Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued an “interpretive rule,” subjecting “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) transactions to provisions of Regulation Z applicable to “credit cards.” Among other...more
5/23/2024
/ Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Regulation Z ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Community Financial Services Association of America, Limited (CFSA) v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) holding that the CFPB’s...more
5/20/2024
/ Community Financial Services Association ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v Community Financial Services Association of America Ltd ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Federal Funding ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 1071 ,
Texas
On May 10, a Texas federal court granted a preliminary injunction enjoining the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) from implementing the credit card late fee rule, most recently discussed here. The court...more
This week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) published an Issue Spotlight focusing on consumer complaints relating to credit card rewards programs. The report notes that credit card companies often...more
On May 3, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit entered an order denying the CFPB’s (CFPB) petition for a panel rehearing and effectively setting the stage for a long-awaited ruling on a preliminary injunction in...more
5/9/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Late Fees ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Preliminary Injunctions
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently released an Issue Spotlight highlighting the costs and fees associated with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). While acknowledging that HSAs offer tax advantages that can...more
5/6/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HDHP ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Savings Accounts ,
Medical Expenses ,
Tax Deductions
On April 30, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order vacating the district court’s effective denial of the motion for a preliminary injunction filed by several trade groups, including the U.S. Chamber...more
Earlier this week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released its second report detailing changes in the credit reporting of medical debts made by the three national consumer reporting agencies (CRAs)...more
On April 17, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) entered a consent order against BloomTech, a for-profit vocational school, and its CEO, Austen Allred, for deceptive marketing practices related to...more
Recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) submitted letters to senators in Connecticut and California supporting their proposals to prohibit medical debt reporting....more
On Tuesday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a procedural rule streamlining the designation proceedings for nonbank supervision based on a particular entity posing “risks to consumers.” As...more
On April 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order effectively reversing the district court’s decision to transfer the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB or Bureau)...more
4/9/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Late Fees ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Unconstitutional Condition ,
Writ of Mandamus
On April 2, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order staying the district court’s decision to transfer the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) credit card late fee rule...more
4/4/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Late Fees ,
Motion to Transfer ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Stays
Last week, the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB or Bureau) credit card late fee rule (Final Rule) was transferred from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas to the...more
4/1/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Late Fees ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Safe Harbors
As discussed here, earlier this month the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) finalized its credit card late fee rule (Final Rule). The Final Rule sets a safe harbor amount for late fees at $8 and eliminates...more
As discussed here, earlier last week the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) finalized its credit card late fee rule (Final Rule). The Final Rule sets a safe harbor amount for late fees at $8 and eliminates...more
We discussed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB or Bureau) credit card late fee proposed rule here 13 months ago, and today, the Bureau announced that it has finalized the rule (Final Rule) setting a safe harbor...more
Can digital comparison-shopping operators or lead generators violate the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) by preferencing products or services based on financial benefit? According to today’s guidance issued by the...more
Join us for an enlightening episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, where we dissect the intricate world of debt collection, reflecting on the past year and forecasting future trends. This episode, hosted by Chris Willis,...more
We are pleased to share our annual review of regulatory and legal developments in the consumer financial services industry. With active federal and state legislatures, consumer financial services providers faced a challenging...more
2/1/2024
/ Automotive Loans ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Bankruptcy ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Debt Collection ,
Digital Assets ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Mortgages ,
Student Loans ,
Tribal Loans ,
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
Last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a proposed rule with request for public comment to prohibit covered financial institutions from charging nonsufficient funds fees (NSF) for payment...more
1/29/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insufficient Funds ,
Overdraft Fees ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulation Z ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
On January 2, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed an amicus curiae brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to reverse a district court’s decision finding that a debt collector lacked the...more
1/23/2024
/ Amicus Briefs ,
Automatic Stay ,
Bankruptcy Code ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Creditors ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Scienter ,
Statutory Violations
Information furnishers, beware. A potential rule under consideration by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is explicitly aimed at opening a new era of Fair Credit Reporting Act class actions against companies that...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released its 14th annual report to Congress in fulfillment of its requirements under the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act. For the...more
12/21/2023
/ CARD Act ,
Colleges ,
Consumer Financial Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Educational Institutions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Late Fees ,
New Regulations ,
Students ,
Universities
On December 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it had reached a settlement with medical debt collector Commonwealth Financial Systems, Inc. (Commonwealth) in its lawsuit over alleged illegal debt...more
12/19/2023
/ Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Debt ,
Debt Collection ,
Debt Collectors ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Medical Debt ,
Settlement