November 2014 – Page 2 – Consumer Financial Services Watch

2014 Election Guide: A Guide to Changes in Congress

Nov 05 2014

Riding a wave of voter discontent, Republicans in the mid-term election took control of the U.S. Senate and increased their majority in the House. The results offer an opportunity for collaboration between the Congress and the Obama Administration, and to restart the legislative process.

To help you assess yesterday’s election, K&L Gates has prepared a comprehensive guide that summarizes the results and their impact on the 114th Congress, which will convene in January. The Election Guide lists all new members elected to Congress, updates the congressional delegations for each state, and provides a starting point for assessing the coming changes to the House and Senate committees.

Please click here to download the most up-to-date version of the 130 page Election Guide, which will be updated on an ongoing basis as more of the close races are called and committees are finalized. Read More

U.S. District Court Strikes Down HUD’s Fair Housing Act Disparate Impact Rule

Nov 04 2014

By: Paul F. Hancock, Andrew C. Glass, Roger L. Smerage, and Olivia Kelman

On Monday, November 3, 2014, Judge Richard J. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia struck down the disparate impact rule promulgated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) in March 2013 under the Fair Housing Act. The court held that HUD had issued the rule—codified at 24 C.F.R. § 100.500—in contravention of the plain language of the Fair Housing Act. The case is styled American Insurance Association, et al. v. United States Department of Housing & Urban Development, et al., Case No. 1:13-cv-00966-RJL (D.D.C.).

Get Ready to Be Acquired

Nov 04 2014

By: Robert P. Zinn

Acquisition for payments startups and growing companies is a fact of life. And, whether acquisition is your reason for being or you want to grow old with the company you’ve founded, it’s best to be prepared. This article will tell you why early preparation is important and practical things you can do prepare—before live bullets are flying and a sale transaction is at hand.

To read the full article, click here.

The 2015 U.S. News-Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” Survey

Nov 03 2014

For a fifth consecutive year, global law firm K&L Gates LLP is among the top two law firms with the most first-tier rankings in the annual U.S. News-Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” survey. The firm also has been honored for a second straight year with the publication’s sole national “Law Firm of the Year” distinction in the Securities Regulation area, one of 35 practices in which K&L Gates received a first-tier ranking nationally. Of these national first-tier rankings, the Consumer Financial Services practice was acknowledged within the Banking and Finance Law and Financial Services Regulation Law categories. Read More

Archive:November 2014