Author Archives: Jeff Sovern

Survey Results for the Content of Consumer Law Classes III

by Jeff Sovern I posted on SSRN the results of the survey I previously blogged about, The Content of Consumer Law Classes III.  This follows similar surveys in 2008 and 2010 (I bet you can guess what their titles are).  The abstract for the new version reads as follows: This paper reports on a 2018 survey of law […]

CFPB Drops Another Matter

by Jeff Sovern According to HousingWire, the CFPB has informed Zillow that it is dropping its investigation into Zillow for RESPA violations. We know about this because of a Zillow SEC filing. We will never know how many CFPB investigations have been dropped into companies that are not subject to SEC filing requirements. Nor can […]

Industry Publication Reports Mulvaney “Lobbying Hard” for Kraninger and Infers that Kraninger Will Carry on Mulvaney’s Legacy

by Jeff Sovern AccountsRecovery.Net has a story, Mulvaney Lobbying Hard For Kraninger, Despite Saying He Wants To Stay Out of Process, which reports: Mulvaney has spoken out publicly in favor of Kraninger’s nomination and the report [in The Hill] said that Mulvaney has reached out to several Republican members of the Senate Banking Committee, which will […]

Paper on Improvident Student Lending

Joseph Sanders and Vijay Raghavan, both of the Office of the Illinois Attorney General have written Improvident Student Lending, Utah Law Review (2018). Here is the abstract: The idea that lending without regard to ability to repay should be illegal is not particularly new, but it gained purchase in recent years with the rapid growth of high-cost […]

Fleming on the History of Truth in Lending

Anne Fleming of Georgetown has written The Long History of 'Truth in Lending', 30 Journal of Policy History (2018).  Here's the abstract: This article offers the first comprehensive history of the development of mandatory disclosure rules for the cost of consumer credit. In contrast to prior studies, which begin with the creation of federal disclosure rules […]

What does Judge Preska’s decision striking down the CFPB mean for consumers?

by Jeff Sovern Allison blogged earlier about Judge Preska's decision striking down the CFPB as unconstitutional and I've been wondering what it means for consumers. I hope some of our readers will offer their own thoughts in the comments, because I'm still trying to figure this out. As a formal matter, in terms of the […]

Report that Kraninger “likely was deeply involved” in the Zero-Tolerance Immigration Policy

by Jeff Sovern Kate Berry in the American Banker is reporting that the nominee to run the CFPB, Kathy Kraninger "likely was deeply involved in President Trump's "zero-tolerance" immigration policy, according to former officials with the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Homeland Security." Meanwhile, a WSJ editorial argues that Kraninger "has more […]

Politics and Kraninger’s Nomination

Is Kraninger's nomination really a ploy to extend Mulvaney's leadership of the Bureau? That's an issue discussed in Roll Call's article, Despite New CFPB Nominee, Mulvaney Could Be Around a Long Time.  Excerpt: “I think there’s a strategy here that is steeped in the lore of federal appointments,” said Morrison & Foerster attorney Oliver Ireland. […]

Inside the Selection of Kathy Kraninger

by Jeff Sovern We received the following transcript from Canadian intelligence services of White House deliberations between two unidentified people: A: Who should we pick to run the BCFP? B: Can't Mick just stay on? A: Not past this week. B: Too bad. He's done a great job. Wait until you see the bank campaign […]

White House says it will nominate Kraninger to head CFPB

by Jeff Sovern Various outlets are reporting that it will be Kraninger.  At least one conservative objects to the appointment.  Here is an except from the WSJ report: “The nominee is unqualified,” said J.W. Verret, a law professor at George Mason University and former chief economist for Rep. Jeb Hensarling, (R., Texas), head of the […]