Lawsuits filed by consumers under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and Fair Credit Reporting Act all increased from February to March 2015, according to the latest report from WebRecon.

FDCPA lawsuits increased by 3.9 percent (892 to 927), from February to March, and FCRA lawsuits increased 3.3 percent (245 to

Starting June 1, Alison Kutler will be the new acting chief of the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, the division of the Federal Communications Commission that oversees the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.  Kutler will replace current acting CGB bureau chief Kris Monteith who will remain at the FCC as deputy chief of the Wireline Competition

According to a study released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on May 5, 26 million Americans have no credit rating at all, making them “credit invisible.”  The report found that one in 10 adults have no credit history – many of them black, Hispanic, or living in low-income neighborhoods.

In broad terms, consumers with

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is modifying its complaint database so that consumers can post narratives about their experiences with financial service providers.  According to the CFPB’s release, available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/newsroom/cfpb-finalizes-policy-to-give-consumers-the-opportunity-to-voice-publicly-complaints-about-financial-companies/, the purpose of the database enhancement is to help consumers make informed choices and identify market trends.  But the implementation could result

A New York federal judge on April 17 approved a group of former Gawker Media LLC interns’ proposed revised plan to notify potential class members of their rights to opt out of a proposed collective action alleging unpaid wages through social media.  The same Court had previously rejected a social media campaign as being overbroad

On April 22, the House of Representatives passed a bill requiring the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to solicit input from several advisory boards and to cap the CFPB’s future funding.

H.R. 1195, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Advisory Boards Act, was adopted in a 235-183 vote, after a House committee earlier adopted

Advertising agency Campbell-Ewald Co. began sending text messages through its subcontractor, MindMatic LLC, in 2006 as part of a Navy-approved effort to tap new technologies in recruitment campaigns, the company says.  Among the recipients of the message, which began with “Destined for something big? Do it in the Navy,” was the plaintiff who said he

Passed by a vote of 47-3, the Stop Credit Discrimination in Employment Act bans employers in New York City from using potential employees’ credit histories in making employment decisions.  The bill amends the city’s Human Rights Law to make it an unlawful discriminatory practice to request or use an applicant’s consumer credit history in making

On April 9, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ordered that three putative nationwide class actions against Michaels Stores Inc. be centralized in New Jersey.  The actions accuse Michaels Stores of violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) by failing to properly notify job applicants that the company would access their credit reports.

Federal

On April 15, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the Data Security and Breach Notification Act by a 29-20 vote.  The bill, H.R. 1770: The Data Security and Breach Notification Act of 2015, was initially backed by Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) and Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) but passed along party lines.

The legislation