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Gillian Williston is an experienced litigator representing clients in consumer law, business disputes and commercial litigation in both federal and state court.

On February 22, the Fourth Circuit clarified in a published opinion what communications constitute a qualified written request (QWR) under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). The Fourth Circuit held that “where a written correspondence to a loan servicer provides sufficient information to identify the account and an alleged servicing error, such correspondence is

2020 was a transformative year for the consumer financial services world. As we navigate an unprecedented volume of industry regulation, Troutman Pepper is uniquely positioned to help its clients find successful resolutions and stay ahead of the compliance curve.

In this report, we share developments in 2020 on consumer class actions, background screening, bankruptcy,

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court of the United States declined to review an appellate court ruling that two mortgage companies defrauded a federal mortgage insurance program, leaving them owing nearly $300 million in damages to the United States government.

In August 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in United

As the education sector continues to respond to the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic, on March 30, United States Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced several initiatives designed to bring “meaningful relief” to students and families.

First, all federal student borrowers can ask their loan servicers to temporarily postpone their payments.

Additionally, if a borrower is more

A Colorado woman is suing a collection agency in federal court under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act for mistakenly emailing a receipt intended for her to a third party.

Plaintiff Stephanie Dehart incurred medical debt following the birth and delivery of her daughter. Her debt later was placed with defendant CollectionCenter, Inc., “the premier

On October 22, a proposed class of over 7,000 former college students filed a lawsuit against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and the Department of Education (DOE) in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, citing the department’s “enduring refusal to discharge the federal student loans”

On August 14, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, along with the Office of the Arkansas Attorney General, filed a proposed settlement with Andrew Gamber, Voyager Financial, and SoBell (collectively “Defendants”). This settlement follows a complaint the CFPB and Arkansas filed against Defendants in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, alleging

A federal court in Wisconsin recently granted a motion for attorneys’ fees in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case based on the defendant’s “aggressive litigation tactics.” The case is Michael J. Broome v. Kohn Law Firm, S.C., et al. 

Consumer plaintiff Michael Broome claimed the defendants violated the FDCPA by filing a debt-collection lawsuit

Agoda Company Pte. Ltd., an international travel service provider based in Singapore, secured a summary judgment win on the affirmative defense of consent after a district court ruled the text messages it sent to a customer did not violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. 

After booking with Agoda to reserve hotel rooms on

Last week, Navient Corp., the nation’s largest student loan servicer, moved for summary judgment on two enforcement claims brought against it by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau alleging that Navient engaged in abusive and unfair practices under the Consumer Financial Protection Act.   

In January 2017, the CFPB filed an enforcement action in the U.S.