California Civil Code 1785.31 – (a) Any consumer who suffers damages as a result of a violation …
(a) Any consumer who suffers damages as a result of a violation of this title by any person may bring an action in a court of appropriate jurisdiction against that person to recover the following:
(1) In the case of a negligent violation, actual damages, including court costs, loss of wages, attorney’s fees and, when applicable, pain and suffering.
Terms Used In California Civil Code 1785.31
- Consumer: means a natural individual. See California Civil Code 1785.3
- Credit report: A detailed report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit bureau and used by a lender in determining a loan applicant's creditworthiness. Source: OCC
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: means any individual, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, cooperative, association, government or governmental subdivision or agency, or other entity. See California Civil Code 1785.3
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
(2) In the case of a willful violation:
(A) Actual damages as set forth in paragraph (1) above:
(B) Punitive damages of not less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation as the court deems proper;
(C) Any other relief that the court deems proper.
(3) In the case of liability of a natural person for obtaining a consumer credit report under false pretenses or knowingly without a permissible purpose, an award of actual damages pursuant to paragraph (1) or subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) shall be in an amount of not less than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500).
(b) Injunctive relief shall be available to any consumer aggrieved by a violation or a threatened violation of this title whether or not the consumer seeks any other remedy under this section.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any person who willfully violates any requirement imposed under this title may be liable for punitive damages in the case of a class action, in an amount that the court may allow. In determining the amount of award in any class action, the court shall consider among relevant factors the amount of any actual damages awarded, the frequency of the violations, the resources of the violator and the number of persons adversely affected.
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (e), the prevailing plaintiffs in any action commenced under this section shall be entitled to recover court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.
(e) If a plaintiff brings an action pursuant to this section against a debt collector, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1788.2, and the basis for the action is related to the collection of a debt, whether issues relating to the debt collection are raised in the same or another proceeding, the debt collector shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney’s fees upon a finding by the court that the action was not brought in good faith.
(f) If a plaintiff only seeks and obtains injunctive relief to compel compliance with this title, court costs and attorney’s fees shall be awarded pursuant to Section 1021.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(g) Nothing in this section is intended to affect remedies available under Section 128.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 836, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2000.)