On June 16, 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released an update to its Supervisory Guidance on Multiple Re-Presentment NSF Fees (FIL-40-2022) (the "Guidance"), to provide additional guidance for...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced a settlement with a group of related companies and two of their officers that used a merchant of record (MoR) model to facilitate sales for merchants. According to the...more
Last month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the much-anticipated amendment to the Florida Telemarketing Solicitation Act (FTSA) into law, significantly limiting the ability of private plaintiffs to file telemarketing...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB" or "Bureau") recently published a Small Entity Compliance Guide (the "Guide") regarding Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which amended ECOA to require that financial...more
6/13/2023
/ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Covered Entities ,
Dodd-Frank ,
ECOA ,
Fair Lending ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Lenders ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SBA ,
Small Business
Payment service providers should take note of an expansive new rule proposed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) intended to protect consumer shoppers of goods and services sold on a subscription basis. For merchants...more
3/29/2023
/ Automatic Renewals ,
Cancellation Rights ,
Comment Period ,
Consent ,
Consumer Contracts ,
E-Commerce ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Marketing ,
Notice Requirements ,
Payment Processors ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Subscription Services ,
Terms and Conditions
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission announced that its proposed rule replacing its Prenotification Negative Option Rule would result in new, expansive requirements for all forms of negative option offers, including...more
3/29/2023
/ Automatic Renewals ,
Cancellation Rights ,
Comment Period ,
Consent ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Corporate Counsel ,
E-Commerce ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Marketing ,
Notice Requirements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Subscription Services ,
Terms and Conditions
On February 27, 2023, the Supreme Court granted the certiorari petition of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to hear a case that could cast doubt on all of the regulations that have been promulgated by the...more
Last week, a magistrate judge in U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina dismissed a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) lawsuit brought by a plaintiff who claimed calls made by an insurance lead...more
2/14/2023
/ Auto-Dialed Calls ,
Cell Phones ,
Do Not Call List ,
Facebook Inc v Duguid ,
FCC ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Private Right of Action ,
Robocalling ,
TCPA ,
Telemarketing ,
Text Messages
On January 19, 2023 the Third Circuit dismissed a TCPA class action lawsuit (Mauthe v. Millennium Health LLC) against a company that had sent a one-page promotional fax to consumers without their prior consent about a free...more
When it comes to negative options, the CFPB has strong opinions. As demonstrated in its new circular, these opinions generally align with those of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which has repeatedly targeted trial...more
Last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed a rule to establish a public registry of terms and conditions in form contracts that purport to waive or limit consumer rights and protections.
The rule...more
For years, lead generators have obtained telephone numbers for their clients to call by obtaining the consumer’s consent to receive calls from certain entities specifically identified by the lead generator. A typical model...more
The law surrounding negative option and continuity programs continues to evolve rapidly. Feeling a bit overwhelmed with the latest developments? Below is what you need to know in light of new laws, new enforcement actions,...more
1/19/2023
/ Automatic Renewals ,
Consent ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
GrubHub ,
New Legislation ,
ROSCA ,
Settlement ,
State Attorneys General ,
Subscription Services ,
Terms of Service ,
Website Design
On December 27, 2022, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released an Order on Reconsideration and Declaratory Ruling clarifying the express consent requirements for calls placed to residential landlines under the...more
1/6/2023
/ Administrative Reconsideration ,
Amended Rules ,
Auto-Dialed Calls ,
Declaratory Rulings ,
Exemptions ,
FCC ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Robocalling ,
TCPA ,
Telecommunications ,
TRACED Act
One of the biggest challenges for fintechs is ensuring that their services comply with federal and state money transmission laws. For example, a fintech operating as a payment facilitator faces significant money transmission...more
Risk management personnel who underwrite e-commerce merchants should have some basic understanding of the types of online merchant marketing and sales practices that are deceptive and misleading....more
11/18/2022
/ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Credit Reporting Agencies ,
E-Commerce ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
Marketing ,
Payment Processors ,
Popular ,
Subscription Services ,
Surcharges ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Website Design ,
Websites
A recent action by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) highlights how banks need to ensure that they have robust compliance programs for managing risks posed by their banking as a service (BaaS)...more
Through a new interpretive rule announced this week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has declared that digital marketing providers can be held liable under the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA)...more
8/15/2022
/ Advertising ,
Banks ,
Behavioral Advertising ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Covered Entities ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internet Marketing ,
Marketing ,
Nonbank Firms ,
UDAAP ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Although the concept is not new, challenges to “dark patterns” are rising all over the country. The Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, state attorneys general, and class action plaintiffs...more
The California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) has approved the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation's (DFPI) final regulations, which require providers of commercial financing, including nonbank...more
On July 1, new requirements under California's automatic renewal will take effect. As we previously blogged, the amendments will require businesses to make it even easier for consumers to cancel and impose new requirements on...more
Anti-discrimination law applies to companies with black-box credit models using complex algorithms, according to a circular issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on May 26, 2022. According to the CFPB, the...more
6/16/2022
/ Adverse Action ,
Algorithms ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
ECOA ,
Emerging Technologies ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Machine Learning ,
UDAAP ,
Whistleblowers
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the metaverse, and Web3 bring with them a host of new legal challenges in such areas as IP, securities law, tax, and advertising. As NFTs revolutionize the digital landscape and global economy, it...more
6/9/2022
/ Advertising ,
Best Practices ,
Blockchain ,
Brand ,
Charitable Sales Promotion ,
Contests & Promotions ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Fundraisers ,
Gambling ,
Games ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investors ,
Metaverse ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Prizes ,
Sales Promotions ,
Securities Regulation ,
Sweepstakes ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning ,
Virtual Currency ,
Webinars
The CFPB has opened a new Office of Competition and Innovation. The move comes "as part of a new approach to help spur innovation in financial services by promoting competition and identifying stumbling blocks for new market...more
The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau ("CFPB") announced that it will examine nonbank financial companies that pose risks to consumers, using statutory authority that until now had gone unused. Additional examinations would...more