AB 1690: Protecting immigrants from fraud

Assembly Bill 1690 will prevent discovery of a plaintiff's immigration status in most consumer protection claims.

Millions of undocumented immigrants live and work in California. Despite their large presence in the state, some unscrupulous businesses try to prevent them from enforcing their rights to an honest deal.

The California State Senate Analysis of AB 1690 discussed one recent complaint, a used car dealer specifically marketed to undocumented immigrants, with one of its advertisements stating "'[e]ven if you only have your Consular ID, we can also help you get a very good deal here.'"

An undocumented resident purchased a used car from the dealership, was dissatisfied and later sued the dealer, alleging the dealer violated the Automobile Sales Finance Act and did not properly disclose the vehicle history. The dealer propounded discovery by requesting the buyer admit he did not have a Social Security number (essentially admitting he was undocumented).

The plaintiff objected and refused to respond to the discovery, and the superior court denied defendant's motion to compel. However, the court did not sanction the defense counsel because existing law was unclear regarding whether immigration status was discoverable in consumer protection claims.

For many years, California has proscribed discovery of immigration status regarding liability in many other types of claims, including labor and civil rights. In 2016, Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 2159, which barred discovery of immigration status in personal injury claims.

Consumer Attorneys of California was one of many consumer and immigrants' rights groups that supported AB 1690, because "allowing defendants to make immigration status an issue can act as a disincentive for victims attempting to hold wrongdoers accountable."

The Assembly Judiciary Committee authored the bill and the Assembly and Senate passed it unanimously. Gov. Brown signed the bill on July 31, 2017, and it took effect Jan. 1, 2018.