Civ. Code, § 1788.16 · Article 2. Debt Collector Responsibilities
Civ. Code, § 1788.16
Text — As published in the Legislative Counsel's database, tables dated October 18, 2026 (pubinfo_2025.zip)
It is unlawful, with respect to attempted collection of a covered debt, for a debt collector, creditor, or an attorney to send a communication that simulates legal or judicial process or that gives the appearance of being authorized, issued, or approved by a governmental agency or attorney when it is not. Any violation of the provisions of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, or by a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or by both.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 522, Sec. 10. (SB 1286) Effective January 1, 2025.
Source of truth
- Edition
- As published in the Legislative Counsel's database, tables dated October 18, 2026 (pubinfo_2025.zip)
- Official file
- https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=1788.16.
- Text hash
- sha256 7e9e6ee98fd6650f3bce878b0262c3da2f057eeeb9adc62b8d50432b4cf1b6d5
- Composed by
- compose_ca.py 2026-10-22: the Legislative Counsel's CAML content files read by a tokenizer (caml_readers.reader_a); an independent xml.etree reading (caml_readers.reader_b) agrees on every section
Cited by 1 provision
Provisions in this library whose text cites Civ. Code, § 1788.16. Each shows the citation as that text prints it.
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.