On September 17, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued proposed regulations that amend the CFPB’s existing regulations defining “larger participants” of consumer financial products it supervises by adding a new section to define larger participants of a market for automobile financing. The CFPB explains that the approximately 38 nonbank larger participants that would be captured
The CFPB recently announced via blog post that it will hold a “field hearing” on auto finance in Indianapolis on September 18 at 11:00AM. The announcement indicates that additional details will follow, but that the hearing will include remarks from CFPB Director Richard Cordray, and that consumer groups, industry representatives, and the public are invited
In a June 2 decision, Judge Richard Posner, writing for a unanimous panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, criticized a number of statements and other aspects within a notice of class action settlement that had been approved by the district court. In response to a number of objections
In a letter dated July 29, addressed to Richard Cordray, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, two Republicans – Representative Jeb Hensarling, Chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, and Mike Crapo, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs – continue to question the validity of the CFPB’s
TCPA litigation is running rampant in courts throughout the country. Automatic telephone dialing systems, or “ATDSs” or “autodialers”, are at the heart of virtually every TCPA case involving cell phones. Why? Because if a call to a person’s cell phone was not made with an ATDS as defined by the statute, there is virtually no
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in its Spring 2014 Semiannual Risk Perspective report has stated that signs of risk in the auto lending industry are beginning to emerge, based on data that the OCC reviewed as of December 31, 2013. The OCC’s Semiannual Risk Perspective is published by the OCC’s National
The Division of Consumer Affairs of the New Jersey Attorney General’s office has reached a $1.8 million settlement with eight New Jersey motor vehicle dealerships, all under common ownership, to resolve multiple claims of deceptive business practices that were discovered during the Division’s investigation. The settlement also provides for restitution for certain identified consumers affected
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 2013 bulletin cautioning lenders offering auto loans through dealerships that they remain accountable for complying with fair lending laws has sparked questions regarding how the CFPB identifies problematic discriminatory practices. In an effort to address these concerns, CFPB Director Cordray reported during the House Financial Services Committee’s hearing on the
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has announced a new proposal that will allow consumers the option to share a narrative of “what happened” in the CFPB’s public-facing Consumer Complaint Database. According to the CFPB, this new feature would “empower consumers to publicly voice their complaints about consumer financial products and services” and “provide important context
In a novel ruling, the Ninth Circuit expressly adopted an opinion from the Federal Communications Commission, finding the potential for vicarious liability under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. In Thomas v. Taco Bell Corp., No. 12-56458 (unpublished), the Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower court’s holding that Taco Bell was not vicariously liable under the