On February 21, the United States Department of Education, led by Secretary Elisabeth Dee DeVos, issued a memorandum indicating it was considering stepping into the debate over the standard used to determine whether a student loan can be discharged under the Bankruptcy Code. The request for public comment appears aimed in part at revisiting allowing
On February 28, Mick Mulvaney, the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, delivered remarks at the winter meeting of the National Association of Attorneys General (“NAAG”) in which he outlined the CFPB’s strategic vision and enforcement priorities.
More Enforcement Leadership from State Attorneys General
In his comments, Mulvaney stressed that, moving forward, the
On February 6, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) announced that seven states have entered into a compact that should streamline the process of applying for state money transmitter licenses.
Moving forward, the participating states– Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington – will accept each other’s findings regarding certain “key elements of
A Roanoke City Circuit Court judge recently ordered a defendant to pay nearly $160,000 to two plaintiffs for violations of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act (“VCPA”) in a dispute over a wrecked car worth no more than $9,300.
In Hughes v. Robert Young Auto & Truck, Inc., No. CL16-1364, the plaintiffs, a married North
On January 3, a coalition of 49 state attorneys general announced a $45 million settlement with PHH Mortgage Corporation, which was accused of misconduct related to its servicing of single-family residential mortgages.
In announcing the settlement, state attorneys general from across the country touted their commitment to holding mortgage companies responsible for any misconduct that
On January 29, a California state court approved a $2.25 million settlement to be paid by Walgreen Co., commonly known to consumers nationwide as the drug store chain Walgreens. The settlement stems from a consumer protection lawsuit by the district attorneys of four California counties (Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Cruz) in
In May 2017, the Federal Trade Commission, along with federal, state, and international law enforcement partners, announced “Operation Tech Trap,” a nationwide and international crackdown on tech support scams that trick consumers into believing their computers have a virus and then charge those consumers money for unnecessary repairs.
As part of Operation Tech Trap, the
The New York Attorney General’s Office has requested that a New York federal court compel a debt collection company and its owner to turn over documents in connection with a lawsuit alleging the defendants were part of a multimillion-dollar illegal debt collection scheme.
The lawsuit, brought by the Attorney General and the Consumer Financial Protection
On January 24, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published a request for public comments on its use of Civil Investigative Demands or “CIDs”. The CFPB expects the request to be published in the Federal Register on January 26, and public comments will therefore be due on or around March 27.
The CFPB’s use –
On Tuesday, White House budget director and acting interim director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Mick Mulvaney, introduced his plan for a more tempered, data-driven, governing philosophy for the CFPB.
In a three-page memo sent to CFPB employees, Mulvaney emphasized the CFPB would continue to enforce consumer protection laws but stressed it would operate