The International Association of Privacy Professionals recently conducted an interview with Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen. General Jespen has been considered a leader among the State Attorneys General in the area of privacy, and Connecticut is considered one of the most active states in privacy policy and legal enforcement actions related to privacy issues. In
Data Breach Generates Putative FCRA Class Action Against Hospital
On September 4, in Tierney et al. v. Advocate Health and Hospitals Corp., the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued an order dismissing a putative Fair Credit Reporting Act class action accusing Advocate Health and Hospitals Corp. of violating the FCRA by failing to secure health data stolen from
Attorneys General Request Opinion from FCC on Call-Blocking Technology
On September 9, the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) sent Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler a request signed by 39 state attorneys general for an opinion on telecommunication companies’ legal ability to implement call-blocking technology.
The letter brought to the attention of the FCC recent advancements in call-blocking technology such as Call Control,
CFPB and Federal Reserve Announce Increases in Exemption Thresholds for TILA and CLA
On September 9, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Reserve Board announced increases in the dollar thresholds in Regulation Z (Truth in Lending (TILA)) and Regulation M (Consumer Leasing Act (CLA)) for exempt consumer credit and lease transactions. According to the Federal regulators, these increases are consistent with the Dodd-Frank Act and reflect
Plaintiffs Alleging TCPA and FDCPA Claims May Be Able to Circumvent Arbitration Where Calls Were Intended for an Unrelated Third Party
In Porter v. Dollar Financial Group, Inc., 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 122865, a Northern District of California court denied the defendant’s motion to compel arbitration based on the plaintiff’s allegation that the debt collection calls at issue were intended for a third party, and thus were not related to the contract containing the arbitration
CFPB Issues Bulletin to Credit Card Issuers on Deceptive Interest-Rate Promotions
On September 3, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a new bulletin warning credit card issuers against certain interest-rate promotions that, it claimed, posed a risk of deceptive or abusive conduct. The transactions at issue involve solicitations that “offer a promotional annual percentage rate on a particular transaction over a defined period of time” and
Contracting and Text Sending is Sufficient for Exercise of Personal Jurisdiction in TCPA Class Action
In Payton v. Kale Realty, LLC, plaintiff Payton filed an amended complaint, asserting that defendant Kale used newly added defendant Voiceshot’s services to send unsolicited advertisements to potential customers’ cell phones. Voiceshot provides web-based cloud telecommunication services by which users can send mass text messages for a fee. Voiceshot is a Delaware company with
CFPB Announces New Leadership
On August 28, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced several new senior leaders within the organization, including:
- Patricia McClung, assistant director for mortgage markets. Prior to the CPFB, McClung worked at the Federal Housing Administration as a senior housing policy advisor.
- Janneke Ratcliffe, assistant director for financial education. Since 2005, Ratcliffe has served
SEC Finalizes Tougher Credit Rating Agency Rules
On August 27, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted new rules for credit rating agencies to enhance governance, protect against conflicts of interest, and increase transparency to improve the quality of credit ratings and increase credit rating agency accountability. Industry observers hope that the new rules will address problems that have contributed to the failure
Virginia Creditors Bar Association 5th Annual Collections Seminar
On October 1, 2014, in Williamsburg, VA, the Virginia Creditors Bar Association is hosting their Fifth Annual Collections Seminar. This event will feature comprehensive discussions on issues pertaining to Creditors’ Rights and Collections Law throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, including, but not limited to, presentations regarding bankruptcy, authenticating business records, FDCPA defense, the CFPB, and