On July 25, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the New York Attorney General (“New York AG”) announced that they have filed two proposed settlements with three debt collection companies and two individuals who conducted business together in Buffalo, New York. The proposed settlements were filed in the U.S. District Court for…
On July 23, 2019, Delaware’s Department of Justice, Consumer Protection Unit (“Delaware CPU”) announced that it reached a settlement with two-California based companies that would require them to cease advertising and selling loan modification and debt relief services in the state of Delaware. According to the cease and desist agreement, the companies and their…
On July 19, 2019, the Georgia Attorney General’s Office (AG) announced that it had entered into a settlement with a company allegedly offering unlawful and deceptive credit repair services in violation of the Georgia Fair Business Practices Act. According to the AG, Georgia law generally forbids the provision of credit…
On July 11, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had obtained a temporary restraining order against defendants operating an alleged student loan debt relief scheme that, according to the FTC, tricked thousands of consumers by making false claims that it would service and pay down their student…
On July 11, 2019, the Massachusetts Office of Attorney General Maura Healey announced that a for-profit educational institution and its parent company would provide over $1.6 million in debt relief to settle claims that it did not provide its students with critical information on program job placement, loan repayment, and…
On July 17, 2019, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (Ohio AG) announced that it and the FTC had secured a temporary restraining order from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas against two companies that allegedly defrauded consumers struggling with credit card debt out of millions of dollars. The complaint alleged that…
On July 3, 2019, in Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC (No. 18-1827), the Fourth Circuit ruled that a small dollar lender affiliated with the Lake Superior Chippewa Indian Tribe (Tribe) was entitled to tribal sovereign immunity from state interest rate laws as an “arm of the tribe,” dismissing a…
On July 9, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it settled its lawsuit against the nation’s largest debt-settlement services provider for allegedly engaging in deceptive debt-settlement acts or practices. The company agreed to pay $20 million in restitution to affected consumers and a $5 million civil money penalty….
On May 28, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. v. Jackson, 578 U.S. ___ (2019), holding that third-party counterclaim defendants cannot remove under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA), even if the claim satisfies CAFA’s other jurisdictional requirements. CAFA allows for removal by…
On June 6, 2019, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a declaratory ruling providing voice service providers with the authority to automatically enroll consumers for call blocking programs that identify and block unwanted telephone calls. This ruling is effective immediately. The ruling comes at a time when unwanted call volume…
On July 1, 2019, New York Attorney General Letitia James (“New York AG”) announced that together with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), the agencies had entered into a settlement with a debt collection company, a related entity, and corporate officers to resolve a case filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of New…