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"What 4th Circ. military lending case means for auto finance" by Sasha Leonhardt and Cierra D. Newman (Law360)
A split U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled on April 12 that vehicle financing transactions including guaranteed asset protection, or GAP, plans are exempt from the protections of the Military Lending Act. The MLA's statutory text exempts a credit that is "offered for the express...
Articles"Servicers and the expanding student loan law landscape" by Kathryn Ryan and Magda Gathani (Law360)
Student debt has long been an area of national concern, predating the Biden administration's efforts to reduce it, and the matter's subsequent landing in the U.S. Supreme Court. As a result of the ensuing scrutiny, student loan servicers are now subject to ever-increasing regulatory and licensing...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: CFPB’s RESPA advisory addresses online mortgage-comparison platforms
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued guidance yesterday making clear that those who operate or participate in online mortgage-comparison shopping platforms will be closely scrutinized for compliance with the prohibition on payments for referrals to mortgage lenders. “Companies...
Special Alerts"Scrutiny over dark patterns presents further challenges in online contracting" by Sherry-Maria Safchuk, Edward W. Somers, and Melina W. Montellanos (CSLR)
The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (ESIGN) Act and its state analogue, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA), have played a transformative role advancing e-com- merce in the United States for more than two decades. Provisions of the ESIGN Act contain safe- guards...
Articles"How Cos. can ease risk amid 'dark pattern' regulatory focus" by Elizabeth E. McGinn, Sherry-Maria Safchuk, and Melina W. Montellanos (Law360)
Federal and state regulators, legislators, and courts have increased their focus on dark patterns — web and mobile design elements that shepherd users to make decisions, often not in their best interest. To avoid consumer dissatisfaction, as well as legal and regulatory risk, companies should...
Articles"U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit finds Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s funding unconstitutional. Now what?" by John R. Coleman, Marshall T. Bell, and Jeffrey P. Naimon (JFAA)
A panel of three Fifth Circuit judges has unanimously held that the CFPB funding structure created by Congress violated the Appropriations Clause of the Constitution, which provides that “no money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.” The panel ruled...
Articles"Compliance considerations after OCC ups fintech scrutiny" by Jon David D. Langlois, Max Bonici, and Marisa Perfetti (Law360)
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency recently noted bank-fintech partnerships as a key element of its fiscal year 2023 bank supervision operating plan, putting both OCC-supervised depository institutions and fintech companies looking to partner with them on notice that their relationships...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: Fifth Circuit finds CFPB funding unconstitutional — Now what?
The Fifth Circuit ruled last night in CFSA v. CFPB that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s funding structure is unconstitutional, triggering a potential wave of implications discussed below. The holdings A panel of three Fifth Circuit judges unanimously held that the CFPB funding structure...
Special Alerts"How to navigate a CFPB administrative proceeding" by John R. Coleman (The Review of Banking & Financial Services)
After a slow start, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) Director Rohit Chopra’s enforcement program appears to be gaining steam. The CFPB has aggressively enforced federal consumer financial law during its short history, with an average of more than 30 public enforcement...
Articles"Expect greater regulatory scrutiny of crypto-asset activities" by Kathryn L. Ryan, Gordon L. Miller, and Max Bonici (Law360)
In mid-August, the Federal Reserve issued guidance on crypto-asset and related activities, joining the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in alerting their supervised entities that they must provide written notice before engaging in this space...
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