Three leading financial services trade associations (the National Association of Industrial Bankers (NAIB), the Online Lenders Alliance (OLA), and the American Financial Services Association (AFSA)) have just filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court in the District of Oregon challenging a recently enacted Oregon law effective June 5, 2026, that seeks to impose Oregon’s 36% interest-rate cap on consumer finance loans made by out-of-state state-chartered banks in their home states to Oregon residents.… Continue Reading

Based on reports published around the IPO and the first day of trading, the SpaceX offering appears to have set or approached a remarkable number of records. Some are clear-cut “firsts,” while others are more accurately described as unprecedented milestones. In my view, the three most extraordinary records are:

  1. Largest IPO ever ($75 billion raised);
  2. Largest valuation ever for a newly public company ($1.77 trillion at pricing); and
  3. Creation of the world’s first trillionaire as a direct result of an IPO.
… Continue Reading

President Trump has nominated Brian Johnson for a five year term to serve as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Johnson is the third nomination Trump has made to fill the position. The first two nominations were Jonathan McKiernan and Stuart Levenbach. Perhaps, the third time will be a charm.… Continue Reading

On May 12, 2026, we produced a 90-minute webinar in which we explored one of the most important and rapidly developing issues in consumer financial services law: coerced debt and the emerging legislative efforts designed to address it. The webinar has been re-purposed into a two-part podcast series, the first of which is being released today, June 11th, and the second of which is being released next Thursday, June 18th.… Continue Reading

On June 8, 2026, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) announced the adoption of an Interim Final Rule clarifying the authority of federal credit unions (FCUs) to impose non-interest charges and fees, including interchange fees associated with payment card transactions. The rule, which becomes effective on June 30, 2026, reinforces NCUA’s position that federal law exclusively governs FCUs’ authority to assess such fees and that state laws purporting to regulate those fees are preempted.… Continue Reading

Adam Maarec, Stephanie A. Sheridan, and Meegan Brooks, all members of Ballard Spahr’s Litigation Department, examined the effect of artificial intelligence-powered shopping tools on consumers and brands alike.

Writing for TotalRetail, they outline key legal issues that companies should look out for, as well as recommended actions to be best prepared for the evolving landscape around AI.… Continue Reading

A U.S. District Court Judge has temporarily halted an allegedly deceptive mortgage assistance relief operation lured homeowners with promises that it could provide mortgage relief assistance under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The order, entered in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, was issued at the request of the FTC.… Continue Reading

For years, the debate over mandatory arbitration clauses and class-action waivers in consumer financial services contracts has largely focused on questions of consumer protection, access to justice, the validity of class action waivers in arbitration provisions, and the value of class actions as a tool for redressing systemic consumer harm and litigation policy.… Continue Reading

On June 2, 2026, Professors Todd Zywicki and Thomas Miller, Jr., together with the Center for Individual Freedom, filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiff trade associations in National Association of Industrial Bankers, et al. v. Weiser, currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, sitting en banc.… Continue Reading

The en banc Tenth Circuit continues to receive substantial support for affirming the district court’s decision in National Association of Industrial Bankers v. Weiser, the closely watched case addressing the scope of the opt-out provision in Section 525 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act’s (“DIDMCA”), which empowers a state to opt out of the interest rate provisions in Section 521 of DIDMCA with respect to “loans made in such State.”… Continue Reading