Gorsuch has unanimous first opinion for Supreme Court

WASHINGTON – Justice Neil Gorsuch has issued his first Supreme Court opinion, a unanimous decision in favour of a company involved in a debt collection dispute.

The court ruled Monday that Santander Consumer USA does not fall under a federal law aimed at unscrupulous debt collectors. The company purchased defaulted car loans and sought to collect the money owed.

Gorsuch displayed his writing skills in an opinion that began with a lament about “disruptive dinnertime calls, downright deceit and more” that debt collectors sometimes employ.

But Gorsuch said for the court that the company does not qualify as a debt collector because it purchased the loans in question and was not trying to collect on someone else’s behalf.