A federal district court in Illinois recently dismissed a putative class action against a foreclosure firm, holding that an allegation in a foreclosure complaint that the borrower is personally liable for any deficiency on an FHA-insured mortgage is not a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In Justin Gierke v. Codilis and Associates, the plaintiff obtained an FHA loan in 2013 and subsequently defaulted due to financial hardship. The defendant, a law firm, filed a foreclosure action in state court against the plaintiff in February 2015. The complaint identified the plaintiff, the borrower, as personally liable for any deficiency. The plaintiff responded by filing a counter-complaint against the defendant alleging violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. He alleged that the FHA “narrowly limits the circumstances under which a deficiency will be sought to cases where the borrower committed fraud or engaged in ...