HB 5539 — Providing that causes of action under Chapter 46A of the Code of West Virginia survive the death of the party

WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION IntroducedCommittee Substitute for House Bill 5539 By Delegates C.

Pritt, McGeehan, Longanacre, Akers, Steele, Fluharty, Kimble, Shamblin, Kirby, and Kump [Introduced[Originating Februaryin 09,the 2024;Committee on the Judiciary;

ReferredReported toon theFebruary Committee20, on2024] theCS Judiciary]for Intr HB 2024R37275539 A BILL to amend and reenact §46A-2-122 and §55-7-8a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to actionsconsumer whichcredit survive;and protection actions;

limitations;amending definitions;

lawand governingclarifying suchthat actionsany andaction providingfor thata causesviolation of action under Chapter 46A of this code shall survive the Codedeath of Westhe Virginiaperson shallentitled surviveto recover or the death of the party.person liable.

CHAPTER 46A.

WEST VIRGINIA CONSUMER CREDIT AND PROTECTION ACT.

ARTICLE 2.

CONSUMER CREDIT PROTECTION.

§46A-2-122.

Definitions.

For the purposes of this section and sections one hundred twenty-three, one hundred twenty-four, one hundred twenty-five, one hundred twenty-six, one hundred twenty-seven, one hundred twenty-eight, one hundred twenty-nine and one hundred twenty-nine-a of this article, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) “Consumer” means any natural person obligated or allegedly obligated to pay any debt.

The term “consumer” shall include any duly appointed administrator of the estate of a natural person obligated or allegedly obligated to pay any debt.

The term “consumer” further includes any natural person obligated under a deed of trust or lien that secures property primarily used for personal, family, or household purposes wherein the property is subject to foreclosure or forfeiture for failure to pay money.

(b) “Claim” means any obligation or alleged obligation of a consumer to pay money arising out of a transaction in which the money, property, insurance or service which is the subject of the transaction is primarily for personal, family or household purposes, whether or not such obligation has been reduced to judgment.

(c) “Debt collection” means any action, conduct or practice of soliciting claims for collection or in the collection of claims owed or due or alleged to be owed or due by a consumer.

1 CS for HB 5539 (d) “Debt collector” means any person or organization engaging directly or indirectly in debt collection.

The term includes any person or organization who sells or offers to sell forms which are, or are represented to be, a collection system, device or scheme, and are intended or calculated to be used to collect claims.

The term excludes attorneys representing creditors provided the attorneys are licensed in West Virginia or otherwise authorized to practice law in the State of West Virginia and handling claims and collections in their own name as an employee, partner, member, shareholder or owner of a law firm and not operating a collection agency under the management of a person who is not a licensed attorney.

CHAPTER 55.

ACTIONS, SUITS AND ARBITRATION;

JUDICIAL SALE.

of this code such action may be begun by the personal representative of CS for HB 5539 the injured party against the wrongdoer or his or her personal representative and prosecuted to judgment and execution against the wrongdoer or his or her personal representative.

(d) If any such action mentioned in the preceding subsections (a), (b) and/or (c) shall have Intr HB 2024R3727 been begun against the wrongdoer and he or she dies during the pendency thereof, it may be revived against the personal representative of the wrongdoer and prosecuted to judgment and execution.

NOTE:

The purpose of this bill is to provide that causes of action under Chapter 46A of the Code of West Virginia shall survive the death of the party.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.