We publish and produce a steady stream of information on news and developments in the consumer financial services space to help our clients stay ahead of the curve. Our blogs, podcasts and other resources include:
- Consumer Financial Service Law Monitor – Monitoring the financial services industry to help companies navigate regulatory compliance, enforcement, and litigation issues.
- The Consumer Finance Podcast – Weekly podcast providing reliable, insightful, and entertaining industry-specific content central to consumer financials services.
- FCRA Focus – Podcast dedicated to discussing all things related to the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
- Moving the Metal: The Auto Finance Podcast – Podcast which delivers trends, regulatory updates, and key issues impacting auto finance.
- Payment Pros – The Payments Law Podcast – Podcast focused on the legal and regulatory issues confronting companies in the payments industry.
Our firm’s comprehensive legal tracking service is designed to help financial institutions stay current with regulatory and legislative changes in three key areas:
- Debt Collection
- Privacy + Data Security
- Consumer Reporting + FCRA Case Law
Delivered directly to your inbox, these trackers include an overview of the most important changes and analyses on the potential impact to your business. A subscription to one or more trackers includes a monthly one-hour call with our attorneys, who will provide additional insights and be available to answer your questions.
Please click here to learn more about and subscribe to this service.
Our trial attorneys are national leaders in the consumer financial services industry. We have handled thousands of individual and class cases across the U.S., including the following illustrative experience:
- Represented national, regional, and local banks, a national credit reporting agency, credit furnishers, debt collectors and buyers, auto finance companies, background screening companies and prospective employers, mortgage lenders and services, data brokers and aggregators, and other related consumer finance entities against claims in 1,500+ individual and putative class claims in federal courts across the U.S. under the FCRA, FDCPA, TCPA, ECOA, TILA, EFTA, E-Sign, FTC Holder Rule, Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, HAMP, HOEPA, RESPA, SCRA, state consumer protection acts.
- Defended retail and wholesale background screening companies and prospective employers in 20+ national class actions for alleged FCRA violations.
- Represented a national debt collection firm in 700+ plaintiff “mass action” for claims of numerous FDCPA violations including allegations of robo-signing of affidavits for collection of default judgments.
- Defended an international bank in 250+ individual lawsuits, mass actions, and class actions alleging violations of the TCPA and FDCPA for failure to obtain express prior consent to call cellular telephone with an auto-dialer and failing to discontinue calls when supposedly asked in alleged violation of the TCPA.
- Represented a Fortune 100 national bank nationwide against claims of unfair and deceptive acts and practices relating to the financing of consumer transactions.
- Served as regional litigation defense counsel for a top five mortgage servicer for TILA, RESPA and foreclosure claims.
Regulatory Enforcement
Federal and state regulators repeatedly make news with their enforcement, investigatory, and regulatory actions suggesting consumer protection laws have never posed more of a risk to financial service businesses. We are skilled and equipped to successfully interact and negotiate with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), state attorneys general, and other state regulators. Our enforcement experience includes:
- Defended a national debt collector in a 42-state attorneys general investigation relating to its collection practices, including coordinating the debt collector’s response to the associated subpoenas issued by the state participants.
- Represented a tribal lending organization in challenging a CFPB civil investigative demand alleging violations of numerous consumer protection laws and regulations; the case was a matter of first impression as to whether the CFPB has jurisdiction over Native American tribes that are conducting a tribal consumer lending business; our engagement also included a U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General investigation, and responding to a grand jury subpoena from a U.S. Attorney’s office, as well as numerous other matters.
- Represented a debt collector in CFPB audit requiring substantial involvement in preparing responses to CFPB’s information and document requests.
- Represented a national consumer reporting agency in a multistate investigation regarding an investigation into its credit reporting and dispute resolution policies.
- Represented a national workforce staffing agency in its response to a CFPB civil investigative demand targeted at payroll practices.
- Represented a financial institution in FTC investigations concerning a variety of matters, including consumer privacy/data security breaches as well as alleged deceptive or abusive practices by telemarketers, third-party payment processors and similar parties.
- Represented a leading electronic payments processor in numerous investigation/enforcement matters, including a U.S. Department of Justice investigation, responding to subpoenas in multiple states, assistance with civil investigative demands from federal authorities, and litigation matters.
Compliance
We routinely assist clients in addressing their company’s overall compliance risks consisting of comprehensive compliance counseling. Examples of our regulatory compliance experience include:
- Advising a range of companies, such as a national background investigation company, a national retailer, debt buyers and sellers, and a specialized financial services company, on Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B (Reg B), Truth in Lending Act (TILA), Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) and E-Sign, Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act (HOEPA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), Regulation Z (Reg Z), Risk Based Pricing Rule, and state analog statutory compliance obligations.
- Regularly counseling the nation’s largest used car retailer in numerous state and federal compliance issues.
- Providing legal counsel to numerous national debt collectors on their affidavit process including addressing personal knowledge challenges.
- Counseling national banks on morphing regulatory changes impacting mortgage servicing.
- Representing national managed health care company for TCPA compliance issues.
Business and Product Development
- Counseling and preparation of documentation, disclosures, and procedures for various types of consumer finance products, including traditional products such as standard adjustable-rate mortgage loans and home equity lines of credit, to innovative reverse-annuity mortgage products and price-level-adjustable mortgages, asset-management accounts, and financial products delivered over the internet.
- Multiple transactions with tribally sponsored lenders that enter into relationships with marketers and service providers to make loans on a 50-state basis.
- Currently representing a national provider of alternative consumer loan products that often partners with banks. Our attorneys advised the company in designing open-and closed-end consumer loan products for consumers who do not typically qualify for traditional consumer credit options.
- Counseled a major eastern U.S. bank on state law compliance advice related to new product launches; and fair lending compliance advice on current loan documentation.
- Prepared the program documents for a nationwide mortgage lender’s correspondent purchase program.
- Multiple transactions with a Delaware state charted bank that developed relationships with marketers to offer credit cards, installment loans, insurance policy loans, and other types of lending products nationwide.
Each year, we publish a compendium analyzing notable cases and other developments from the prior year, along with a forecast of what we expect to see in the year ahead. Below is an archive of past issues:
