What is nearly two years of a wrecked credit file worth? In Sloane v. Equifax Information Services, LLC, 510 F.3d 495 (4th Cir. 2007), the Fourth Circuit gave one of the most detailed answers in FCRA law — and set the standard Maryland courts use for emotional-distress damages.
The facts
Suzanne Sloane's identity was stolen by a hospital employee, who ran up fraudulent debts in her name. Sloane disputed, repeatedly, under § 1681i. For roughly 21 months, Equifax failed to correct the fraud-generated garbage in her file. The jury awarded $351,000 in actual damages: $106,000 economic and $245,000 for emotional distress.
The holding
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the $106,000 economic award in full. On emotional distress, it held the evidence supported a substantial award — Sloane had testified in detail about the strain, humiliation, and disruption — but found $245,000 excessive on the record and remitted that component to $150,000. The court drew the governing line between adequate and inadequate proof:
"[W]e have distinguished between plaintiff testimony that amounts only to 'conclusory statements' and plaintiff testimony that 'sufficiently articulate[s]' true 'demonstrable emotional distress.'"
A plaintiff must, in the court's words, "reasonably and sufficiently explain the circumstances of [the] injury and not resort to mere conclusory statements."
The practical playbook
Sloane teaches consumers (and their lawyers) how to build a damages case: specifics beat adjectives. Denied credit at the closing table, in front of your spouse. Sleepless nights you can date. A marriage strained by collection calls. Hours documented on the phone and at the post office. Corroboration from family, doctors, or co-workers. Under Sloane, that record supports six-figure emotional-distress awards in this circuit — without a single dollar of out-of-pocket loss required.
If a bureau has left fraud or errors in your file after disputes, start a journal today. Your documentation is damages evidence.