Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

8-9-2017

SSRN Discipline

Economics Research Network; Legal Scholarship Network; Law School Research Papers - Legal Studies; FEN Subject Matter eJournals; Law & Society eJournals; Law & Society: Private Law eJournals; LSN Subject Matter eJournals; Financial Economics Network; Anthropology & Archaeology Research Network

Abstract

Large companies and debt collectors frequently file unmeritorious claims against consumers Recent highprofile actions brought by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau "CFPB" against JP Morgan Citibank and large debt collectors illustrate the breadth and importance of this phenomenon Due to the limited financial power of individuals consumers often do not defend against such baseless claims which results in the entry of millions of default judgments every year To combat this problem policymakers and scholars have explored a variety of courtbased solutions that would make it easier for consumers to defend in court but these prove ineffectualTo solve the problem of unmeritorious claiming this Article proposes a budgetfriendly solution called "Adminization" This novel approach uses an administrative agency as a gatekeeper to civil litigation that is tasked with detecting and sanctioning the filing of baseless claims The agency samples cases using statistical methods and potentially deeplearning algorithms and then investigates selected cases using agency auditors When the auditors find wrongdoing they are instructed to levy large fines against wrongdoers Unlike the current system Adminization subjects every plaintiff to the risk of thorough investigation and large fines thus undercutting the financial incentive to engage in wrongful behavior The importance of Adminization lies in its costeffectiveness practicality and political feasibility relative to the courtbased approaches that dominate the discussion today

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