The case is Stephens v. Am. Arb. Ass’n Inc., No. CV-25-01650, 2026 WL 878981 (D. Ariz. Mar. 31, 2026). Here’s a paragraph from the opinion on the antitrust claim: With regard to the first element of Plaintiffs’ claim under § 2 of the Sherman Act— monopoly power in the relevant market—the AAA states in its […]
Author Archives: Jeff Sovern
That’s the report from Douglas Gillison. According to the story, the administration did that in February, the same month in which the administration argued to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that its decisions concerning the CFPB were not final and so not reviewable. A decision that the Bureau won’t have an office sounds pretty […]
So American Banker’s Kate Berry reports. So now the settlement will be re-negotiated and the victims will get something, right? If only. From the article: [T]he Justice Department said it would proceed without court oversight, using a federal provision that does not require the court’s involvement. Harmeet K. Dhillon, DOJ’s assistant attorney general in the […]
Here, by Zach Despart. Excerpt: Three years later, the Trump administration and Colony Ridge are on the verge of resolving the case. But the $68 million proposed settlement provides no money for victims of the alleged scheme. Instead, it sets aside $20 million for policing and immigration enforcement — a provision that may be used […]
UC Berkeley School of Law is holding a symposium on surveillance pricing on Friday April 24 which will be both in person and livestreamed. Here’s the announcement: Spring 2026 California Law Review Symposium Surveillance Prices & Wages Friday, April 24, 2026 9:00am-4:30pm UC Berkeley School of Law Warren Room Reception to follow from 4:30-6:00pm Please RSVP by Friday, April […]
Brad Lipton of the Roosevelt Institute has written Statutory Hammers: Legislative Drafting in an Age of Cynical Litigation, Harvard Law School Journal of Legislation. Here is the abstract: Over the past decade, cynical litigation in our federal courts has fundamentally altered the operation of the administrative state. Agency rulemaking now unfolds against a backdrop of forum […]
Last year, the Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law held an all-star symposium on debt, revolving around five recent books on the subject, including books by consumer law scholars Pat McCoy, Pamela Foohey, and Melissa B. Jacoby. The Symposium articles are now available, with pieces by Norman I. Silber, Edward J. Janger, A. […]
As we noted on April Fool’s Day, the CFPB has proposed to the court a dramatic cut in the CFPB staffing. If only it were in fact an Apri Fool. American Banker’s Kate Berry has more here. Bloomberg’s Evan Weinberger has this paragraph in his story on the proposal: The cuts may still be “draconian,” […]
On the Ballard Spahr Consumer Finance Monitor podcast: an interview with the NY Department of Financial Services’ Max Dubin, Chief of Staff to the Acting Superintendent of Banking. With the CFPB’s sidelining, state regulatory agencies have become even more important, and New York, aside from being a large market, may foreshadow what other states do.
The proposal is here. It can’t go into effect until the preliminary injunction in the NTEU case is lifted. The administration claims the plan would “allow CFPB to continue meeting its statutory obligations while expanding on the reforms that have dramatically increased its efficiency and stewardship of taxpayer funds, in line with Presidential and Congressional […]

