On February 4, the Federal Communications Commission issued seven letters to certain United States phone companies that provide gateway service for international robocalls into stateside networks, directing them to cooperate in tracing back those calls. The companies are used as gateways into the United States for robocalls that originate overseas; thus, are uniquely situated to

Recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its Supervisory Highlights, No. 21 (Winter 2020) (“the Report”). The Report discusses findings related to many of the CFPB’s examinations regarding debt collection, mortgage servicing, payday lending, and student loan servicing that were completed between April and August 2019.

Key takeaways from the Report are as follows:

Debt

On January 29, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Comprehensive Credit Act (“the Act”). Packaging several Democrat-sponsored bills together, the Act garnered the support of all but two of the present House Democrats. If enacted into law, the Act would significantly change the information that credit reports can contain, expand the processes available

We are pleased to announce that Troutman Sanders attorneys, David Anthony, Cindy Hanson, and Timothy St. George will be presenting during the 2020 Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA) Mid-Year Conference in Arlington, VA from April 19-21, 2020. The Mid-Year Legislative & Regulatory Conference is held each year in the spring. The focus is

This month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Education entered into a Memorandum of Understanding intended to enhance their level of collaboration with respect to complaints and concerns raised by student loan consumers.

The agreement provides that the two federal agencies will, to the extent permitted by privacy laws, share consumer complaint

Last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a Policy Statement announcing a new designation for CFPB guidance, which will be known as “Compliance Aids.” In its announcement, the CFPB explained the legal status and effect of this designation. The full Policy Statement can be located here and became effective on February 1.

The Policy

Bad internet reviews are the bane of business owners everywhere. Consumers flock to social media to air their grievances with companies, typically without fear of meaningful reprisal. This practice often leaves many corporate entities wondering what to do to deter this type of consumer sharing. When faced with this question – after reading less than

The United States District Court for the District of Nevada has sided with the Federal Trade Commission in a case against a set of “mortgage relief assistance” companies. The Court issued a sweeping permanent injunction that prohibits the scammers from marketing or providing any debt relief services whatsoever.

The suit stemmed from the actions of

On January 24, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a policy statement that limits the “abusive acts and practices” standard created by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. While the policy statement does not define what constitutes an “abusive” act or practice, and in fact leaves many important questions unanswered, it plainly limits the scope of the

On January 17, the Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement of allegations against a Latvian payment processor and its former CEO that they enabled a deceptive “free trial” offer scheme that billed United States consumers the full price for certain products and engaged in various tactics amounting to “credit card laundering.”

According to the FTC’s