On August 10, 2015, the American subsidiary of an automotive lending company disclosed in an SEC filing that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) had notified the company on July 31, 2015 that it had asked the DOJ to investigate the company’s potential violations of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. According to the filing, the CFPB’s referral…
On July 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that claims concerning an indirect auto finance company’s alleged discriminatory lending practices were settled as part of a consent order requiring $24 million in restitution payments to borrowers and changes to the lender’s dealer compensation system. The consent order alleges…
On June 23, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Supervisory Highlights report detailing the Bureau’s supervision efforts for the first four months of 2015. The report summarizes the most common “illegal practices” uncovered by the Bureau and identifies the areas where the Bureau has focused on in its…
On May 28, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) filed a joint complaint and proposed consent order against a national mortgage lender in the United States District Court for Northern District of California. The complaint alleges that the lender violated the Equal Credit…
On May 7, 2015, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a settlement with a regional bank over allegations of discriminatory lending. In a Complaint filed in federal court, the Department of Justice alleged that the bank engaged in a “pattern or practice” of charging Hispanic or African American borrowers higher…
The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) prohibits discrimination against applicants for credit—but what about guarantors who agree to be responsible for repayment? A federal regulation treats spousal guarantors as “applicants” who can sue under EOCA, but two federal appellate courts disagreed with each other about the question. The Supreme Court agreed on…
The DOJ announced a settlement of the first “buy here, pay here” discriminatory auto-lending lawsuit. The complaint, filed in January, 2014 by the DOJ, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina and the North Carolina Attorney General in the U.S. District Court for the Western District…
On January 15, 2015, the DOJ announced that it had entered a consent order in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas to resolve claims against a state-chartered bank based in Texas for allegedly discriminatory loan practices. The matter was referred to the DOJ by the FDIC,…
On September 18, CFPB Director Richard Cordray delivered remarks at a Field Hearing about CFPB’s latest proposed rule, which would allow it to begin regulating “captive” finance companies – those entities owned by automotive manufacturers “for the primary purpose of facilitating sales for their parent companies and associated dealers.” In his…
Synchrony Bank (formerly known as GE Capital Retail Bank) made two direct mail offers to its credit card holders, but it did not send the offers to Spanish-speaking customers. The Bank self-reported its actions, resulting in consent orders with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Justice, which…