CFPB, Federal Agencies, State Agencies, and Attorneys General
After reviewing the facts and holding in Ramirez, we discuss how the decision clarifies the concrete harm requirement established by SCOTUS’s Spokeo decision, Ramirez’s implications for class action and individual lawsuits alleging violations of federal consumer financial protection laws, and the potential impact on state court litigation.
Chris Willis, Co-Chair of Ballard Spahr’s Consumer…
A Florida federal district court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a borrower alleging FCRA violations by Clarity Services, Inc. (Clarity), the consumer reporting agency that provided the borrower’s consumer report to her lender. In dismissing the plaintiff’s FCRA claims, the district court rejected the plaintiff’s argument that the FCRA requires a consumer reporting agency,…
In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last week in TransUnion, LLC. v. Ramirez that only class members who were concretely harmed by TransUnion’s FCRA violation had Article III standing to seek damages.
In the case, Sergio Ramirez, the named plaintiff, alleged that he suffered difficulty in obtaining credit and other harm after…
We take a close look at the CDIA code options available for direct and indirect consumer disputes, their relationship to FCRA compliance, CFPB scrutiny of code use in FCRA compliance exams of furnishers, and court decisions involving alleged improper coding of disputed accounts. We also share our thoughts on best practices for furnishers in coding…
On May 26, 2021, the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing, “Consumer Credit Reporting: Assessing Accuracy and Compliance.” The witnesses include representatives from the “big three” consumer reporting agencies and the National Consumer Law Center. Based on the Committee memorandum, lawmakers are likely to focus on…
On May 6, 2021, the CFPB’s Office of Servicemember Affairs issued its eighth annual report summarizing its activities from January 1 through December 31, 2020. The report discussed the Office’s consumer outreach and educational efforts, servicemember complaint trends, and priorities for 2021.
The Office’s educational outreach focused on specific economic challenges and resources related to…
Subscribers to each service will receive weekly emails and have the opportunity to discuss developments in each area during a monthly call. Additionally, subscribers will be enrolled in an interactive, searchable, online database that enables subscribers to have 24-hour access to our information and analysis.
To further educate our current subscribers and anyone else interested…
The CFPB has issued a report titled “Payment Amount Furnishing & Consumer Reporting” that highlights changes since 2012 in the furnishing of actual payment data to consumer reporting agencies.
The report indicates that:
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For our financial services clients interested in monitoring important federal and state legal developments, Ballard Spahr has launched a comprehensive, national tracking service designed to serve the needs of specific segments of the consumer financial services industry.
Beginning January 2, 2021, Ballard is pleased to offer three new federal and state trackers, which are available…
The CFPB announced that it has entered into a settlement with Afni, Inc. to address its alleged FCRA violations in furnishing consumer information to consumer reporting agencies (CRAs). Afni is a debt collector specializing in the collection of debts on behalf of telecommunications companies. The consent order imposes a $500,000 civil money penalty.
The FCRA/Regulation…
