Oneida Tribe Claims FACTA Immunity in 7th Circuit Appeal

In response to an appeal to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin argued that a dismissed proposed class action lawsuit alleging violations of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) should not be revived.

The tribe argued that sovereign tribal immunity supersedes any consumer protection laws and that because the FACTA Act does not specifically mention Native Americans, immunity cannot be waived.

According to court documents filed by the Tribe, “Congress did not clearly, unequivocally and unambiguously reference Indian tribes when it enacted the FCRA and FACTA and, therefore, it has not evinced an intent to waive a tribe’s sovereign immunity.”

Overview of Wisconsin Tribe FACTA Class Action Lawsuit

On September 4, the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin won dismissal of a putative class action alleging that it printed expiration dates and more than the last five digits of credit cards on receipts at its retail stores.

In Jeremy Meyers, et al. v. Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin, the court agreed with the tribe’s argument that its sovereignty made it immune to Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) lawsuits.

Meyers had filed the FACTA lawsuit in April 2015, alleging FACTA rules applied to any foreign or domestic government, including Indian tribes. The consumer class action specifically claimed that in February 2015, several One-Stop locations printed more than the last five digits of Meyer’s credit card along with the expiration date on his transaction receipts.

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) strictly states that electronic receipts may not include more than the last five digits of the credit or debit card number. It also prohibits the printing of the card’s expiration date. FACTA allows for damages in the amount of $100 to $1000 per violation.

What is FACTA?

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, or FACTA, is a federal law enacted in 2004 that permits only the last five digits of a credit card number to be printed on a credit or debit card receipt and must also not include the expiration date.

For each willful FACTA violation, courts are instructed to impose $100 to $1,000 in damages, in addition to possible punitive damages.

FACTA was enacted, in part, to address the security practices of merchants who accept payment via credit or debit cards. FACTA targets the growing problem of identity theft as credit and debit card numbers along with expiration dates displayed on printed receipts can put consumers at risk for identity theft and fraud.

If you were provided an electronically printed credit or debit card receipt at the point of sale or transaction on which the expiration date or number of your credit or debit card was printed, you may be eligible to file a FACTA lawsuit.

The FACTA Class Action Lawsuit is Jeremy Meyers v. Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin, Case No. 15-3127, in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

Free FACTA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you made one or more purchases and the retailer provided you with a receipt that contained more than the last five digits of your credit or debit card number or the expiration date, you may be eligible for a free class action lawsuit investigation and to pursue compensation for these FACTA violations.

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