On November 19, 2015, the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) announced that it had ordered a regional mortgage company to pay a $1 million fine and surrender its mortgage license over allegations the firm’s senior managers cheated on continuing education exams. Under New York law, all mortgage originators must…
On November 18, 2015, California’s Department of Business Oversight (DBO) announced that a national finance company paid approximately $1 million in restitution to California consumers as part of a prior settlement with the DBO related to company’s lending practices. Enforcement Watch previously covered the settlement, in which the the company agreed to pay $125 per consumer…
On November 16, 2015, the DOJ announced a settlement with a national for-profit education company over alleged violations of the False Claims Act and the Higher Education Act. The settlement resolves four separate qui tam suits filed against the company in federal court. In conjunction with the DOJ announcement, the Attorneys General…
On October 27, 2015, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced the indictment of fifteen individuals in connection with a nationwide debt collection operation. The Defendants operated a large debt collection company that allegedly collected debts from consumers who had defaulted on payday loans…
From origination through final payoff, plaintiffs’ counsel look for claims in just about every aspect of the relationship between borrowers and their mortgage lenders. Recently, scrutiny has turned to property inspections carried out during default servicing. Plaintiffs’ lawyers have filed several class-action suits alleging that inspection fees violate mortgage terms, state…
On November 18, 2015, the CFPB announced that it had initiated an enforcement action against an online finance company. The company offered personal loans in amounts ranging from $100 to $1,000, which consumers applied for using an online application on the company’s website. When consumers applied for the loans, the…
The District Court for the District of Columbia recently ruled that a company challenging a CFPB Civil Investigative Demand (“CID”) has the right to maintain its anonymity. John Doe Company No. 1 v. CFPB, No. 1:15-cv-1177 (D.D.C. Oct. 16, 2015). After receiving a CID from the CFPB, the John Doe Company…
On Friday, November 13, LenderLaw Watch celebrated its first birthday! On behalf of our bloggers and all of us at Goodwin Procter‘s Consumer Financial Services Litigation Practice, we want to mark the happy occasion by saying thank you to our readers! We look forward to another year of trend tracking…
On November 4, 2015, the Tennessee Attorney General announced a settlement with a credit card transaction processor over allegations that the company violated state consumer protection laws by misrepresenting the cancellation policy and duration of its credit card processing equipment leases, as well the compatibility of its equipment. As part of the…
On November 10, 2015, the Washington Attorney General announced it received a judgment in Washington Superior Court against a student loan debt adjustment company for allegedly overcharging students and collecting unlawful fees. The judgment comes approximately three months after summary judgment was entered in favor of the Attorney General, as was reported by…
On November 5, 2015 the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office announced that a national auto loan company agreed to pay $5.4 million in restitution to Massachusetts consumers to settle allegations it charged excessive interest rates on automobile loans. According to the Massachusetts AG, the company purchased loans from primary creditors that contained…
On November 4, 2015, the Ohio Attorney General announced that it had filed a civil enforcement action against a regional debt collection company. The lawsuit is part of an ongoing partnership with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and other federal agencies to investigate abusive debt collection practices. Enforcement Watch previously…
On November 4, 2015, the Washington Attorney General announced five enforcement actions against debt collection companies. The enforcement actions are part of an ongoing partnership with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and other federal agencies to investigate abusive debt collection practices. Enforcement Watch previously reported on the FTC partnership, named…
On November 4, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a new enforcement initiative targeting debt collection companies. The initiative, which is known as “Operation Collection Protection,” involves partnerships with state authorities to investigate debt collectors and prosecute civil and criminal enforcement actions against debt collection companies engaged in illegal…
A month has passed since the new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (“TRID” or “Know Before You Owe”) requirements went into effect on October 3, 2015, and while the transition has not been completely smooth, it has gone better than many expected. Below is a recap of some of the issues that…
On November 5, 2015, the DOJ’s U.S. Trustee Program announced that it entered into a nationwide settlement agreement with a national bank over allegations the bank failed to file mortgage payment change notices in bankruptcy proceedings. When a debtor has entered Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings, federal bankruptcy law requires mortgage…
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 November 2, 2015, the California Attorney General’s Office announced that it had entered into a $100 million stipulated judgment with a national bank over allegations that the bank engaged in abusive debt collection practices, in violation of California’s Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The allegations relate to the bank’s…
Sabrina Rose-Smith, a partner in Goodwin Procter’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation Practice will speak November 5, 2015 at the Payday Loan Bar Association Annual Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona. This Annual Meeting is the yearly review of legal developments in payday lending, and Goodwin Procter is a sponsor. Sabrina will discuss…
Earlier this month, the CFPB announced that it may propose rules designed to curtail or eliminate class-action waivers from arbitration clauses. Arbitration clauses appear in most financial-services contracts to provide both parties with a cheaper alternative to litigation. Dubbing such clauses “a free pass [to] sidestep the legal system, avoid…