On October 24, the FTC and the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a $1.1 million settlement with a group of Wisconsin auto dealers for allegedly charging customers illegal junk fees and unlawfully discriminating against American Indian customers. The action was brought under the FTC Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), the Wisconsin Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and the Wisconsin Consumer Act.Continue Reading FTC and Wisconsin DOJ Agree to $1.1M Settlement with Auto Dealers over Unlawful Junk Fees and Discrimination Against American Indian Customers

On October 31, a federal jury in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri found the defendants, a trade association, which represents residential and commercial real estate industries, and multiple residential brokerages liable for $1.8 billion in damages for conspiring to artificially inflate commissions on home sales. Continue Reading Federal Jury: Trade Association and Real Estate Brokerages Conspired to Inflate Commissions, $1.8B in Damages to Plaintiffs

On October 26, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction barring the CFPB from moving forward with implementing or enforcing the recently finalized Small Business Lending Rule, designed to implement Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act. The injunction will likely remain in effect pending either the outcome of a trial on the underlying merits of the case or the Supreme Court’s reversal of Community Financial Services Association of America Ltd. v. CFPB. The Southern District of Texas previously issued a similar injunction in July in the same case, however, the original injunction applied only to the parties to the case (see previous blog post here).Continue Reading Federal Court Issues Nationwide Injunction of CFPB’s Small Business Lending Rule

On October 19, the CFPB proposed a rule that would require depository and nondepository entities to make available to consumers and authorized third parties certain data relating to consumers’ transactions and accounts (see our previous post on this rulemaking here and here). The proposed rule would also establish obligations for third parties accessing a consumer’s data, including privacy protections for that data, and provide basic standards for data access to promote fair, open, and inclusive industry standards.Continue Reading CFPB Issues Proposed Rule to Regulate Personal Financial Data Rights

On October 18, the Senate voted 53-44 to approve S.J. Res. 32, a resolution sponsored by Sen. Kennedy (R-LA) to overturn the implementation of the CFPB’s final rule under Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act requiring lenders to report demographic data on small-business loan recipients (see our previous blogs on the rule here and here). The resolution invoked the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to disapprove the CFPB’s final rule – the CRA allows lawmakers to revoke a recently issued federal agency rulemaking by passing a resolution of disapproval against it. The resolutions must pass each chamber of Congress and need a presidential signature to take effect. The White House has threatened to veto the bill.Continue Reading Senate Votes to Repeal CFPB Small Business Lending Rule

On October 12, the CFPB and DOJ issued a joint statement that reminds financial institutions that all credit applicants are protected from discrimination on the basis of their national origin, race, and other characteristics covered by the ECOA, regardless of their immigration status. According to the CFPB and DOJ, the statement was issued because consumers have reported being rejected for credit cards as well as for auto, student, personal, and equipment loans because of their immigration status, even when they have strong credit histories and ties to the US and are otherwise qualified to receive the loans.Continue Reading CFPB, DOJ Joint Statement: Financial Institutions May Not Use Immigration Status to Illegally Discriminate Against Credit Applicants

On October 17, the CFPB took action against a nonbank fintech company for allegedly deceiving consumers about the speed and cost of remittance transfers through its mobile app. The Bureau also alleges that the company illegally forced consumers to waive their legal rights, failed to provide consumers with legally required disclosures and receipts, and failed to properly investigate consumer disputes and errors. The CFPB is ordering the company to refund affected consumers nearly $1.5 million in fees and pay a $1.5 million penalty into the CFPB’s victims relief fund.Continue Reading CFPB Acts Against Fintech Operator of Mobile App for Illegal International Money Transfers

In August, a New York federal district court denied a motion to dismiss a CFPB lawsuit against three affiliated companies engaged in the business of purchasing distressed consumer debt and several of the companies’ owners and officers. The CFPB’s lawsuit involves claims against the defendants for violations of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (“CFPA”) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) based on a theory of vicarious liability as a result of conduct of the companies’ third-party debt collection vendors.Continue Reading NY Federal Court Rules CFPB Vicarious Liability Suit Can Proceed

On September 21, the CFPB announced that it has initiated a rulemaking process under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) that would remove medical bills from consumer credit reports. The CFPB also published an Outline describing the proposals and alternatives that it will consider in the FCRA rulemaking process, which, if finalized, would:Continue Reading CFPB Initiates FCRA Rulemaking on Medical Debt and Data Brokers