On August 19, the Attorney General’s Office for the State of Minnesota (Minnesota AG) announced that it had settled a lawsuit against a California-based online lender relating to an alleged “rent-a-tribe” scheme. The settlement bars the lender from doing business in Minnesota unless and until it complies with the state’s usury, lending,…
On June 29, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CPPB) and Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a joint enforcement action against a regional bank for alleged discriminatory mortgage lending in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and the Fair Housing Act (FHA), filed in the District Court for the…
On May 10, 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department released a white paper entitled, “Opportunities and Challenges in Online Marketplace Lending.” The white paper is the result of a request for information that elicited more than 100 industry responses, and it reviews the benefits and risks of online marketplace lending before making…
On December 1, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado, working on behalf of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), announced a settlement agreement with a residential mortgage lender originating and underwriting loans insured by HUD’s Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The settlement resolves allegations that, between January 2007…
On November 3, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Supervisory Highlights report detailing the Bureau’s supervision efforts for May through August of 2015. The report summarizes the violations of consumer protection laws the Bureau observed during the four-month period and identifies the areas in which the Bureau has…
On September 24, 2015, the CFPB and the DOJ announced a settlement with a regional bank over allegeatoins that it engaged in redlining practices in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). According to the complaint, the bank allegedly discriminated against minorities by systematically preventing residents of certain minority neighborhoods from…
On September 10, the New York Office of the Attorney General (NY AG) announced a settlement with a state bank to resolve claims of discriminatory lending in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and state and local law. The NY AG alleged that the bank engaged in unlawful redlining by failing…
On July 17, 2015, the Attorney General for the State of Colorado (“Colorado AG”) filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court alleging that a retailer and its related companies repeatedly violated Colorado’s consumer lending laws concerning credit extended to military servicemembers. The action is the second lawsuit filed by the Colorado AG in the…
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reached a settlement agreement with Associated Bank concerning allegations that the Bank violated Section 804(b) of the Fair Housing Act. According to the conciliation agreement, HUD alleged that the Bank disproportionately denied loan applications of African-American and Hispanic applicants, and under-served…
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it reached a settlement agreement with a regional bank over a disparate treatment fair housing claim. HUD alleged that the bank engaged in racially discriminatory redlining by lending less in majority-minority census tracks than in other neighborhoods. Under the…
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…
The Federal Reserve Board recently made headlines when it repealed its Regulation AA to comply with the Dodd-Frank Act, leading some to wonder how, and to what extent, regulation of financial institutions might change going forward. But the federal agencies charged with regulating banking and credit activities have made it clear that they will continue to enforce prohibitions…
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…
“Fair lending requirements apply throughout the life of the loan!” That was the message delivered by federal regulators in October 2013, reminding loan servicers that they are subject to fair lending liability and must manage their fair lending risks. In its May/June 2014 issue, the American Bankers Association’s Bank Compliance…
On January 28, 2014, a federal judge indicated that home loan borrowers in California may bring breach of contract claims against their loan servicer if the servicer offers a permanent loan modification agreement that differs from what was advertised in communications before the borrowers entered into the prerequisite Trial Period…