On January 5, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) issued a civil investigative demand (“CID”) to The Source for Public Data, L.P. (“Public Data”), a company that collects personal information about consumers. The CID requested information to determine whether consumer reporting agencies, persons using consumer reports, or other persons have engaged or are … Continue Reading
In its decision in Kokesh v. SEC, issued on Monday, June 5, 2017, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that “disgorgement” of ill-gotten gains by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) is a “penalty” within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 2462. As a result, disgorgement is unavailable to the SEC in judicial proceedings involving conduct … Continue Reading
On May 24, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit held en banc oral argument in the rehearing of PHH Corp., et al. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“PHH”). The lively oral argument extended well beyond the time originally allotted by the Court, as lawyers for PHH, the Department of Justice, and … Continue Reading
On April 26, 2017, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) filed a complaint against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) and Comptroller of the Currency Thomas J. Curry to block the agency from going forward with its proposal to grant special purpose national bank charters to fintech companies. The CSBS filed … Continue Reading
On April 21, 2017, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that a civil investigative demand (“CID”) issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau against the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (“ACICS”) was overly broad and unenforceable. The D.C. Circuit’s decision sets an important precedent … Continue Reading
On March 17, 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a Brief for the United States as Amicus Curiae in PHH Corporation v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 839 F.3d 1 (D.C. Cir. 2016), a case challenging the constitutionality of the CFPB’s single-director structure pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia … Continue Reading
As we previously discussed, on February 16, 2017, the D.C. Circuit granted rehearing en banc in PHH v. CFPB and vacated the holding from the three-judge panel that the CFPB’s single director structure was unconstitutional. Through an unopposed motion filed on March 3, 2017, the Office of the Solicitor General (“SG”) requested an extension to file … Continue Reading
See our article in Law360, Reconsidering PHH v. CFPB, regarding the D.C. Circuit’s decision yesterday to vacate an order finding that the CFPB’s structure is unconstitutional. We also covered the decision here.… Continue Reading
The D.C. Circuit today granted rehearing en banc in PHH Corp., et al. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“PHH”), vacating the prior order that, among other things, found the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (“CFPB”) structure unconstitutional. The court directed the parties to brief a set of questions related to: the constitutionality of the Bureau’s structure; … Continue Reading
See our article in BNA’s Banking Report, Defining ‘Abusive’ Acts and Practices, which sheds light on the prohibition on ‘‘abusive’’ acts or practices in the Dodd-Frank Act. The article first appeared in BNA’s Banking Report on February 13, 2017.… Continue Reading
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently issued a rare decision on a bank’s ability to challenge its supervisory ratings—in this case, its Federal Deposit Insurance Company (“FDIC”) Capital, Assets, Management, Earnings, Liquidity and Sensitivity (“CAMELS”) rating—in court. See Builders Bank v. FDIC, — F.3d —, 2017 WL 237585 (7th Cir. 2017) … Continue Reading
On February 6, the FTC, along with the State of New Jersey, announced a settlement with TV-maker VIZIO related to VIZIO’s alleged data collection practices on millions of its ‘smart,’ network-connected TVs. According to the complaint, VIZIO collected information on consumers which it then shared with third parties, without sufficiently disclosing the data collection and … Continue Reading
On February 7, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the New York Attorney General filed a complaint in federal court accusing companies RD Legal Funding, LLC, RD Legal Finance, LLC, and RD Legal Funding Partners, LP (collectively, “RD Legal”) and their principal, Roni Dersovitz, of misleading consumers regarding advances made on payouts from … Continue Reading
As discussed in prior posts, the CFPB has petitioned the D.C. Circuit for re-hearing by the full court of the October 2016 ruling by a three-judge panel of the court in PHH v. CFPB. The panel determined that it is unconstitutional for the CFPB to be led by a single director who may only be … Continue Reading
As we previously discussed, in October 2016, a 3-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit reviewing an enforcement action by the CFPB determined that the Bureau’s director is subject to at-will removal by the President. The Bureau subsequently petitioned for re-hearing before the full court. Late last week, following a motion to intervene by several state … Continue Reading
The Attorneys General (“AG”) of 16 states and the District of Columbia moved today to intervene in the CFPB’s appeal of the D.C. Circuit’s PHH ruling finding the Bureau unconstitutional. The matter is currently under consideration for en banc review and the AGs indicated that they do not intend to file briefs until and unless … Continue Reading
In what might prove to be one of Richard Cordray’s final acts as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Bureau announced on Thursday that it was suing TCF National Bank, a $21 billion depository institution, in federal court for practices involving TCF’s overdraft program. This enforcement action marks the first time the Bureau … Continue Reading
Today Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and others voiced their opposition to any attempt by President-elect Donald Trump to oust Richard Cordray, the current Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), before Cordray’s term ends in July 2018. They also sent a letter to Cordray outlining and praising his … Continue Reading
As we discussed in a recent client alert, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held on December 27, 2016, in Bandimere v. SEC, that the Securities and Exchange Commission’s use of administrative law judges (“ALJs”) to adjudicate enforcement actions is unconstitutional. The decision has created a circuit split that breathes new life … Continue Reading
As we noted in a recent post, the CFPB has sought reconsideration of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in PHH Corp., et al. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In that decision, the D.C. Circuit ruled unconstitutional the provision of the Dodd-Frank Act establishing that the CFPB Director could be fired only “for cause,” … Continue Reading
The CFPB issued a compliance bulletin on November 28, 2016 warning supervised companies about the potential compliance risks of production and sales incentives provided to employees and service providers. Although the CFPB “invite[d] further dialogue and discussion,” the bulletin highlights incentive practices as a continued area of scrutiny for the CFPB. In recent testimony to … Continue Reading
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is set to begin its trial of Donald R. Wilson and his proprietary trading firm, DRW Investments, LLC on December 1, 2016. In advance of this trial, this alert provides the legal theory that will be tested during this trial and other observations related to the CFTC’s pursuit of attempted … Continue Reading
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) is undertaking a study of the asset management market, which manages GBP 6.9 trillion, and is the second largest market in the world after the US. The rationale for the study is to ensure, as part of the FCA’s overall purview, that the UK market works well. As part … Continue Reading
On November 17, 2016, a federal court entered a consent order that will settle the civil case the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) brought against Navinder Singh Sarao and his company, Nav Sarao Futures Limited PLC, for engaging in a “spoofing” scheme and manipulating the price of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s E-mini S&P 500 futures … Continue Reading
