Opinion
CASE NO: 8:11-cv-801-T-26AEP.
June 9, 2011
ORDER
Upon due consideration of the well-pleaded allegations of Plaintiff's complaint, it is ordered and adjudged that Defendant Citibank N.A.'s Motion to Dismiss Complaint (Dkt. 15) is denied. This Court is not prepared to make a definitive determination based on the sparse record before the Court that the litigation privilege insulates Defendant Citibank from being sued in count three of Plaintiff's complaint for violating sections 559.72(7) and (9) of the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act. As one Court has noted, "the mere existence of FCCPA litigation does not attach the [litigation] privilege to every communication between litigants; rather, the communication must be analyzed in light of its relation to the litigation." North Star Capital Acquisitions, LLC v. Krig, 611 F.Supp.2d 1324, 1331 (M.D. Fla. 2009). In the Court's view, that analysis is more appropriately undertaken within the context of a motion for summary judgment after the completion of full discovery. Defendant Citibank shall file its answer and defenses to count three within ten (10) days of this order.
DONE AND ORDERED at Tampa, Florida