Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

On October 13, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) announced that it entered into a consent order (the “Order”) with Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation (“Nissan”) to resolve allegations that the auto finance company violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act (the “Act”). The Order requires Nissan to pay a $4 million penalty and offer

Multiple consumer advocacy groups are demanding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) rescind its April 1, 2020, credit reporting guidance regarding the investigation of error disputes vowed at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

In April, the CFPB said it would not hold companies to strict deadlines for investigating disputes that consumers have about information

On September 21, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced the settlement of its administrative proceeding against Lobel Financial Corporation (“Lobel”) – a California automobile lender that the CFPB claimed had engaged in unfair practices with respect to its Loss Damage Waiver (“LDW”) product. The action against Lobel alleged multiple violations of the Consumer

On September 15, 2020, after considerable delay and pursuant to a court settlement, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Outline of Proposals Under Consideration and Alternatives Considered for small business lending data collection rulemaking. When the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank) was passed, Section 1071 amended the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) to require such small business data collection. Dodd-Frank requires the CFPB to comply with The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) of 1996, which provided new avenues for small businesses to participate in the federal regulatory arena and created Small Business Advocacy Review panels (SBAR panels, also known as SBREFA panels).

Section 1071 states that “in the case of any application to a financial institution for credit for women-owned, minority-owned, or small business, the financial institution shall – (1) inquire whether the business is a women-owned, minority-owned, or small business, without regard to whether such application is received in person, by mail, by telephone, by electronic mail or other form of electronic transmission, or by any other means, and whether or not such application is in response to a solicitation by the financial institution…” The purpose of Section 1071 was to facilitate the enforcement of fair lending laws. The CFPB is beginning the process of writing regulations to implement Section 1071.

The CFPB’s Outline describes the various proposals that are being considered to implement Section 1071, the relevant law, the regulatory process, and an economic analysis of the potential impacts on small entities that will be directly impacted.

In late August, the California legislature passed Assembly Bill 1864, creating a Department of Financial Protection and Innovation and bolstering legal protections for consumers.

The new Department is intended to be a state-level version of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

For example, similar to the CFPB, the commissioner of the Department is authorized

On July 13, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) issued a study, entitled “Targeting Credit Builder Loans: Insights from a Credit Builder Loan Evaluation” and an accompanying practitioner’s guide – ultimately concluding that a credit builder loan (“CBL”) could increase the likelihood of establishing a credit record for consumers without one, and could help

The CFPB recently published a blog post about the agency’s on-going efforts to monitor industry updates and innovation and how these changes align with regulatory obligations under the CFPB’s consumer protection laws. This post specifically highlighted using artificial intelligence (AI) and/or machine learning (ML) related to the adverse action notices that are required under the

On July 28, 2020, Troutman Pepper attorneys, Maryia Jones (Virginia Beach office) and Stephen J. Steinlight (New York – East Side office) will serve again on the faculty for their webinar series by Lorman Educational Services entitled, “Collection Disputes: A Good Defense Is the Best Offense.

The credit and collection industry remain under

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a final rule on July 7, 2020 rescinding the mandatory ability to repay underwriting provisions on small dollar loans that it had previously announced under 12 C.F.R. § 1041 (the Final Rule). The Final Rule has left the payments provisions intact.

The CFPB first finalized regulations governing small

The Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) can carry on, despite its unconstitutional leadership structure. The ruling gives the President the freedom to replace a CFPB Director at will. In a 5-4 decision, the Court held that the CFPB’s leadership by a single director removable only for cause was an