Justin M. Penn
Justin M. Penn
Partner
He/Him
"We go beyond the basics to truly understand our clients and their businesses by providing thoughtful solutions that support their goals and foster lasting relationships."
Justin M. Penn
Partner
He/Him
"We go beyond the basics to truly understand our clients and their businesses by providing thoughtful solutions that support their goals and foster lasting relationships."
About Justin
Justin defends companies and individuals in the financial services industry across the country. He handles state and federal consumer statute litigation, including individual claims and class actions under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), False Claims Act (FCA), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), and the Truth in Lending Act (TILA).
In addition, Justin advises corporations and professionals on professional liability and employment-related litigation, such as legal malpractice cases involving an attorney's liability to non-clients. He represents hospitals, corporations, and religious organizations in complex litigation.
Justin is a Hinshaw lifer, starting as a summer associate while in law school. He is now the co-chair of Hinshaw’s Consumer Financial Services Practice Group, a group he joined at its inception and in which he has played an integral role in developing.
Areas of Focus
Industries:
Services:
- Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA);
- Consumer & Class Action Defense;
- Data Breach;
- Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA);
- Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA);
- Financial Services Litigation ;
- Financial Services Regulatory & Compliance;
- Labor & Employment;
- Litigation & Trial;
- Mortgage Lending & Servicing Litigation ;
- Subpoena Response Management ;
- Supervisory Examinations, Investigations & Enforcement;
- Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
Initiatives:
Experience
- Secured a motion for judgment on the pleadings victory on behalf of a client in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) lawsuit. Plaintiff had alleged that a dunning letter he received from the Hinshaw client, which identified three entities (a servicer, the "original creditor," and the "creditor"), did not meet the FDCPA's requirement of identifying the "current creditor" entity to whom the debt was owed. The court looked at the plain language of the letter and concluded that the "only reasonable interpretation of the collection letter" is that the only other listed creditor is the current creditor.
- Prevailed on summary judgment in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against a plaintiff who brought a class action against a debt collector alleging various violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and state law for assessing a service fee to pay a portion of her debt with a credit card. Plaintiff claimed that the convenience fee was "incidental to the principal obligation" and thus, prohibited by Section 1692f (1) of the FDCPA. The court's decision focused on the fact that the debt collector did not profit from the convenience fee. The court reasoned that "[r]easonable collection costs may include pass-through costs" as anticipated by the agreement between the consumer and the creditor.
- Obtained a case dismissal defending debt collection agency against allegations of violating the debt validation provisions of FDCPA §809 (15 USC. - 1692g). The Illinois district court decided in favor of the client's motion to dismiss, ruling that the agency did not create a false sense of urgency that overshadowed plaintiff's rights by sending a demand letter and a settlement letter during the 30-day validation period.
- Successfully defended call center for cable and internet service provider against a putative class action alleging violations of the TCPA, FDCPA, and the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act. Plaintiff sought to certify the classes of more than 9,400 people who allegedly received more than 47,000 offending phone calls to wrong parties. In denying class certification, the court found that determining the size of the class based on plaintiff's criteria would be impossible. The potential liability on the class claims would have been between $23.5 million and $70 million.
- Prevailed on the merits in a rare Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) Hunstein class action case. Illinois state court judge granted the motion for judgment on the pleadings in a FDCPA Hunstein class action case. The suit claimed that the use by our client of a third-party vendor to print and mail communications violated Section 1692a(3) of the FDCPA. In Quaglia v. SN Servicing, McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce, the Circuit Court of Cook County ruled that the communication between the defendants and their letter vendor was not an attempt to collect a debt and therefore not within the purpose of the FDCPA.
Recognition
- University of Illinois Chicago School of Law, Dean's Scholarship; Dean's List
Credentials
Education
- University of Illinois Chicago School of Law (formerly The John Marshall Law School), JD, cum laude, 2004
- University of Notre Dame, BA, cum laude, 1999
Bar Admissions
- California
- Illinois
Court Admissions
- US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
- US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- US Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Michigan
- US District Court for the Central District of California
- US District Court for the Northern District of California
- US District Court for the Southern District of California
- US District Court for the Central District of Illinois
- US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- US District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
- US District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
- US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
- US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- US District Court for the Western District of Michigan
- US District Court for the Southern District of Texas
- US District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
- US District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
Thought Leadership
Presentations
- Co-Presenter, "Mock Depositions," ComplianceCon 2025, Nashville, Tennessee, September 29, 2025
- Co-Presenter, “Dealing with Sovereign Citizen Situations,” AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, September 12, 2025
- Panelist, "Legal Panel - Collections and Recovery – Where we are and where we are headed," Auriemma Consumer Relations Consortium Roundtable, hosted by Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Chicago, Illinois, August 14, 2025
- Co-Presenter, "Settle or Defend: Ripped From the Headlines," AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, July 18, 2025
- Co-Presenter, "Differentiating Between Cease Requests and Disputes. How to Tell the Difference," AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, November 27, 2024
Blog Posts
Events
- Justin Penn to Co-Present "Differentiating Between Cease Requests and Disputes" in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Nov 27, 2024
- Justin Penn, David Schultz, and Vaishali Rao to Present at Hinshaw-Sponsored ARM Law Conference, September 17-18, 2024
- Justin Penn and John Ryan to Present at NARCA 2014 Fall Collection Conference, Oct 23, 2014
Hinshaw Alerts
- The Hunstein Saga Ends at the Eleventh Circuit: Court Determines That Use of a Mail Vendor Did Not Inflict a Concrete Injury, Sep 15, 2022
- Reasons for Optimism as Eleventh Circuit Revisits Hunstein and Doubles Down, October 29, 2021 | Consumer Law Hinsights – Special Edition
Hinshaw Newsletters
- Consumer Law Hinsights – May 2021 Edition, May 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – April 2021 Edition, April 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – March 2021 Edition, Mar 31, 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – January 2021 Edition, Jan 27, 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – December 2020 Edition, Dec 30, 2020
In The News
- Hinshaw Attorneys Contribute Six Chapters to the "Attorneys’ Legal Liability" IICLE Handbook, Jun 12, 2025
- David Schultz and Justin Penn Analyze Significant Debt Collection and Credit Reporting Rulings, May 21, 2025
- Column by Justin Penn: State Appeals Court Affirms Ruling in High-Profile FCRA Case, Apr 14, 2025
- Justin Penn Analyzes Case Law and Compliance Topics that Shaped the ARM Industry in 2024, Jan 8, 2025
- Justin Penn Analyzes in ARM Compliance Digest: Judge Dismisses FDCPA Claims in Long-Running Student Loan Case, Oct 8, 2024
Press Releases
- Gregg Stevens Joins Hinshaw as a Consumer Financial Services Partner in Dallas, Mar 7, 2024
- David Schultz and Justin Penn Re-Elected as CRC 2024 Legal Advisory Board Members, Jan 23, 2024
- Hinshaw Client Success Named Among "10 Most Popular Daily Decision Articles of 2023" by the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ACA), Dec 20, 2023
- Trial Spotlight: Hinshaw Prevails on the Merits in Rare FDCPA Hunstein Class Action Case, Jul 25, 2023
- Client Success: Afni Inc. Wins FDCPA Lawsuit Claiming Consumer Confusion Over Collection Letter Listing "Creditor" and "Original Creditor", Nov 12, 2019
Webinars
- Justin Penn Presents on “Sovereign Citizens” in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Sep 12, 2025
- Justin Penn Presents on "Settle or Defend" Strategies in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Jul 18, 2025
- Justin Penn will Present on Managing and Cleaning Up Federal and State Investigations of Debt Buyers at RMAI Annual Conference, April 12 – 15, 2021
Interests
Did you know...
Prior to his legal career, Justin was a travel director for INTRAV, Inc., in St. Louis where he traveled to over fifty countries. In college, he worked in production support for NBC Sports on sporting events televised live around the world, including University of Notre Dame football, the French Open, and Wimbledon.
As an undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame, Justin earned Dean’s List honors and was selected for the London undergraduate program.
Community/Civic Activities
- Hospice House in South Bend, Indiana, Former Volunteer
- Notre Dame, Former Peer Tutor
Thought Leadership
Presentations
- Co-Presenter, "Mock Depositions," ComplianceCon 2025, Nashville, Tennessee, September 29, 2025
- Co-Presenter, “Dealing with Sovereign Citizen Situations,” AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, September 12, 2025
- Panelist, "Legal Panel - Collections and Recovery – Where we are and where we are headed," Auriemma Consumer Relations Consortium Roundtable, hosted by Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Chicago, Illinois, August 14, 2025
- Co-Presenter, "Settle or Defend: Ripped From the Headlines," AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, July 18, 2025
- Co-Presenter, "Differentiating Between Cease Requests and Disputes. How to Tell the Difference," AccountsRecovery.net, Webinar, November 27, 2024
Blog Posts
Events
- Justin Penn to Co-Present "Differentiating Between Cease Requests and Disputes" in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Nov 27, 2024
- Justin Penn, David Schultz, and Vaishali Rao to Present at Hinshaw-Sponsored ARM Law Conference, September 17-18, 2024
- Justin Penn and John Ryan to Present at NARCA 2014 Fall Collection Conference, Oct 23, 2014
Hinshaw Alerts
- The Hunstein Saga Ends at the Eleventh Circuit: Court Determines That Use of a Mail Vendor Did Not Inflict a Concrete Injury, Sep 15, 2022
- Reasons for Optimism as Eleventh Circuit Revisits Hunstein and Doubles Down, October 29, 2021 | Consumer Law Hinsights – Special Edition
Hinshaw Newsletters
- Consumer Law Hinsights – May 2021 Edition, May 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – April 2021 Edition, April 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – March 2021 Edition, Mar 31, 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – January 2021 Edition, Jan 27, 2021
- Consumer Law Hinsights – December 2020 Edition, Dec 30, 2020
In The News
- Hinshaw Attorneys Contribute Six Chapters to the "Attorneys’ Legal Liability" IICLE Handbook, Jun 12, 2025
- David Schultz and Justin Penn Analyze Significant Debt Collection and Credit Reporting Rulings, May 21, 2025
- Column by Justin Penn: State Appeals Court Affirms Ruling in High-Profile FCRA Case, Apr 14, 2025
- Justin Penn Analyzes Case Law and Compliance Topics that Shaped the ARM Industry in 2024, Jan 8, 2025
- Justin Penn Analyzes in ARM Compliance Digest: Judge Dismisses FDCPA Claims in Long-Running Student Loan Case, Oct 8, 2024
Press Releases
- Gregg Stevens Joins Hinshaw as a Consumer Financial Services Partner in Dallas, Mar 7, 2024
- David Schultz and Justin Penn Re-Elected as CRC 2024 Legal Advisory Board Members, Jan 23, 2024
- Hinshaw Client Success Named Among "10 Most Popular Daily Decision Articles of 2023" by the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ACA), Dec 20, 2023
- Trial Spotlight: Hinshaw Prevails on the Merits in Rare FDCPA Hunstein Class Action Case, Jul 25, 2023
- Client Success: Afni Inc. Wins FDCPA Lawsuit Claiming Consumer Confusion Over Collection Letter Listing "Creditor" and "Original Creditor", Nov 12, 2019
Webinars
- Justin Penn Presents on “Sovereign Citizens” in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Sep 12, 2025
- Justin Penn Presents on "Settle or Defend" Strategies in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar, Jul 18, 2025
- Justin Penn will Present on Managing and Cleaning Up Federal and State Investigations of Debt Buyers at RMAI Annual Conference, April 12 – 15, 2021
Justin's Insights
Webinar
Sep 12, 2025
Justin Penn Presents on “Sovereign Citizens” in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar
In The News
Jun 12, 2025
Hinshaw Attorneys Contribute Six Chapters to the "Attorneys’ Legal Liability" IICLE Handbook
Webinar
Sep 12, 2025
Justin Penn Presents on “Sovereign Citizens” in AccountsRecovery.net Webinar
In The News
Jun 12, 2025
Hinshaw Attorneys Contribute Six Chapters to the "Attorneys’ Legal Liability" IICLE Handbook
In The News
Apr 14, 2025
Column by Justin Penn: State Appeals Court Affirms Ruling in High-Profile FCRA Case
In The News
Jan 8, 2025
Justin Penn Analyzes Case Law and Compliance Topics that Shaped the ARM Industry in 2024
Event
September 17-18, 2024
Justin Penn, David Schultz, and Vaishali Rao to Present at Hinshaw-Sponsored ARM Law Conference
Press Release
Mar 7, 2024
Gregg Stevens Joins Hinshaw as a Consumer Financial Services Partner in Dallas
Press Release
Jan 23, 2024
David Schultz and Justin Penn Re-Elected as CRC 2024 Legal Advisory Board Members
