unfair – Consumer Financial Services Watch

COVID-19: Emergency Regulations Do Not Pass Constitutional Muster

May 13 2020

Federal Judge Enjoins Enforcement of Massachusetts Attorney General’s Debt Collection Ban Under First Amendment

By Sean R. Higgins, John ReVeal, and Hollee M. Boudreau

In response to the COVID-19 emergency, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (“AGO”) issued a set of emergency regulations [1] intended to broadly prohibit certain debt collection activities in Massachusetts, including prohibitions against initiating debt collection calls or lawsuits, during the pendency of the COVID-19 emergency. [2] On May 6, 2020, U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns enjoined the AGO’s enforcement of those regulations as an unconstitutional restraint on commercial free speech. The court found that the AGO’s broad prohibitions violated the constitutional rights of creditors and debt collectors in Massachusetts without providing any meaningful protections to consumers greater than those afforded by existing state and federal consumer protection laws. [3]

COVID-19: The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office Issues Emergency Regulations Significantly Limiting Debt Collection in Massachusetts During Pandemic

Apr 20 2020

By Sean R. Higgins, John ReVeal, and Hollee M. Boudreau

The rapid spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) has caused unprecedented disruptions to the U.S. economy, both at the state and national levels.

On March 10, 2020, the Governor of Massachusetts declared a State of Emergency, imposed stringent social distancing measures, and ordered all “non-essential” businesses to cease in-person operations.[1] While these measures were intended to mitigate the impact of COVID-19, they also have caused many Massachusetts residents to experience significant financial hardships.

COVID-19: Defending Class Actions in Massachusetts in the Wake of COVID-19

Apr 14 2020

By Brian M. Forbes, Robert W. Sparkes, III, and Michael R. Creta

The novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) has caused severe business disruptions throughout Massachusetts. Many companies doing business in Massachusetts have been forced to indefinitely shut their doors, while others are facing supply problems or decreased product demand. In addition to navigating these choppy economic waters, business leaders must also consider the risks likely to follow the current crisis.

CFPB Left with Rulemaking to Modify or Delay Payday Rule

Jun 14 2018

By: Jennifer Janeira Nagle, Robert W. Sparkes, Scott B. Hefferman

On Tuesday, June 12, 2018, a Texas federal judge denied a joint request from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and two payday-lending trade groups to stay the August 2019 deadline for industry compliance with the Payday Loan Rule (the “Rule”). The decision was issued in Community Financial Services Association of America, Ltd., v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, No. 1:18-cv-295-LY, an action that was filed in April 2018 by the trade groups against the CFPB, seeking to invalidate the Rule as arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act (“APA”), among other things. (For more about the litigation, click here.) In late May 2018, the plaintiff trade groups and the defendant CFPB jointly asked the Court to stay the Rule’s compliance deadline, but the Court’s decision Tuesday quickly and summarily rejected that request. The Court stayed only the litigation, leaving August 2019 as the operative date for industry participants to comply with the Rule.

Another Shot at the Target: CFPB Payday Loan Rule Faces New Challenge from Trade Groups

Apr 11 2018

By Jennifer Janeira Nagle, Robert W. Sparkes, III, Hayley Trahan-Liptak

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Payday Loan Rule (the “Rule”), with a looming compliance deadline in August 2019, is facing yet another attack—this time from trade groups seeking relief directly from the courts. On April 9, 2018, two payday lending industry trade associations — the Community Financial Services Association of America, Ltd. and the Consumer Services Alliance of Texas — filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and its Acting Director, Mick Mulvaney, seeking an order enjoining and setting aside the Rule.

CFPB Releases “Mortgage Origination Examination Procedures” Governing Banks and Nonbanks – Not a Prelude to a Kiss

Jan 20 2012

By: Jonathan D. Jaffe

The CFPB wants to get to know you – well. But it’s not a prelude to a kiss.

On January 12, 2012, the CFPB released its new Mortgage Origination Examination Procedures Governing Banks and Nonbanks (the “Procedures”). The release of the Procedures follows close on the heels of the CFPB’s October 13, 2011 release of its mortgage servicing examination procedures (see The CFPB Mortgage Servicing Examination Procedures Fail to Harmonize – Isn’t It Ironic? ), and its January 5, 2012 announcement of its nonbank supervision program (see CFPB Officially Launches Nonbank Supervision Program). Read More

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