On December 28, 2018, the Attorneys General (AGs) of all 50 states and the District of Columbia announced a settlement totaling $575 million with a national bank as the result of a coordinated investigation by the States. The national bank previously entered into consent orders and settlements totaling $1 billion…
On December 28, 2018, the Massachusetts Division of Banks (“Division”) entered into a consent agreement with a licensed debt collector to resolve allegations that it had engaged in debt collection practices that were not compliant with applicable state law. The consent agreement follows a compliance examination of the company. The…
On December 27, 2018, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (AG) announced that it had entered into a consent order with an auto lender, resolving allegations that the lender violated the Massachusetts Cost of Consumer Credit Disclosure Act. The AG alleged that an investigation uncovered that the lender required consumers to…
On December 14, the Florida Attorney General (AG) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a $23 million federal district court judgment against the owner of an Orlando-based “robocall” operation. The massive robocall operation tricked consumers into paying upfront fees of $500 to $1500 for false credit card interest-rate-reduction and debt-elimination services,…
On December 12, 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a $14.5 million settlement of a whistleblower suit alleging False Claims Act violations against a lender who endorsed loans for insurance by the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”). The settlement resolves an investigation triggered by a qui tam lawsuit filed by a former employee of the…
On December 11, 2018, the Massachusetts Division of Banks (“Division”) entered into a consent agreement with a California small loan company and licensed debt collector to resolve allegations that the company had collected interest in excess of the maximum amount permitted under state law. The consent agreement follows a compliance…
On December 7, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced settlements with the operators of two Florida-based student loan debt relief companies and their principals in connection with its coordinated federal-state enforcement initiative to target deceptive student loan debt relief scams, called “Operation Game of Loans.” In September and October 2017, the FTC…
On December 7, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida had entered stipulated orders banning the operators of two Florida-based student loan debt relief providers from the debt relief business, the latest actions from the Operation Game of Loans enforcement initiative targeting…
On December 6, 2018, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (“CFPB”) announced that it had entered into a consent order with a federal savings association headquartered in Bloomington, Ill. According to the consent order, the CFPB alleged that the savings association violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq.,…
On December 6, 2018, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (“CFPB”) announced that two days earlier it had filed a complaint and stipulated final judgment and order against a Nevada-based non-bank mortgage company in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. The mortgage company allegedly violated the Consumer Financial Protection…