hold Marriott accountable at a later date.”

Atty. Dann also urged anyone whose data may have been compromised to arrange a free consultation with the firm’s highly experienced legal team by calling 877-475-8100 or by completing the form that may be accessed at  https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSfWi22blTFnoe5fLD…/viewform “We will be happy to walk people through the steps they need to take to preserve their rights under the law.”

Finally, Atty. Dann suggested that potential victims take the following steps to protect themselves and their families:

  • Marriott is notifying impacted consumers by email. The email will come from starwoodhotels@email-marriott.com. When other companies provided notifications in this manner, cybercriminals sent fake emails asking individuals to provide information about themselves by providing links to fake websites or impersonating someone trusted. The email being sent by Starwood will not contain any attachments or request any information from consumers and links will only take recipients to the breach web site.
  • Check credit reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion and look for any unauthorized entries or accounts.
  • Place a free credit freeze on your files. A credit freeze makes it harder for someone to open a new account in your name.
  • If you decide against a credit freeze, consider placing a fraud alert on your files. A fraud alert warns creditors that you may be an identity theft victim and that they should verify that anyone seeking credit in your name really is you;
  • Change your login information on your Starwood accounts. If you used that same username and password on other sites, change those as well;
  • Consider placing alerts on your financial accounts so your financial institution alerts you when money above a pre-designated amount is withdrawn;
  • Beware of potential phishing emails; don’t open email messages or attachments from unknown senders and do not click on any unknown links. Fraudsters will frequently send coercive and misleading emails threatening account suspension or worse if sensitive information is not provided;
  • Remember, businesses will never ask customers to verify account information via email or phone. If in doubt, contact the business in question directly for verification and to report phishing emails and phone calls; and
  • Be on the lookout for spoofed email address. Spoofed email addresses are those that make minor changes in the domain name, such as changing the letter O to the number zero, or lowercase letter I to the number one. Scrutinize all incoming email addresses to ensure that the sender is truly legitimate.