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Midland Funding LLC is owned by San Diego-based Encore Capital Group Inc., a publicly traded debt buyer and collector that reported profits last year of $61 million. Encore has been on Fortune magazine's "100 Fastest Growing Companies" list for the past two years. It has obtained more court judgments against debtors in Minnesota than any other debt buyer, collecting $37,841,759 in Minnesota between 2005 and 2009, a Star Tribune investigation in 2010 showed.

WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS?

If you think you are being unfairly pursued by a debt collector, the state attorney general's office recommends you dispute the debt in writing under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Send your letter to the debt buyer within 30 days after first being contacted about the debt. Send the letter by certified mail and tell the debt buyer that you dispute that the debt is owed and ask the company to show the evidence, such as the name of the original creditor, date of the debt and copy of the contract that gave rise to the debt. If you are sued, don't ignore it. Answer the lawsuit. Questions? Call the attorney general's office at 651-296-3353 or the state Commerce Department at 651-296-2488.