Dorsey partner Jenny Lee was quoted today in a Bloomberg BNA article examining the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s evolving approach to supervision under acting Director Mick Mulvaney.
American Banker quoted Dorsey & Whitney partner Jenny Lee in an article reporting on the legal community’s response to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s latest semiannual report to Congress. Lee noted that the report’s focus on “credit invisibles” (consumers who have little or no access to credit) and their overlap with users of payday and installment loans suggests that the Bureau will seek to facilitate access to credit going forward.
With less than one month remaining until the April 19, 2018 effective date of bankruptcy-related amendments to Regulation X and Regulation Z, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued “Mortgage Servicing FAQs” to address several questions it has received regarding the new bankruptcy statement requirements. Specifically, the FAQs provide some clarification regarding periodic statements, coupon books, reaffirmation, successors in interest, and the effective date.
The D.C. Circuit’s reversal of the FCC’s pronouncements as to “the precise functions that a device must have capacity to perform for it to be considered an ATDS,” will likely prove to be the most consequential aspect of the court’s opinion in the ACA International appeal. ACA Int’l v. FCC, No. 15-1211, 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 6535 at *9 (D.C. Cir. Mar. 16, 2018) (“ACA Int’l”). The decision gives the FCC a blank slate to take a fresh look at this issue, and there is potential for big changes on the horizon.
On February 28, 2018, a Pennsylvania federal district court granted a petition by the CFPB to enforce a CID against a student loan servicer to investigate potential Unfair, Deceptive or Abusive Acts or Practices or violations of FCRA in CFPB v. Heartland Campus Solutions, ECSI. The court applied the Supreme Court’s Morton Salt test applicable to investigative demands, and ruled in the CFPB’s favor, marking a court victory for the Mulvaney-led CFPB in investigative efforts to enforce a CID against the loan servicer.
American Banker quoted Dorsey & Whitney partner Jenny Lee in an article reporting on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new strategic plan. The article observes how the CFPB’s February 12, 2018 plan dropped all mention of “unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices” from the Bureau’s vision statement, suggesting that Mick Mulvaney will de-emphasize actions against regulated entities for so-called UDAAP violations.
On January 31, the D.C. Circuit issued a plurality opinion confirming the constitutionality of the CFPB governance by a sole Director, while reinstating the decision below that struck down the CFPB’s $109 million disgorgement demand in the underlying dispute. Moving forward, the decision puts the spotlight on several important issues for those interested in the CFPB’s activities.
Many observers have reported on leadership changes at the CFPB and the potential shifts in policy priorities that may follow. However, in the new year, among the most interesting actions taken by the CFPB is the in-court opposition to a credit union with respect to an issue related to an overdraft policy and Regulation E-related evidence.
The National Law Journal quoted Jenny Lee, partner at Dorsey & Whitney, in an article entitled, “What Lawyers Are Saying About Richard Cordray’s CFPB Departure Plans.”
On Tuesday, the Senate voted 51-50 (with Vice President Mike Pence casting the tiebreaking vote) to overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s July 2017 rule banning firms from including arbitration clauses blocking class-action lawsuits in consumer financial contracts. The Senate’s action follows a 231-190 vote in the House in July 2017 to overturn the Rule. Under the Congressional Review Act, the resolution will now go to President Trump, whose expected signature will invalidate the Rule and prohibit the CFPB from revisiting it for an extended period of time.
The constitutionality of the CFPB continues to be an issue in cases involving that agency. The latest party to raise the “CFPB is unconstitutional” defense is a law firm, Seila Law, LLC, which is attempting to evade a civil investigative demand seeking information relating to the CFPB’s litigation against debt relief firm Morgan Drexel Inc. and its affiliates.
In a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau action against a mortgage services company, its subsidiary, and its founder, a California district judged denied an award of $73.9 million in restitutionary relief, and imposed a civil money penalty for a fraction of that amount.
In a Compliance Bulletin released July 27, 2017, the CFPB cautioned covered persons and service providers that fees for pay-by-phone services may run afoul of “sections 1031 and 1036 of the [Dodd-Frank Act’s] prohibition on engaging in unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices . . . when assessing phone pay fees.” The CFPB also provided guidance to debt collectors who receive phone pay fees about the possible consequences under the FDCPA.
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