Regulatory Enforcement + Compliance

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The city of Yonkers, New York, enacted General Ordinance No. 16-2014 to amend its Consumer Protection Code (“Code”) by adding new requirements for debt buyers and collection agencies.  The revised Code includes the following sections: definitions, license requirements, required collection practices, prohibited collection practices, and penalties for non-compliance.  The new Code requirements became effective on…

On March 2, a class of job applicants requested that the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina approve a nearly $3 million settlement they had reached with Delhaize America LLC, Food Lion LLC’s parent company.  The applicants had sued Delhaize – which owns Food Lion, Hannaford, and Bottom Dollar – for…

In Lary v. Trinity Physician Fin. & Ins. Servs., et al., Case No. 14-11036, the Eleventh Circuit narrowly interpreted the “willfully or knowingly” provision of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), which gives rise to treble damages.  In Lary, the plaintiff filed a pro se complaint alleging that the defendants sent a fax…

On March 9, a regulatory milestone occurred.  Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray presided over oral arguments in the first ever appeal of a CFPB administrative enforcement action.  As this blog reported on December 31, 2014, this appeal concerns the first “recommended decision” issued by an Administrative Law Judge in a contested CFPB enforcement…

On March 30, a Florida federal judge refused to dismiss a proposed class action accusing Whole Foods Market Group, Inc. of violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act with its employee background check notification methods, ruling the suit alleged Whole Foods’ liability release was included in a disclosure document.  As we previously reported in December, Whole…

A federal district court in the Northern District of California recently dismissed a lawsuit filed against Paramount Pictures Corporation challenging its alleged failure to provide job applicants with a background check disclosure form that “consisted solely of the disclosure,” as required by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”).  Specifically, in addition to making the disclosure…

Last year, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released its 2014 Strategic Plan for the Conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in which the FHFA announced its strategic goals to “Maintain, Reduce, and Build.”  The FHFA has now issued its first Progress Report to announce how Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac worked toward…

On March 17, 2015, Freddie Mac issued an update to its Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (“Guide”) requiring servicers to offer additional modifications on previously modified step-rate mortgages.  This requirement will take effect July 1, 2015.

By requiring loan re-modifications, Freddie Mac is seeking to address what has been on everyone’s mind for a while—the expiring HAMP…

On March 24, in a case that has captured the attention of commercial lenders, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the issue of whether a Chapter 7 debtor can “strip off” junior liens on residences that are already underwater.

Most courts agree that debtors filing under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code…

On March 25, the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (“NBPCA”) announced that it had lodged a formal request with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to prevent the imposition of overly broad restrictions on prepaid accounts.  The NBPCA is a non-profit trade association that supports the growth and success of network branded prepaid cards and represents…