M. HANNAH LAUCK, District Judge.
This matter comes before the Court on two motions filed by Defendant TransUnion, LLC ("TransUnion"): (1) TransUnion's Motion to Dismiss pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1)
The Court dispenses with oral argument because the materials before it adequately present the facts and legal contentions, and argument would not aid the decisional process. Accordingly, the matters are ripe for disposition. The Court exercises jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331.
The Court also has several motions before it regarding scheduling, discovery, or other administrative matters. The Court will address the other pending motions at the conclusion of this Memorandum Opinion.
Clark, the named plaintiff, asserts six counts against TransUnion: one proposed class claim, and five individual claims. Count I, the "Disclosure of Source Claim," alleges a putative class action arising out of TransUnion's violations of 15 U.S.C. § 1681g(a)(2)
The parties diverge when discussing what this Court should deem to be the "source" of the information. Clark contends that TransUnion runs afoul of § 1681g(a)(2) because it never identifies LexisNexis, a third-party vendor, as the source of the public record information "that makes its way into the consumer credit files it sells." (Id. ¶ 4.) Clark contends that this systematic misrepresentation deprives consumers of receiving congressionally-mandated information and makes it more difficult for consumers to correct errors. TransUnion, in briefing, suggests that it appropriately reports the place where consumer data originated, such as a courthouse, and that any additional information about how the data was collected or who collected it is either immaterial to this case or does not implicate § 1681g(a)(2).
Clark alleges that TransUnion's violations of § 1681g(a)(2) entitle each consumer who received his or her credit file to statutory damages under § 1681n(a) between $100 and $1,000.
Clark's five individual claims provide context to the entire action, so the Court will first discuss the facts giving rise to them. Clark alleges that on August 7, 2014, TransUnion provided to her a credit file that incorrectly listed two civil judgments entered against her. TransUnion listed the sources of the judgments as "Henrico District Court" and "Virginia Federal Court," respectively. (First Am. Class Compl. ¶ 27.) Clark, however, contends that the actual source of the judgments was LexisNexis, the third-party vendor that retrieved the data.
Quik Cash allegedly entered one of the judgments against Clark in November 2008 in the amount of $575, even though that judgment had been appealed and dismissed. Clark submitted multiple demand letters requesting that TransUnion correct its error. TransUnion, however, purportedly failed to conduct a "timely and reasonable reinvestigation" and continued to report the Quik Cash judgment as unpaid. (Id. ¶ 35.)
These events, according to Clark, give rise to five individual claims. Count II, the "Reasonable Procedure Claim," proceeds under 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b).
Clark submits that TransUnion violated § 1681g(a)(2) by failing to convey on her credit file that LexisNexis was the source of the judgment information. To advance the claims of similarly situated individuals, Clark proposes to certify a class as follows:
(First Am. Class Compl. ¶ 62.) Clark seeks statutory and punitive damages in the amount of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000 per violation per class member, as set forth in 15 U.S.C. § 1681n(a). Clark does not appear to allege any injury beyond the "informational injury" purportedly suffered as a result of TransUnion's failure to convey the source of the judgment information, as Clark maintains that the FCRA requires. (First Am. Class Compl. ¶¶ 38-39 (contending that Clark "has suffered actual damages" because "Trans Union deprived [her] of. . . valuable information despite the requirements of the FCRA").)
TransUnion asks the Court to take judicial notice of eleven exhibits, Exhibits A through H, filed in support of the Motion to Dismiss. Clark does not object to TransUnion's request with respect to Exhibits A through G. Exhibits A through F are copies of documents, with docket entry numbers indicated, in a class action mediated by the undersigned judge and approved by the Honorable Henry E. Hudson, United States District Judge, in a 2014 case: Soutter v. TransUnion, LLC, No. 10cv514 (E.D. Va.). Exhibit G is a transcript from a preliminary approval hearing in a case presided over by the undersigned judge: Jenkins v. Equifax, No. 3:15cv443 (E.D. Va. June 14, 2016). Neither party disputes the accuracy or authenticity of these documents. Absent objection from Clark, the Court will grant the Motion Requesting Judicial Notice as it pertains to Exhibits A through G.
As to Exhibit H, however, the Court will decline to take judicial notice. Clark objects to this Court taking judicial notice of Exhibit H. which appears to be a copy of a printout entitled "Henrico County General District Court" "Civil Case Details" that came from Virginia's Court System website. TransUnion submits that Exhibit H is the "[o]nline court docket" from Quik Cash v. Carolyn Clark-Bruce, Henrico County Virginia District Court Case No. GV0823896-00. (Def.'s Mem. Supp. Mot. Requesting Judicial Not. 2, ECF No. 55.) Clark contends that Exhibit H lacks a proper foundation. The Court agrees.
Under Federal Rule of Evidence 201, the Court "may judicially notice a fact that is not subject to reasonable dispute because it: (1) is generally known within the trial court's territorial jurisdiction; or[,] (2) can be accurately and readily determined from sources whose accuracy cannot reasonably be questioned" Fed. R. Evid. 201(b) (emphasis added). TransUnion suggests that Exhibit H fits the latter category.
Contrary to TransUnion's position, the Virginia Courts' own website cautions users about the accuracy of its content. The website's "Terms and Conditions of Use" provide:
General District Court Online Information System, Virginia's Judicial System, https://eapps.courts.state.va.us/gdcourts/captcha Verification.do?landing=landing (emphases added). No dispute appears to exist that someone for TransUnion conducted a search on the Virginia Court System website and that Exhibit H reflects an authentic copy of the result. The website's own disclaimer, however, prevents this Court from concluding that the accuracy of its content "cannot reasonably be questioned." Fed. R. Evid. 201(b). TransUnion made no attempt to certify this docket sheet as a public record, or to offer any witness regarding its authenticity. See Fed. R. Evid. 902(4). Nor did TransUnion attempt to authenticate any underlying documents to which the docket refers. Absent this evidentiary grounding, the Court will deny the Motion Requesting Judicial Notice as it pertains to Exhibit H.
TransUnion files the Motion to Dismiss under two theories: (1) that the class certification should be struck for failure to state a claim; and, (2) that, given the recent Supreme Court of the United States decision in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, 136 S.Ct. 1540 (2016), as revised (May 24, 2016), Clark and the proposed class lack standing to bring this lawsuit. For the reasons that follow, the Court will deny TransUnion's Motion to Dismiss.
One theory of TransUnion's Motion to Dismiss relies on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(f) and asks that the Court strike Clark's class allegations. TransUnion's arguments take the form of a challenge to class certification. Clark's newly ripe Motion for Class Certification, (ECF No. 66), also remains pending before the Court. A determination about class certification will be more appropriately made on the more complete record that the parties' briefing on the Motion for Class Certification provides. The Court will deny, without prejudice, the Motion to Dismiss to the extent it seeks to strike Clark's class allegations. For the same reason, TransUnion's sweeping policy arguments regarding the propriety of consumer class actions are of no moment.
In Spokeo, the Supreme Court discussed the manner in which a plaintiff must allege "injury in fact" in order to establish standing for what courts call a "statutory violation" resulting in an "informational injury." In light of Spokeo, TransUnion moves to dismiss Count I pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) for lack of subject matter jurisdiction because Clark does not have standing under Article III of the Constitution of the United States.
The Court offers background regarding Article III standing and what could constitute an injury in fact under Spokeo to explain why it will deny the Motion to Dismiss.
Federal district courts are courts of limited subject matter jurisdiction. United States ex rel. Vuyvuru v. Jadhav, 555 F.3d 337, 347 (4th Cir. 2009) (citing Exxon Mobile Corp. v. Allapattah Servs., Inc., 545 U.S. 546, 552 (2005)). This Court must, as a result, determine whether it has jurisdiction over the claims at issue. See Steel Co. v. Citizens for a Better Env't, 523 U.S. 83, 94-95 (1998) ("The requirement that jurisdiction be established as a threshold matter `spring[s] from the nature and limits of the judicial power of the United States' and is `inflexible and without exception.'") (quoting Mansfield, C. & L.M.R. Co. v. Swan, 111 U.S. 379, 382 (1884)). "The objection that a federal court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction . . . may be raised by a party, or by a court on its own initiative, at any stage in the litigation. . . ." Arbaugh v. Y & H Corp., 546 U.S. 500, 514 (2006) (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1)).
Article III, Section 2, clause 1 of the Constitution limits federal court jurisdiction to "Cases" and "Controversies." U.S. Const. art. III, § 2, cl. 1. As the Supreme Court has explained, an "essential and unchanging part of the case-or-controversy requirement" is that a plaintiff must establish Article III standing to sue. Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife, 504 U.S. 555, 560 (1992). In Spokeo, the Supreme Court reiterated that, in order to establish standing, a plaintiff must have: "(1) suffered an injury in fact, (2) that is fairly traceable to the challenged conduct of the defendant;[
As the party invoking federal jurisdiction, Clark bears the burden of properly alleging standing. Lujan, 504 U.S. at 560; see also Balzer & Assoc., Inc. v. Union Bank & Trust, 3:09cv273, 2009 WL 1675707, at *2 (E.D. Va. June 15, 2009) ("On a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), the party asserting jurisdiction has the burden of proving subject matter jurisdiction." (citing Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac R.R. v. United States, 945 F.2d 764, 768 (4th Cir. 1991)). "Where, as here, a case is at the pleading stage, the plaintiff must `clearly. . . allege facts demonstrating' each element." Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1547 (quoting Warth v. Seldin, 422 U.S. 490, 518 (1975)).
The parties here dispute only whether, post-Spokeo, Clark and the class she seeks to represent allege an injury in fact. This Court, then, must determine to what extent Spokeo redefined rather than refined the injury-in-fact analysis, and whether any change Spokeo announced prevents this Court from concluding that standing exists for plaintiffs to pursue their claim.
TransUnion and Clark present conflicting portraits of the effect Spokeo had on the requirements to allege an injury in fact. TransUnion contends that, because Spokeo emphasized the need to establish that an injury is concrete, and not just particularized, "Spokeo constitutes a substantial change in the law." (Def.'s Mem. Supp. Mot. Dismiss 10 (citing cases).) Clark, on the other hand, argues that, "Spokeo did not change the basic requirements of standing," (Pl.'s Opp'n to Mot. Dismiss 5), noting that "[b]oth commentators and courts have recognized that none of the principles set forth in Spokeo are new," (id. at 5 n.3 (citing cases and secondary sources)).
In Spokeo, the plaintiff, Thomas Robins, brought suit under the FCRA against Spokeo, a company that operates a people search engine. 136 S. Ct. at 1544, 1554. Robins invoked 1681(e), alleging that Spokeo failed to "follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum accuracy of consumer reports" when, while he was out of work, it incorrectly profiled his age, marital status, education degree, and employment status. 136 S. Ct. at 1554. While ruling, the Supreme Court confirmed that, in order to establish an injury in fact, a plaintiff must demonstrate that he or she suffered "`an invasion of a legally protected interest' that is `concrete and particularized' and `actual or imminent, not conjectural or hypothetical.'" 136 S. Ct. at 1548 (quoting Lujan, 504 U.S. at 560). The Supreme Court found that the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit improperly "elided" the concreteness requirement. 136 S. Ct. at 1548. Because the Ninth Circuit addressed only the "particularization" aspect of the test, the Supreme Court remanded the case for further proceedings. Id. at 1550. In so finding, the Spokeo court defined both terms with specificity.
First, for an injury to be "particularized," the Court found that it "`must affect the plaintiff in a personal and individual way.'" Spokeo, 136 S.Ct. at 1548 (citing Lujan, 504 U.S. at 560 n.1). Thus, an "undifferentiated, generalized grievance" that all citizens share would not qualify as particularized. Lance v. Coffman, 549 U.S. 437, 442 (2007). "[T]he fact that an injury may be suffered by a large number of people," however, "does not of itself make that injury a nonjusticiable generalized grievance." Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1548 n.7. The proper inquiry is whether "each individual suffers a particularized harm." Id.
Second, the Spokeo Court stated that for an injury to be "concrete," it must be "de facto," meaning that it must be "real," and not "abstract." Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1548. That said, an injury need not be "tangible" in order to be "concrete." Id. at 1549. An intangible injury may constitute injury in fact. Id. In evaluating whether an intangible injury satisfies the "concreteness" requirement, the Supreme Court reiterated two important considerations: (1) history, which may reveal "whether an alleged intangible harm has a close relationship to a harm that has traditionally, been regarded as providing a basis for a lawsuit in English or American courts"; and, (2) the judgment of Congress, which "`has the power to defined injuries and articulate chains of causation that will give rise to a case or controversy where none existed before.'" Id. (quoting Lujan, 504 U.S. at 580 (Kennedy, J., concurring in part and concurring in judgment)).
With respect to this congressionally-defined, or statutory, standing, the Spokeo Court explained: "Article III standing requires a concrete injury even in the context of a statutory violation."
The Court also observed, however, that in cases where "harms may be difficult to prove or measure[,]" "the violation of a procedural right granted by statute can be sufficient . . . [and] a plaintiff in such a case need not allege any additional harm beyond the one Congress has identified." Id. at 1549 (citing Fed. Election Comm'n v. Akins, 524 U.S. 11, 20-25 (1998); Public Citizen v. Dep't of Justice, 491 U.S. 440, 449 (1989)) (emphasis in original).
The Court must determine whether, by alleging a violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1681g(a)(2), Clark asserts the "invasion of a legally protected interest' that is `concrete and particularized.'" Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1548 (quoting Lujan, 504 U.S. at 560). As explained below, this Court concludes that Clark's claims satisfy Spokeo's refined injury-in-fact requirement because they are both concrete and particularized. In so finding, the Court relies on the clear intent of Congress and on several well-reasoned cases that have applied Spokeo in the FCRA context.
Since the May 2016 Supreme Court decision, many courts have confirmed that "the proposition that `[t]he . . . injury required by Article III may exist solely by virtue of statutes creating legal rights, the invasion of which creates standing[,]' survives Spokeo subject to qualification, depending on the facts of each case and [other] considerations . . ., but nevertheless intact." Thomas v. FTS USA, LLC, No. 3:13cv825, 2016 WL 3653878, at *6 (E.D. Va. June 30, 2016) (evaluating a 15 U.S.C. § 1681b(2) employment claim) (quoting Warth v. Seldin, 422 U.S. 490, 500 (1975)). In order to evaluate standing based on "concrete" and "particularized" injury, this Court must "look to the common law and to the judgment of Congress, as reflected in the FCRA, to determine whether the violations of that statute alleged by [Clark] constitute concrete injuries that satisfy the case or controversy requirement." Thomas, 2016 WL 3653878, at *6. That analysis follows.
A central purpose of the FCRA is "to ensure `fair and accurate credit reporting.'" Spokeo, 136 S.Ct. at 1545 (quoting 15 U.S.C. § 1681(a)(1)). Through the FCRA, "Congress plainly sought to curb the dissemination of false information by adopting procedures designed to decrease that risk." Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1550. In this district, the Thomas court already has correctly explained that, "Congress intended that the FCRA be construed to promote the credit industry's responsible dissemination of accurate and relevant information and to maintain the confidentiality of consumer reports." Thomas, 2016 WL 3653878, at *7-8.
Congress also "emphasized that `the consumer has a right . . . to correct any erroneous information in his credit file." Id. (citing S. Rep. No. 517, 91st Cong., 1st Sess. 2 at 2). As a result, Congress sought "to `establish [ ] the right of a consumer to be informed of investigations into his [or her] personal life.'" Id. (citing S. Rep. No. 517, 91st Cong., 1st Sess. 2 at 1). The FCRA's disclosure provisions, including § 1681g(a), promote consumer oversight of compliance with the FCRA by informing consumers of the source of the reported information, thereby advancing the broader purposes of "fair and accurate credit reporting." See Gillespie v. Equifax Info. Servs., LLC, 484 F.3d 938, 941 (7th Cir. 2007) (stating that the primary purpose of disclosure requirement is to "allow consumers to identify inaccurate information in their credit files and correct this information"); Hauser v. Equifax, Inc., 602 F.2d 811, 817 (8th Cir. 1979) ("The purpose of the Act's disclosure requirement [in 15 U.S.C. § 1681g(a)] is to provide the consumer with an opportunity to dispute the accuracy of information in his file.").
This Court follows several others in concluding that the FCRA permits a plaintiff like Clark to establish Article III standing when alleging a non-disclosure under § 1681g(a)(2) because that failure to reveal source information reflects the type of harm, or injury in fact, that Spokeo recognizes as "concrete" and "particularized." When looking at Clark's Count I, the Court finds persuasive the reasoning of several courts that recognize the existence of an "informational injury," especially those that have decided that FCRA "disclosure of source" claims have alleged an injury in fact.
Despite TransUnion's depiction of aspects of the decision as "erroneous" and improperly analyzed, (Def.'s Mem. Supp. Mot. Dismiss 13 n.6), this Court finds Thomas, a FCRA employment-related § 1681b(b)(2) and (b)(3) decision from this district, both on point and persuasive.
Indeed, given congressional intent to allow consumers to correct inaccurate information reported by a consumer reporting agency, nearly every case addressing a Section 1681(g) "disclosure of source" claim has so found. The FCRA's disclosure requirements were generally "`designed to decrease [the] risk' that a credit-reporting agency will `disseminat[e] . . . false information.'" Patel v. TransUnion, LLC, No. 14cv00522-LB, 2016 WL 6143191, at *4 (N.D. Cal. Oct. 21, 2016) (citation omitted);
A credit reporting agency's failure to provide a consumer with accurate information regarding the source of the information in the consumer's credit file precludes the consumer from swiftly acting to correct such errors. Because Congress sought to grant consumers the ability to correct errors, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, when denying a motion to dismiss for lack of standing under §§ 1681g(a)(2) and 1681g(c)(2), remarked that "the inaccurate or incomplete disclosure to a consumer of the source of a [consumer reporting agency's] reported information has been elevated by Congress to the status of a legally cognizable injury." Stokes v. Realpage, Inc., No. CV 15-1520, 2016 WL 6095810, at *7 (E.D. Pa. Oct. 19, 2016).
Eventually, Stokes obtained "a `full file disclosure,' which showed that [the credit reporting agency] had reported the expunged cases to the two prospective landlords." Id. Even the "full file disclosure," however, "failed to disclose all of the information [the credit reporting agency] maintain[ed] about Stokes, including the source of the criminal records it previously reported to [the prospective landlords]." Id. (emphasis added). Ultimately, "Stokes had no opportunity to correct [the credit reporting agency's] report before [the prospective landlords] made their decisions on the rental applications." Id. The Stokes court explained that "[w]ithout accurate source information, a consumer would be left confused as to where to go to correct erroneous data contained in a report and be unable to know whether any erroneous data would find its way into future consumer reports." Id.
The omission of LexisNexis from TransUnion's disclosure to Clark does not equate to a typographical error in a zip code. While the inaccuracy does not label Clark a potential terrorist as has occurred in cases this Court cites, the omission of LexisNexis as a source deprived Clark of her congressionally-mandated right to correct the mistake with LexisNexis, or with anyone else to whom LexisNexis also may have disclosed the inaccurate information.
TransUnion's argument that it properly disclosed the "ultimate sources" of information, but not the supposedly less pertinent LexisNexis disclosure as to how the data was collected, or by whom, does not persuade. See Dreher v. Experian, 71 F.Supp.3d 572, 580 (E.D. Va. 2014) (Gibney, J.) ("Although gifted legal minds can create myriad interpretations for how many sources or what kinds of sources should be included in the disclosure, the term `sources' clearly includes, at the very least, the entity that gave the information directly to the consumer reporting agency.").
Clark's allegations reflect "a substantive de facto violation involving undisclosed and inaccurate information of the kind Congress required be disclosed to protect consumers, namely the source of the consumer information that the [consumer reporting agency] reported." Stokes, 2016 WL 6095810, at *7. TransUnion's attempt to suggest otherwise relies on unpersuasive characterizations of the extant post-Spokeo FCRA cases, or upon inapposite non-FCRA decisions.
The pendency of two other motions has caused the parties to file several motions seeking scheduling relief or oral hearing: (1) Clark's Motion to Compel, (ECF No. 65); and, (2) Clark's Motion for Class Certification, (ECF No. 67).
First, regarding the Motion to Compel, the parties initially asked the Court to hold that motion in abeyance while they attempted to resolve their discovery disputes in the absence of Court intervention. However, Clark now has filed a "Notice" asking "for the Court's prompt resolution of these discovery disputes and other relief available under Fed. R. Civ. P. 37." (Pl.'s Not. Re: Mot. Compel 1 (the "Motion to Compel Notice"), ECF No. 105.)
In response, TransUnion has filed a Motion for Extension of Time to File a Response Brief, (ECF No. 107), asking for an extension of time to file its response to the Motion to Compel Notice. TransUnion contends that Clark includes charts and arguments in the Motion to Compel Notice not submitted when Clark filed the Motion to Compel. TransUnion represents that Clark failed to comply with this Court's Initial Pretrial Order, which requires that discovery disputes be submitted jointly by parties, in chart form. TransUnion states that Clark would not send it the Microsoft Word version of the document, thereby preventing TransUnion from inserting its arguments into the document, as the Court requires. As a result of this logistical delay, TransUnion seeks an extension to file a response until December 9, 2016. Clark does not consent to TransUnion's modest request.
In the interest of justice and for good cause shown, the Court will conditionally grant the Motion for Extension of Time to File a Response Brief to the extent any response would comply with this Court's June 29, 2016 Initial Pretrial Order. However, the Court admonishes both parties to reexamine the June 29, 2016 Initial Pretrial Order and its directives regarding discovery disputes to ensure that any disputes now pending stand properly before this Court. The Court will not consider any improperly submitted discovery disputes.
Second, regarding Clark's Motion for Class Certification, the parties jointly seek an enlargement of time because additional discovery may become necessary after the Court decides that motion. (ECF No. 103.) While the Court generally disfavors continuances, they may be granted for good cause. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4);
In view of this case's procedural posture, in the interest of justice, and for good cause shown, the Court will continue generally the trial date, thereby suspending all existing deadlines. The Court must address any properly submitted motion to compel before discerning what effect, if any, the outcome might have on any discovery deadlines. As such, all motions for enlargement of time will be denied as moot.
The parties will be directed to contact the Court no later than three business days from the date of this Memorandum Opinion and Order to establish a hearing to resolve the discovery issues set forth in the Motion to Compel. After that determination, a new trial date and appropriate pre-trial deadlines will issue.
For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants, denies, and otherwise addresses the pending motions as described above.
An appropriate Order shall issue.
15 U.S.C. § 1681g(a)(2).
15 U.S.C. § 1681n(a).
15 U.S.C. § 1681o.
The Court declines to address these arguments at this time. The parties disagree about what could be material facts and do so citing inadmissible documents. Moreover, "[t]he question whether Plaintiffs have a cause of action is a merits issue that is `analytically distinct from the question whether a federal court has subject-matter jurisdiction.'" Galaria v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co., No. 15-3386, 2016 WL 4728027, at *5 (6th Cir. Sept. 12, 2016) (quoting Roberts v. Hamer, 655 F.3d 578, 580 (6th Cir. 2011)) (addressing appeal of standing issue in post-Spokeo FCRA case); see also Patel v. Trans Union, LLC, No. 14cv00522-LB, 2016 WL 6143191, at *7 (N.D. Cal. Oct. 21, 2016) ("Whether the plaintiffs can prove liability is one question; whether they are claiming a sufficient Article III injury is another. Spokeo does not turn every Rule 23 issue into a standing issue; put differently, Spokeo does not infuse Article III considerations throughout Rule 23.").
U.S. Const. art. III, § 2, cl. 1.
524 U.S. at 21 (citing Public Citizen, 491 U.S. at 449) (emphasis added). In Public Citizen, relied on by Akins, the Supreme Court held that two advocacy organizations' failure to obtain information subject to disclosure under the Federal Advisory Committee Act "constitute[d] a sufficiently distinct injury to provide standing to sue." 491 U.S. at 449.
Other pre-Spokeo Supreme Court cases confirm that the violation of a statutorily-prescribed procedural right can constitute injury in fact in some circumstances. See, e.g., Havens Realty Corp. v. Coleman, 455 U.S. 363, 373-75 (1982) (finding that housing-discrimination tester had standing to bring claims under the Fair Housing Act based on the "alleged injury to her statutorily created right to truthful housing information," even though the tester "may have approached the real estate agent fully expecting that [s]he would receive false information, and without any intention of buying or renting a home"); see also Doe v. Pub. Citizen, 749 F.3d 246, 263 (4th Cir. 2014) ("The Supreme Court consistently has held that a plaintiff suffers an Article III injury when he is denied information that must be disclosed pursuant to a statute, notwithstanding `[t]he fact that other citizens or groups of citizens might make the same complaint after unsuccessfully demanding disclosure.'" (quoting Public Citizen, 491 U.S. at 449)).
Thomas v. FTS USA, LLC, No. 3:13cv825, 2016 WL 3653878, at *6 (E.D. Va. June 30, 2016) (quoting Daniel Townsend, Who Should Define Injuries For Article III Standing?, 68 Stan L. Rev. Online 76, 80-81 (2015)).
TransUnion suggests that, given the nature of the inaccurate report (i.e., wrongly indicating potential terrorism ties), Patel and similar California federal cases can be distinguished factually. Mere factual differences, however, do not end the analysis. The finding of injury in fact in these decisions rest in large part on the consumer's inability to monitor his or her file for falsity when not provided the relevant information. See, e.g., Patel, 2016 WL 6143191, at *4 ("[A] consumer cannot monitor [his or] her file for falsity if [he or] she is not given the relevant information. That impediment, that non-disclosure, is thus a real injury. At the very least, preventing a consumer from monitoring [his or] her file presents a `risk of real harm' of exactly the type that [the] FCRA seeks to prevent (i.e., the dissemination of incorrect information); and this risk can itself `satisfy the requirement of concreteness.'").