CFPB, Federal Agencies, State Agencies, and Attorneys General
As the Trump Administration attempts to drastically cut CFPB funding and staffing, New York regulators and legislators are attempting to fill what could be a void in consumer protection efforts.
“We’re hiring,” Adrienne A. Harris, the state’s Superintendent of the Department of Financial Services, said during a presentation on March 12 at the Brookings Institution.… Continue Reading
State attorneys general are not waiting to see what the future holds for the CFPB. With federal oversight receding, states are stepping up enforcement activities and strengthening their consumer protection laws.
This shift—accelerated by efforts to limit the CFPB’s authority under the Trump administration—creates a complex landscape where businesses must navigate a patchwork of state-level statutes, regulations, and enforcement priorities.… Continue Reading
In a significant ruling on February 18, 2025, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals determined that the National Bank Act (NBA) does not preempt the procedural “right to cure” notice requirements mandated by the Wisconsin Consumer Act (WCA), reversing a judgment in two debt collection actions.
The court, thereby, determined that this state-level consumer protection was not preempted by the NBA.… Continue Reading
Oregon may become the latest state attempting to stop out-of-state banks from “exporting” home-state interest rates on loans made to Oregon consumers. Like similar legislation adopted by Colorado in 2023, House Bill 2561 explicitly provides that the state does not want certain provisions of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA) to apply to loans made in Oregon.… Continue Reading
Alleging that a Boston company “pervasively and systematically violated the state’s consumer protection laws, including mortgage and foreclosure prevention laws, putting financially vulnerable homeowners at high risk of losing their homes,” Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell has filed suit against the firm and its holding company.
The AG alleged that Hometap Equity Partners LLC–and HomeTap Management Systems, LLC–engaged in illegal and predatory practices targeted for financially vulnerable homeowners, according to the suit filed in Suffolk County Superior Court.… Continue Reading
Today’s podcast show is a repurposing of the second half of a webinar we produced on January 17, 2025. That webinar was Part 3 of our webinar series entitled “The Impact of the Election on the CFPB and Others.” In Part 3, we focus on the role of state attorneys general in a rapidly shifting CFPB environment.… Continue Reading
In the wake of recent federal directives diminishing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), state authorities are increasingly stepping in to uphold consumer protections. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has been at the forefront of this movement, emphasizing the CFPB’s significant contributions and reaffirming her office’s commitment to safeguarding Michigan residents.… Continue Reading
The CFPB is calling on state governments to increase their focus on consumer financial protection laws.
“Enforcing consumer protection law has long been a state-federal partnership in which the states have often taken the lead,” the CFPB said, in a report that includes legislative and regulatory language that states may use.… Continue Reading
Earlier this year, the New Jersey Supreme Court held in Pace v. Hamilton Cove that class action waivers in consumer contracts that do not contain an arbitration clause (i.e., a stand-alone class action waiver) are not per se contrary to public policy. While cautioning that such waivers may be unenforceable if found to be unconscionable or otherwise violative of state law, the court upheld the waiver in this case because the plaintiffs clearly and unambiguously waived their right to maintain a class action and the parties’ lease contract was not unconscionable as a matter of law.… Continue Reading
In the wake of the Office of Administrative Law’s approval of its registration and reporting requirements for providers of income-based advances, private postsecondary education financing, debt settlement services, and student debt relief services, California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (“DFPI”) has issued an invitation for comment on “what other industries…the DFPI should establish registration and reporting requirements for under the [California Consumer Financial Protection Law].”… Continue Reading
