Mention student loans and the face that comes immediately to mind is probably someone in their early twenties. A recent report from the CFPB sheds light on an overlooked segment of the student loan population – consumers 60 years old and older. The number of older student loan borrowers has skyrocketed in recent years. The… Continue Reading
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CFPB’s 2017 Fair Lending Priorities
The CFPB recently issued its Fair Lending Priorities for 2017. According to its December blog post, the CFPB plans to increase its focus on the following three areas, which it describes as “presenting a substantial risk of credit discrimination for consumers.” Redlining: The CFPB “will continue to evaluate whether lenders have intentionally avoided lending in… Continue Reading
GOP Takes Aim at Dodd-Frank
On Friday, January 20, 2017, Donald J. Trump will become the President of the United States, and for the first time in nearly a decade, a single party will control the Presidency, the House, and the Senate. After years of deadlock, Republicans are prepared to use this consolidation of power to move their legislative agenda… Continue Reading
Companies Challenge CFPB’s Authority to Issue Civil Investigative Demands
As any company that has received a civil investigative demand (CID) from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) knows, the Bureau’s authority to issue CIDs is a powerful tool that leaves recipients with limited options to challenge or limit their compliance obligations. Recently, the CFPB has fought back against CID challenges, asking two federal district… Continue Reading
CFPB Report Highlights Continued Focus on Mortgage Redlining
In its Fall 2016 Supervisory Highlights report, issued October 31, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) identified mortgage redlining as an ongoing “priority area” in the Bureau’s supervisory work. In the mortgage industry, “redlining” is a form of disparate treatment where a lender provides unequal access to credit, or unequal terms of credit, on the… Continue Reading
The Yates Memo and Individual Representation
At the November 2, 2016 Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (“SIFMA”) Compliance and Legal Society Regional Seminar in New York, a SIFMA panel discussed the “Yates Memo,” its effect on internal investigations, and considerations regarding individual representation. The Yates Memo is a September 9, 2015 memorandum issued by Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates to… Continue Reading
Tuesday’s GOP Wins May Put the Brakes on the CFPB’s Controversial Oversight of Auto Lending
The CFPB’s imposition of its auto lending guidelines, and use of its admittedly flawed proxy-methodology to determine discriminatory lending in auto finance, may come to an end under the GOP controlled White House and Senate. The CFPB’s current guidance, published in a March 2013 Bulletin, has been largely criticized as limiting competition and increasing interest… Continue Reading
CFPB Director Cordray’s Remarks at FinTech Conference Highlight Focus on Increasing Access to Financial Data
Last Monday, October 24, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray spoke on the Bureau’s approach to FinTech at Money 20/20, a conference focused on payments and financial service innovation. In his remarks, Cordray focused on responding to criticism of the CFPB’s enforcement actions against FinTech start-ups and appeared to warn large financial institutions… Continue Reading
D.C. Circuit Rebukes CFPB in PHH Case
In a major setback for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), the D.C. Circuit issued a significant ruling today that found the CFPB’s single director structure unconstitutional, ruled against the CFPB on important statutory interpretations – including the Bureau’s position that it was not subject to any statute of limitations in enforcement proceedings – and… Continue Reading
I Can’t Get No (Financial Product) Satisfaction: CFPB Complaint Database Exceeds One Million Complaints
On September 27, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Monthly Complaint Report capturing a high-level snapshot of trends in consumer complaints. In conjunction with releasing its September Report, the CFPB confirmed it has handled over one million consumer complaints. The CFPB describes consumer complaints as “submissions that express dissatisfaction with, or communicate suspicion… Continue Reading
At Long Last, CFPB Issues Final Rule on Prepaid Accounts
The CFPB today finalized its rule on prepaid cards. Over four years in the making, the final rule, which weighs in at nearly 1700 pages, provides “strong federal consumer protection for prepaid account users,” according to prepared remarks of CFPB Director Richard Cordray. The final rule covers not only traditional “general purpose reloadable” cards, but… Continue Reading
CFPB Announces that ECOA Protects LGBT Persons From Discrimination in Lending
This summer, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was asked by an LGBT advocacy group whether the provision of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq., that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex extends to protect LGBT people who sought credit. The CFPB has said yes: the ECOA does… Continue Reading
House Financial Services Committee Takes Aim at the CFPB
While the CFPB has been busy revamping debt collection rules, including those required by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), lawmakers are doing a bit of revamping of their own. Earlier this month, the Financial CHOICE Act passed the House Financial Services Committee by a vote of 30-26. Largely intended to repeal certain aspects… Continue Reading
FinCEN Associate Director for Enforcement Delivers Remarks at Title 31 Conference, Stresses Importance of Culture of Compliance
On the day after his appointment in August 2016, the Associate Director for Enforcement for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), Thomas Ott, addressed the National Title 31 Suspicious Activity & Risk Assessment Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. In his remarks, he (1) covered recent enforcement actions, (2) sought to dispel myths or misconceptions about… Continue Reading
Payment Processor Challenges CFPB’s Allegation That It Engaged in Unfair Practices
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (“CFPB”) lawsuit against payment processor Intercept Corporation remains pending, and recent briefing sheds light on what could result in broad implications for the payment processing industry and CFPB enforcement at large. We previously reported on the CFPB’s suit against Intercept, pending in district court in North Dakota. The CFPB alleges… Continue Reading
CFPB Issues Safe Harbors under FDCPA for Mortgage Servicers
On August 4, 2016, in conjunction with issuing the final mortgage servicing rule, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an interpretive rule under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Although a mortgage servicer’s conduct is not always governed by the FDCPA, as the CFPB explains in the interpretive rule, servicers that acquire a… Continue Reading
CFPB’s Proposed Arbitration Rule Prompts Thousands of Comments
The comment period for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)’s proposed arbitration rulemaking ended on Monday, and the Bureau received nearly 11,000 comments both strongly supporting and opposing the proposed rule. As proposed, the rule would prohibit the use of ar bitration clauses that preclude consumer class action lawsuits in consumer financial services contracts, but… Continue Reading
CFPB Proposes Multiple Changes to TRID “Know Before You Owe” Rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) recently issued 293 pages of proposed changes (the “Amendments”) to the federal mortgage disclosure requirements it propounded in October 2015 commonly known as the TILA/RESPA Integrated Disclosure (“TRID”) or “Know Before You Owe” rule. The changes are many, but the rulemaking is not intended to review policy decisions behind… Continue Reading
CFPB Issues Final Mortgage Servicing Rules
On August 4, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its long-awaited final mortgage servicing rule under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and implementing Regulation X, and the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and implementing Regulation Z. The rule finalizes many of the proposed amendments that the CFPB issued in November 2014,… Continue Reading
The CFPB Issues New Proposals Overhauling The Debt Collection Industry
On Thursday July 28, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a series of proposals aimed at overhauling the debt collection business. The new proposals require debt collectors to take additional steps to substantiate the accuracy of a debt, limit certain types of communications with consumers, and simplify dispute and litigation procedures. In prepared… Continue Reading
CFPB’s Supervisory Highlights Regarding Auto Lending
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) recently issued its Supervisory Highlights – Issue 12, Summer 2016 report, addressing, among other industries, automobile origination. The report reflects supervisory activity generally completed between January 2016 and April 2016 and makes it clear that there is increased scrutiny and consumer complaint activity in the auto lending industry. The… Continue Reading
CFPB Issues Proposed Revisions to GLBA Annual Privacy Notice Requirement
Earlier this month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its proposed rule amending the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act’s annual privacy notice requirement set forth in Regulation P. The rule is in response to Congress’ December 2015 amendment to the act, which eliminated the need for certain companies to provide annual privacy disclosures to consumers. Under the… Continue Reading
Parties in PHH Case Argue the Impact of Recent Supreme Court Decision
In the latest development in PHH Corp. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), PHH and the Bureau have both filed letters addressed to the D.C. Circuit arguing over the impact of a recent Supreme Court decision on the case. At issue is whether the Supreme Court’s decision in Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro, No. 15-415… Continue Reading
CFPB Proposes Rule on Small Dollar Lending
On June 2, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) released its proposed rule on small dollar lending during its scheduled field hearing in Kansas City, Missouri. The controversial proposed rule will affect payday loans, single-payment vehicle title loans, deposit advance products, and certain-high cost loans. Under the proposed rule, lenders would be responsible for making… Continue Reading