Legal Question in Business Law in Maryland

Re: zombie debt

You may want to send a letter to the collection agency informing them that you intend to pursue a claim against them under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. This statute can be found in Title 15 of the U.S. Code, starting at Sec. 1692. You may be able to access it on the lawguru website. It lists a number of practices of collection agencies which are unlawful, such as contacting someone at work against the wishes of the employer, or calling at odd hours of the day at home. Also, the statute states that the collector is to cease communications with the consumer upon being notified that the consumer will not pay the debt, except to advise the consumer that the collector intends to take specific legal action to collect the debt. Perhaps this will chill their efforts, especially if the letter comes from an attorney.