Regulatory and Enforcement

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The CFPB has announced that it has made changes to its semi-annual survey of credit card terms.  According to the CFPB, the changes are “designed to increase price competition in the credit card market by allowing people to comparison shop for the best prices and products.”

The Fair Credit and Charge Card Disclosure Act of 1988 requires the CFPB to collect data semi-annually from the largest 25 credit card issuers and at least 125 additional issuers selected by the CFPB based on geography and other considerations. … Continue Reading

On March 20, 2023, the CFPB published a final rule in the Federal Register that makes non-substantive corrections and updates to CFPB and other federal agency contact information found in various regulations, including the contact information that must be provided in ECOA adverse action notices and the FCRA Summary of Consumer Rights. … Continue Reading

The CFPB has issued a request for information about business models that collect and sell consumer data, such as data brokers, data aggregators, and platforms.  The RFI is intended to provide the CFPB with insight into the full scope of the data broker industry about which, according to the CFPB, “there is still relatively limited public understanding of their operations and other impacts.” … Continue Reading

The CFPB has issued a new bulletin (2023-01) titled “Unfair Billing and Collection Practices After Bankruptcy Discharges of Certain Student Loan Debts.”  The bulletin warns servicers that they risk engaging in a UDAAP violation by resuming collection of student loans that were discharged through the regular course of a borrower’s bankruptcy.… Continue Reading

On March 3, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint against a towing company located near a Marine base alleging violations of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act’s (SCRA) prohibition against default judgments against SCRA-protected servicemembers.  The case, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, alleges that the towing company failed to make a good faith effort to ascertain the military status of defendants before filing affidavits in court cases claiming military status could not be determined.… Continue Reading

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s recent publication of an 80-page report titled “Mass Arbitration Shakedown: Coercing Unjustified Settlements” has fanned the flames on an already heated debate between consumer advocates and industry lawyers over the propriety of mass arbitrations. 

We have addressed mass arbitration issues and potential defenses extensively in our prior blogs.… Continue Reading

On February 27, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) entered into a consent order against RMK Financial Corporation d/b/a Majestic Home Loan (RMK), a California-based mortgage lender, based on allegations that it falsely implied government endorsement of its home loans in its marketing. The consent order, which addressed numerous alleged statutory and regulatory violations and a failure to comply with an earlier consent order, prohibits RMK from engaging in any mortgage lending activities (or from receiving remuneration from mortgage lending) going forward, effectively shutting it down.… Continue Reading

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review of the Fifth Circuit’s decision in Jarkesy v. Securities and Exchange Commission, a case with significant implications for the use of administrative law judges (ALJs) by federal agencies, including the CFPB. … Continue Reading

The CFPB announced earlier this week that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that is intended to “help to identify and end financial practices that harm workers and to enhance the enforcement of federal consumer financial protection and labor laws and regulations.” … Continue Reading

The CFPB has issued a proposal that would make significant changes to the current rules for credit card late fees, including substantially reducing the safe harbor late fee amounts that card issuers can charge and eliminating annual inflation adjustments.  After reviewing the legislative and regulatory history of the current rules, we look at the CFPB’s flawed rationale for reducing the safe harbor to a flat $8 for all late payments, identify the serious flaws in its economic analysis of the likely effects of the reduction, and discuss how the proposal relates to the Biden Administration’s junk fees initiative. … Continue Reading