Photo of Chris Willis

Chris Willis

Subscribe to Chris Willis's Posts

Chris is the co-leader of the Consumer Financial Services Regulatory practice at the firm. He advises financial services institutions facing state and federal government investigations and examinations, counseling them on compliance issues including UDAP/UDAAP, credit reporting, debt collection, and fair lending, and defending them in individual and class action lawsuits brought by consumers and enforcement actions brought by government agencies.

Follow:Read more about Chris WillisChris's Linkedin Profile

On April 2, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order staying the district court’s decision to transfer the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) credit card late fee rule from the Northern District of Texas to the District Court for the District of Columbia (D.D.C). As discussed here, on March 28, 2024, the district court had transferred the case to D.D.C. finding an “attenuated nexus” to the Fort Worth Division since, according to the district court, only one of the six plaintiffs had even a remote tie to the division. The Fifth Circuit’s stay is in effect until 5:00 pm on Friday, April 5, 2024.

Yesterday, the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB or Bureau) credit card late fee rule (Final Rule) was transferred from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas to the District Court for the District of Columbia (D.D.C.).

In this episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, Chris Willis discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) recent circular on comparison shopping and lead generation websites. The CFPB asserts that certain practices related to these websites are abusive under the Dodd Frank Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices (UDAAP) regulation. The CFPB argues that it is abusive for website operators to influence their display or ranking of consumer financial products and services based on compensation they receive from product providers. Willis critiques the CFPB’s stance, arguing that the Bureau is attempting to rewrite commerce rules by labeling practices as abusive, in conflict with long-standing regulatory guidance focused on disclosures on such websites. Despite the CFPB’s circular, he suggests that the industry will likely continue to rely on appropriate disclosures to ensure consumers are informed of how products are presented in online contexts.

In this special crossover edition of The Consumer Finance Podcast and the Payments Pros podcast, Chris Willis is joined by Josh McBeain and Glen Trudel. They discuss the recent final credit card late fee rule issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the industry’s reaction to it. The rule lowers the safe harbor provision dollar amount for late fees to $8 for large credit card issuers and increases it for small issuers. The team also discusses the legal challenge filed against the rule by a collective of trade groups. They speculate on potential industry responses if the rule survives legal challenges, such as increasing APRs, creating new fees, raising minimum payments, and tightening credit.

In this special crossover edition of Payments Pros and The Consumer Finance Podcast, Chris Willis is joined by Josh McBeain and Glen Trudel. They discuss the recent final credit card late fee rule issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the industry’s reaction to it. The rule lowers the safe harbor provision dollar amount for late fees to $8 for large credit card issuers and increases it for small issuers. The team also discusses the legal challenge filed against the rule by a collective of trade groups. They speculate on potential industry responses if the rule survives legal challenges, such as increasing APRs, creating new fees, raising minimum payments, and tightening credit.

On March 18, Rohit Chopra, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), submitted comments to the Appraisal Subcommittee (ASC) regarding its oversight of The Appraisal Foundation. Director Chopra, who serves as a voting member of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) and has been the designated executive sponsor for the ASC since 2022, highlighted several concerns about The Appraisal Foundation’s governance and conflict of interest policies.

As discussed here, earlier this month the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) finalized its credit card late fee rule (Final Rule). The Final Rule sets a safe harbor amount for late fees at $8 and eliminates the annual inflation adjustments to that safe harbor amount, for larger card issuers, among other changes. The announcement of the Final Rule on credit card late fees sparked immediate reaction. As discussed here, a collective of trade groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Longview Chamber of Commerce, the American Bankers Association, the Consumer Bankers Association, and Texas Association of Business (collectively, the trade groups) filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas challenging the Final Rule and arguing that it should be invalidated because the CFPB’s funding mechanism violates the Appropriations Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Alternatively, the trade groups argue that the Final Rule violates the Administrative Procedure Act for various reasons. Concurrently with the complaint, the trade groups filed a motion for preliminary injunction requesting that the court enjoin the Bureau from implementing the Final Rule against their members until the conclusion of the case.

In this special crossover episode with Payments Pros and The Crypto Exchange, Ethan Ostroff, James Kim, and Carlin McCrory discuss the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) proposed rule to supervise large tech companies and other providers of digital wallets and payment apps. The proposed rule asserts that digital assets are “funds” subject to the Dodd-Frank Act and other federal consumer financial laws and regulations, which would expand the CFPB’s supervisory powers to examine companies facilitating crypto and other digital asset transactions.

As discussed here, earlier this week the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) finalized its credit card late fee rule (Final Rule). The Final Rule sets a safe harbor amount for late fees at $8 and eliminates the annual inflation adjustments to that safe harbor amount, for larger card issuers. The timing of the Final Rule’s announcement, just days before the State of Union address, did not go unnoticed. President Biden highlighted this development in his speech, emphasizing his administration’s commitment to eliminating so-called hidden fees.

In this episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, Chris Willis is joined by Partners Sheri Adler and Mary Weeks to discuss the recent uptick in SEC enforcement activity related to whistleblowers. They focus on the implications for financial institutions and other companies, particularly those targeted by the SEC for documents potentially restricting whistleblowers from reporting violations of securities laws.