Midland Funding, LLC is one of the nation’s top debt buyers. Consumers may be familiar with the exploits of Midland as a collection agency. They appear on BBB and internet complaint boards for calling and sending letters to debtors who fall behind on their bills.

Midland Funding is in recent news for taking its debt collection prices off the phones, and into the courts. Midland’s parent company filed over 245,000 lawsuits in the last year alone, with almost 50% of its yearly revenue sourced from legal actions against consumers.

Midland execs claim that consumers who are deeply in debt often refuse to pick up the phone or answer letters when collectors call. As a result, the move from telecommunications to the courtroom happens much more quickly now than ever. Debt buyers like Midland end up in court in order to collect debt from consumers who refuse to deal with the company in any other way.

The unfortunate results of the straight-to-court debt buyer process negatively affect court systems and consumers alike. Courts are jammed with hundreds of debt buyer cases, which almost always result in a judgment appearing on the consumer’s credit. Many consumers who receive judgments on their credit aren’t even properly notified that the debt has gone to court. In other cases, consumers were not aware that the statute of limitations may have run out on the debt in their state, legally exempting the consumer from paying the debt. Some consumers assume the debt is owed without ensuring that Midland or the original creditor could verify the debt.

In many cases, debt buyers also find trouble with judicial officials that accuse them of simply “signing off” on debt collection cases, tying up courts before properly pursuing the debt with a consumer. Some courts have imposed limits on the amount of debt buy cases that are heard within a certain time frame. The buy-to-court debt collection practices of companies like Midland Funding, LLC may be denying consumers a fair and timely shot at taking care of their debts, and could be keeping an already overloaded court system tied up with case after case.

Though courts are clogged with debt cases, there may not be any sign of straight-to-court collection practices letting up soon. Debt buying is more profitable than ever. Distressed debt continues to increase, so collections agencies like Midland are lining up to purchase fresh debt – including debts that are sold immediately after the collector gives up on collecting from the consumer.

Suing is also incredibly effective for companies like Midland Funding. Over 90% of collection cases end up in a win for the debt buyer. This is because many consumers can’t afford legal representation, can’t or don’t appear in court to fight the debt, and aren’t aware that steps can be taken to prove the debt invalid. The economic crisis has set into stone the low morale many Americans are feeling after months of being buried under credit debt they can’t pay. Many consumers may not even know they are facing a potential judgment.

Midland will continue buying credit debt and taking it to the courts. If Americans are able to use a third party credit repair agency, companies like Midland may not succeed at getting already-discouraged consumers tied up in a judgment.