On March 15, 2018, the U.S. Senate passed the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (S-2155)–a bipartisan bill that LenderLaw Watch reported on as a piece of legislation to watch back in December. In general, the bill seeks to reduce compliance obligations for smaller financial institutions while maintaining…
On February 26, 2018, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in New Prime, Inc. v. Oliviera, 17-340, a First Circuit case arising from the District of Massachusetts. The case is posed to resolve a split among the circuit courts as to who – the court or the arbitrator – decides whether…
On March 22, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in conjunction with the New York Attorney General (AG), announced that it had entered into settlements with debt collection companies and their operators over allegedly deceptive and unlawful debt collection practices. In a February 2015 complaint filed in the United States District Court for the Western…
On March 16, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued its long-awaited decision in ACA International v. FCC, invalidating several key pieces of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) 2015 Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) interpretive order, but upholding other aspects of that order. 885 F.3d 687 (D.C….
On March 12, 2018, the California Department of Business Oversight (California DBO) announced that it reached a settlement with a payday lender over allegations that the lender improperly raised the principal value of its vehicle-secured loans to avoid interest rate caps imposed by the California Finance Law, Fin. Code §…
On March 7, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced that it reached a settlement with a Delaware bank, resolving allegations that the bank engaged in unfair and deceptive practices in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (the “FTC Act”) and violated the Electronic Funds Transfer Act,…
On February 23, 2018, the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia (“Virginia AG”) announced that it had entered into a settlement agreement with several affiliated online payday lenders and debt collection companies (the “Defendants”). According to the Virginia AG, the Defendants, all out-of-state organizations, provided short-term, small-dollar loans to borrowers in Virginia…
On February 22, 2018, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that it had entered into a settlement with an auto financial services company for alleged violations of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (“SCRA”), 50 U.S.C. § 3955(f) relating to upfront leases. In its complaint, filed the same day in the United States District…
On March 1, 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its sixth request for information (RFI) since Mick Mulvaney, acting head of the CFPB, began his tenure. This request seeks “comments and information from interested parties on the usefulness of complaint reporting and analysis, as well as specific suggestions or…
On February 27, 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4296, which would reduce the operational capital requirements imposed on financial institutions. The bill passed with a 245-169 vote. As could be expected from such deregulatory legislation, only 19 Democrats voted in favor of the bill and only 3…
On February 13, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois decertified a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) text-message class in light of new evidence of consent obtained during the class-member identification process. Johnson v. Yahoo! Inc., No. 1:14-cv-02028 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 13, 2018), is instructive for TCPA defendants…
Goodwin announces the release of its third annual Consumer Finance Year in Review, an in-depth report that analyzes the principal litigation, enforcement actions and regulations that have impacted the consumer finance industry over the prior year. This report synthesizes Goodwin’s consumer finance coverage from 2017 and offers predictions and insights…
Goodwin announces the release of its third annual Consumer Finance Year in Review, an in-depth report that analyzes the principal litigation, enforcement actions and regulations that have impacted the consumer finance industry over the prior year. This report synthesizes Goodwin’s consumer finance coverage from 2017 and offers predictions and insights…
On February 6, 2018, a Kansas state court entered a default judgment against a Florida student debt relief company banning it from doing business in Kansas and ordering it to pay over $39,000 back to one consumer. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt (“Kansas AG”) had accused the company of violating the Kansas…
On February 7, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced an enforcement action against a student loan debt relief operation, claiming it deceived consumers out of $28 million by falsely promising that their monthly payments would go towards their student loans. In the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern…
On February 7, 2018, Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring (Virginia AG) announced a settlement with a Virginia based online lender for alleged violations of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. The lender allegedly offered closed-end, installment loans online and falsely claimed it was licensed in Virginia to do so. According to the…
The Trump Administration-appointed Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), Mick Mulvaney, recently stated in a memo to his staff that under his leadership, the CFPB would significantly change in its approach to regulation and enforcement. The most concrete example of this thus far is his approach to the payday lending…
On January 31, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (D.C. Circuit), sitting en banc, issued its long-awaited decision in PHH Corp. v. CFPB, holding that the provision of the Dodd-Frank Act shielding the single director of the CFPB from removal without cause is constitutional. In all,…
On February 2, 2018, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Board”) announced that it would restrict the growth of a national bank based on its past consumer abuses and compliance failures and its need to remedy deficiencies in its management oversight of sales practices. The Board issued a…
On January 31, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (D.C. Circuit), sitting en banc, issued its long-awaited decision in PHH Corp. v. CFPB, holding that the provision of the Dodd-Frank Act shielding the single director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from removal without cause…