Artificial intelligence is increasingly changing single‑plaintiff consumer litigation, particularly by enabling pro se plaintiffs to file longer, more citation‑dense complaints more quickly, while simultaneously giving defense counsel tools to assess cases, identify weaknesses, and pursue early resolution or dismissal strategies. In the first episode of this series focusing on consumer financial services litigation, Joseph Schuster and Matthew Morr, partners at Ballard Spahr in our Consumer Financial Services Group, discuss both the tactical opportunities and the professional responsibility/ethics risks created by AI use in litigation.… Continue Reading
Litigation and Court Decisions
OCC Moves to Dismiss Multistate Challenge to Mortgage Escrow Preemption Actions
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has responded to the multistate lawsuit challenging its recent actions concerning mortgage escrow accounts with a motion that presents a merits argument as well as three distinct procedural paths: dismissal, transfer, or, potentially, a pause while the Supreme Court considers related preemption issues.… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Takes Next Step Toward Resolving National Bank Act Preemption Split, Inviting Solicitor General’s Views in Cantero, Conti and Kivett
The Supreme Court yesterday took an important step toward resolving the growing uncertainty over the scope of National Bank Act preemption. In an order issued October 5, the Court invited the Solicitor General to file briefs expressing the views of the United States in three cases involving state laws requiring national banks to pay interest on mortgage escrow accounts: Cantero v.… Continue Reading
ICBA Sues OCC Over Crypto National Trust Bank Charters: A Significant Challenge to the OCC’s Chartering Authority
By Scott A. Coleman, Beau Hurtig & Alan S. Kaplinsky on
The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has taken its long-running opposition to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) chartering of cryptocurrency companies to the courts.
On October 2, ICBA filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the OCC and Comptroller Jonathan Gould, challenging the OCC’s authority to charter non-depository, non-fiduciary cryptocurrency companies as national trust banks.… Continue Reading
Third District Court Rejects OLC’s Interpretation of CFPB Funding Statute
By Alan S. Kaplinsky on
Judge Aiken Holds That “Combined Earnings” Means Federal Reserve Revenue, Not Profit
In a September 25, 2026, decision, Judge Ann Aiken of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon became the third federal district judge to reject the Office of Legal Counsel’s interpretation of the statutory mechanism Congress established to fund the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.… Continue Reading
Illinois Court Extends Preemption of IFPA to Federal Credit Unions
By Alan S. Kaplinsky on
Posted in Litigation and Court Decisions, NCUA
In an important September 22 decision, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois expanded its prior rulings concerning the Illinois Interchange Fee Prohibition Act (“IFPA”) to federal credit unions. The court granted the Illinois Bankers Association’s motion for partial reconsideration and held that the IFPA’s limitation on interchange fees (Interchange Fee Limitation) charged on the tax and gratuities portions of payment card transactions is preempted under the Federal Credit Union Act (FCUA) as applied to federal credit unions.… Continue Reading
MBA Sues New Jersey Over Disparate Impact Rule
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) recently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. district court for the district of New Jersey challenging the disparate impact rules adopted by the state.
In December 2025, the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR) adopted Rules Pertaining to Disparate Impact Discrimination under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.… Continue Reading
NFHA Amends Challenge to CFPB’s Regulation B Rule, Adding New Attack on Agency’s Rulemaking Process
The National Fair Housing Alliance (“NFHA”) and three other plaintiffs have amended their lawsuit challenging the CFPB’s recently issued amendments to Regulation B under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (“ECOA”). The amended complaint, filed August 11, makes several important changes to the complaint originally filed on May 27.
The amendments do not fundamentally alter the plaintiffs’ challenge to the Regulation B rule.… Continue Reading
Seventh Circuit Upholds FDIC’s Use of In-House Enforcement Proceedings After “Close and Challenging” Constitutional Analysis
By Scott A. Coleman, Beau Hurtig & Alan S. Kaplinsky on
In a closely watched decision with potentially significant implications for federal banking enforcement, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has upheld the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s authority to adjudicate certain enforcement actions through its own administrative process rather than in federal court. In Bonan v. FDIC, No.… Continue Reading
Lawsuit Challenging CFPB’s Revised ECOA Rule Moves Forward Under Lengthy Summary Judgment Schedule
On May 27, 2026, the National Fair Housing Alliance, Rise Economy, BLDS, LLC, and SolasAI filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s amendments to Regulation B, which implements the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). We discussed the lawsuit shortly after it was filed in our June 2, 2026 blog post linked above.… Continue Reading